What happens when you let yourself go

There is a moment in a portrait session when everything changes. Not dramatically, not visibly. But you feel it. The shoulders drop a couple of centimetres. The breathing gets a little calmer. You are simply there.

That moment cannot be planned. It comes about by itself, if the conditions are right. And once it is there, you see it back in the photos straight away.

What that looks like in practice

Picture this: you have just arrived for a portrait session. You have been slightly dreading it. You do not know what to expect. There is coffee. You are asked how your journey was, how your day is going, what is on your mind.

No photos are being made yet. There is talking. About all sorts of things. Sometimes serious, sometimes light. And somewhere in that conversation you briefly forget why you actually came. You are just talking with someone.

And only then, at the moment you are ready for it, does the camera come out.

That sounds simple. But it is a deliberate choice. A choice to take the time. Not to start straight away. To be a person first and a photographer second.

What then changes in your face

When you are relaxed, your face relaxes with you. The small muscles around your eyes let go. Your jaw softens. Your mouth sits differently.

That sounds technical, but the result is simple: you look the way you look in real life. Not the way you look when you are doing your best to look good.

Charissa Promes had plenty of shoots behind her and was not easily impressed. But afterwards she said: “I have never seen myself like this before.”

That is what can happen when the situation is right. You see yourself in a way you did not know yet.

It is not soft, it is effective

People sometimes think that a lot of talking and taking things calmly is a bit woolly. That a photographer should just make photos and not play therapist.

But that is not the point. The point is effectiveness. If you are relaxed, the photos are better. Full stop.

Babette Venmans put it plainly and directly: “If you get the chance to work with Michiel: do it. Without a doubt. An extremely professional photographer who knows exactly what he is doing. His eye for detail, his calm and his craftsmanship guarantee a beautiful result.”

Calm is not weakness. Calm is craftsmanship.

What you take home afterwards

Something people sometimes find surprising: a good portrait session gives you something that goes further than a folder of photos.

You have taken half a day for yourself. You have talked, laughed, thought. You have seen yourself in a way you did not know. And you have had the time to step out of your daily rhythm for a moment.

That sounds like a side effect. But for many people it is exactly the part that stays with them most.

Milan Walraven wrote after his session: “From the very first moment Michiel created a relaxed and warm atmosphere. He really puts you completely at ease so as to bring out the best in you. And the result is beautiful.”

The result and the process together. That is what a good portrait session consists of.

And if you are still unsure?

Then that is fine. Doubt is normal. Certainly if you are not used to being in front of a camera, or if earlier photos have disappointed you.

In the next and last post in this series I explain exactly what PAUSE is. What happens during a session, who it is for and what you can expect. No detours.

Curious what a session looks like in practice? PAUSE is half a day of portraiture with calm and conversation as its basis. The photos are the result, but the process is worth just as much. Read all about PAUSE.