Believe That You Are Beautiful | San Jose Bay Area Empowering Women- Photographer

Last year I had the honor of photographing Miss K. I’m going to be straight up with this- she was nervous, shy, doubtful and couldn’t see her beauty.

She isn’t the first client to feel this way about herself and she won’t be my last. Honestly, it’s a hard struggle for both of us. That frustration in seeing such a kind and beautiful women who is lost in self doubt and insecurities, is a hard one. The voices in her head remained throughout the shoot but I could see that twinkle in her eye grow with each new set. It was a look of wanting. Wanting to believe my words as I instinctively complimented her and got excited over certain shots. Wanting to feel beautiful. Wanting to let go and believe in herself. She put her trust in me. That was a big step for her. She allowed me to take control and guide her through it.

Then the day of her reveal came. “No, no, nope, no, maybe, no…” and my heart sank. Her first pass through her images and she rejected almost every single one. I was stunned. The shots were amazing and I couldn’t wrap my head around what she might have been thinking. What was she seeing that I wasn’t? Or better yet, what couldn’t she see that I did? She went through them again “Maybe, okay, no, nope. Maybe…” It was an improvement. Then, she slowly went through them again “Yes, maybe, okay, yes, yes, YES. I just, I can’t believe this is me! I’m really not used to seeing myself like this. It’s just so different to see myself with makeup and my hair… I really like this one…” and there it was, that sparkle in her eye was back. She allowed herself to look and feel beautiful. She allowed herself to like what she saw.

In the end, she added images to her album.

I will never know the depths of her story. Why she hurt, why she was so critical of herself or why she needed this so much, but I am thankful that I was the photographer she chose. Thank you so much Miss K for trusting me and allowing me to share your amazing images. Hopefully this will encourage other women to do the same; to believe in themselves and love what they see.

So here they are, so many of her beautiful images!