Seriously, whoever is reading this right now, there is only ONE of you (yeah, even if you are a twin!) and guest what? No one can compete with that.

No one has your experiences, your skill-sets, your interests, your personality, your flare, your creative eye and everything else that all comes together to make you, YOU! I know how easy it is to doubt yourself but remember, there is no one like you even if they tried, there’s no comparison to that and that will never change! Use that to your advantage!

We ALL feel self-doubt!!! We all lack confidence! We ALL question ourselves! At some time, at some stage, somehow. (Unless you’re Kanye or some magical fairy unicorn who hasn't fallen into the comparison trap!)

Like going on stage to do a speech, the nerves, the doubt, the lack of confidence, the fear of stuffing up, beating yourself up after, is REAL and it is NORMAL! (and honestly, that’s exactly how I use to feel before EVERY SHOOT), then doubting if my clients will like my images before I send them or kicking myself after for something I didn’t notice or totally forgot during the shoot! Or wondering why we aren’t getting bookings etc. So many of us feel that! Even the people who look like they are kicking butt! But like everything, it does get easier, I promise you!!! (more on how in a bit!)

As photographers, we are SO lucky to do a job we love! And it is AWESOME!!! But remind yourself that it isn’t just a click of a button and like everything it doesn’t happen overnight. Building any career takes time (most take YEARS of study, a LOT of debt and YEARS before even being paid a cent!) So of course it takes time, energy and effort to build your skills, have the confidence, run a business on your own and be “successful”! Let alone if you do so by jumping straight into the deep end (still learning and without a solid foundation of bookings from the start!)

Also, SO much goes into each and every photo let alone running a business!

Understanding how to use your camera.

Work with all types of light and conditions.

Posing.

Directing.

Making people comfortable and not awkward.

Making sure your settings are right (that your shot isn’t too light, too dark, that it’s in focus, that it’s not grainy),

That there’s no random distracting thing in the background.

That there’s no weird hand placement.

Crooked tie.

Hair over the face.

The exact right moment etc

The list is literally endless!

AND YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT ALL OF THAT EVERY SINGLE PHOTO!

Not to mention dealing with difficult subjects.

Keeping clients happy and having SO many things out of your control (weather, lighting, timing etc).

Let’s not even get started on editing, marketing or if you are juggling another job, family, health and just life, on top of ALL the things you can learn photography wise!

Being a photographer is awesome, but it’s a lot of work, it takes time and it’s NOT just a click of a button. So remember to be kind to yourself!!!

Yeah, it’s lame and not the easy or fancy answer but it’s TRUE! As we’ve just said, there’s SO much to it, but the more you shoot, the more you learn, recognise and tackle your struggles in order to grow, the more confidence you will have! It’s as simple as that, so take any and every opportunity you can to analyse, grow, SHOOT and LEARN!

Remember, none of us come out of the womb instantly gifted and able to do everything. Not even the Hemsworth brothers. No-one! Everything takes time and practice! How many years alone did it take before you could even wipe your own butt? That’s a pretty simple and important task that you now take for granted, but that took time and you had to have help with that too!

So recognise your struggles, what needs to be worked on, get help, find ways to grow, do courses, make photographer friends, get a mentor! And with every bit of new knowledge comes more confidence!

Like all of us, you are no doubt your worst critic!!! Generally no one is harsher on us than ourselves! Sure, you might have the odd occasional tricky client, but mostly it’s US who aren’t as happy with our work! So I highly recommend getting a support buddy - whether it’s a photographer friend who understands your struggles or a mentor who can help you with them, or even a friend/partner just to reassure you and cheer you on. Find someone who can give you support when you need it – whether it’s that confidence boost (because trust me, they will genuinely love your work more than you do!) or someone who can give you practical, helpful advice. Either way, find someone to support you on this journey! Because as a photographer especially, running your own business, it can definitely get lonely and can be very overwhelming! Don’t do it alone!

Don’t forget to acknowledge and recognise the things that you are already good at (and enjoy) and also use them to your advantage. Are you better at posing or candid? Working with indoor light or outdoor? Natural light or flash? Great at giving gifts? Creating an awesome or thoughtful experience? Organised or driven? Super open, supportive and fun? (Remember photography is about MORE than just taking photos). What skills do you already have (and feel confident in) that you can use and make the most of?

Not only that, but don’t forget to acknowledge the things you have achieved! We all tend to doubt ourselves by focusing on the things we haven’t done! But mostly that’s because we are all juggling SO many things at once and don’t take the time to appreciate the things we have accomplished! Are you a mum? Trying to keep your kids alive, hair washed, eat healthy, partner happy, butt perky, good at work, good at photography, good at life? I’m proud when I manage to brush my hair that day, and I don’t even have kids!!!

You are no doubt trying to achieve SO many things at once! Sometimes just surviving another day is a huge achievement in itself! Give yourself credit for the things you have done, and try not to beat yourself up for the things you haven’t!

The thing that helped me personally MOST of all was being prepared! It’s not everyone’s approach, but I ALWAYS plan a shoot as much as I can beforehand, especially when I first started. If possible, I always location scout (and have multiple plans for each type of lighting/weather condition), plan exact poses/prompts (memorising 5 fail-safe prompts/poses for all shoots), have the entire shoot laid out in my head and of course get to know my clients. Does it always work out that way? Hell no, but I walk into the shoot feeling way more confident because I know what I’m doing! (or at least I feel like it!) Plus I’d have way less of those “going-blank” moments!

Sure, often there’s different lighting or unexpected things pop up, but because I’ve walked in with confidence and got the basics covered, it was all so much easier, felt less anxiety and easier to feel confident in myself!

I know you don’t always have the choice, but I see it SO OFTEN! People try making a business overnight, instead of allowing their business to grow more organically without the extra stress or pressure (which can lead to so much doubt when things don’t happen as fast as you’d like!)

I get it, you’re probably in a job that you hate and can’t wait to make photography a career! You also probably need the money, a family to support and don’t have the luxury of choosing or having a great job already. But if you can let it grow, while having something else to support you financially until you grow a really strong foundation, often that’s the easiest, most enjoyable way with less issues of self doubt! (Especially in times like these!)

I always get so excited when my students tell me they have another job. Why? Because it allows them to explore their photography from a place of passion, less stress and less pressure, focusing on what they enjoy not what they have to do - which I believe results in more confidence and a much more successful, enjoyable business in the long run.

Sure, jumping in the deep end certainly makes you learn faster, and that might work for some! But I personally see the value in learning to swim first. Imagine throwing a kid in the deep end when they can’t swim vs getting them started in the shallow first, there’s definitely a HUGE difference! Not only in experience, skill but also confidence. (Ps, sorry for that really disturbing analogy, but it proves a point).

If you can, allow yourself to enjoy your photography without the pressure, you’ll struggle less with self doubt and you’ll get where you want to be in a much more enjoyable manner!

Instagram only showing the best of the best! I’m sure we all get stuck in the comparison trap! I certainly do! And how could we not when people only show their best work/best life! But remember - you don’t see 99% of what’s going on behind the scenes, how much didn’t work, what sucks, how many shoots someone actually did for free when it looks like they are super booked out and busy!

It’s easy to think our work, our business, our life is crap when we are only seeing other people’s most awesome curated best self! Which isn’t always real and if it is, that’s probably only 1% of what’s actually going on in their life - just think about the stuff you DON’T see!

Me personally, I would take 6,000 photos per wedding, edit 600, only POST one or two. There are so many shots that NO ONE ever sees (for a good reason!!!). Plus to my friends I probably look like I’m always off on some awesome adventure when really I’m in front of my computer 99% of the time! And let’s not even get started on the comparison of others who have 10’s if not 100’s of thousands of Instagram followers!

So trust me, we all compare, we all think everyone else’s life or business is better. There’s a lot of sh*t photos that never see the light of day! So many people who LOOK like they have a dream life or are busy/successful/happy but you know what, probably aren’t! We ALL have our struggles! No one and no life is perfect! You ONLY see the best bits and they’re not always true!

Also, you have no idea how much time and effort went into that one photo, getting that dream shoot. How many YEARS of learning, refining, stuffing up!!!!! They didn’t just pull that magic out of their butt, it took work (or on the very odd occasion, dumb luck)!

So, remind yourself, it definitely isn’t as good as it looks! And if you find yourself in the comparison trap, I highly recommend muting (or unfollowing) accounts that make you lose confidence and doubt yourself! You will suddenly feel a whole lot lighter and better about yourself when you no longer have that top curated 1% of what people want to show, to compare yourself to!

For those of you who have done my business course, you’ll have seen my early work, and it’s certainly nothing to rave about!! My poor couples! Haha (I shared my full journey and how I improved over time!) It took me years to get to where I am now! (and it all came down to shooting, shooting, shooting!!!) I’ve been doing photography for a decade and I still feel I always have so much to learn! So remember, everyone only shows their most recent best work, but that’s definitely NOT where they started! Trust me!

Also, remember to look at your old work if you need that reminder to see how far you’ve come!!!

Whether it’s likes, comments, even bookings, none of that determines your worth! It is getting harder to be seen, heard and found, especially on social. Every man and literally his dog has an account, the algorithms are always changing, people don’t always have money to book shoots, there are so many other photographers out there and SO many things out of your control, heck, there might even be a pandemic and no one can leave their house let alone book a photographer, but none of those things determine YOUR WORTH!

Just as well!

Just because someone has thousands of followers or likes, doesn’t mean they are actually earning money.

Just because someone looks busy, doesn’t mean they actually are, or are earning a lot of money.

Just because someone is earning a lot, doesn’t mean they have a lot left after expenses, are happy or enjoying what they are doing!

Or maybe they are, but they deserve it because they are working their butt off!

Who knows! All I know, numbers mean NOTHING! They do not define you as a person or the value you give!

And honestly, running a local business, I personally think word of mouth is WAY more important than how many likes you get or followers you have anyway. I never had a big following, always hated being on social and I SUCK at being consistent, my business solely came from people recommending me, because my strength and priority is making personal connections. I LOVE my couples! I LOVE my students!!!! Each and every one of them! I know that I ALWAYS DO MY BEST to make a great experience, make their life easier, do what I can to help. I do things I see value in and try to be a good person so I can know at the end of the day I did ‘good’ or helped someone. Even just one person. That is WAY more important to me than likes, comments or even money (although those things are nice!!!) but it’s not why I do what I do! And because of that, I don’t get as caught up in the numbers game (although I do know how disheartening it can definitely be!)

Why did you get into photography in the first place? Probably because you just loved doing it. Focus on that. Not on others, not on likes, not on bookings!

The more you focus on what you actually LOVE, WHY YOU DO IT, the less you focus you on everything else, everyone else and even focus less on any self-doubt, and often, that’s when things just fall into place! You’ll grow without realising and lack of confidence doesn’t usually get much of a show-in when passion and excitement are in the room!

So really ask yourself what you love doing most and give yourself the time and permission to focus on that! The rest will come :)

Finally a reminder!

BE KIND TO YOURSELF!

We all have struggles, we all have doubts, we all lack confidence in some way! Photography isn’t easy but if you are doing something you LOVE, have people to support you and take every opportunity to learn and grow, it will only get easier, you’ll have more confidence, you will get there!

YOU GOT THIS!