The Art of Seeing Yourself: How a Photoshoot Can Help You Rediscover Who You Are
During a photoshoot last week, a woman asked me, “Do you ever do this for yourself?”
We were just about to begin creating nude images for her album. In that tender moment of undressing (a quiet pause between hesitation and courage) she asked not out of curiosity, but from a desire for understanding. Do you know how this feels? To reveal yourself to another person. To not only bare your body, but to allow the lens to see your soul.
Having your portrait taken is one of the most intimate experiences you can have. I know this feeling deeply, because I’ve been on both sides of the camera.
My career in photography began with self-portraiture, and it has remained a form of therapy for over twenty years. I’ve probably created more than a thousand self-portraits, each one a tiny exploration of who I am. And yet, not a single one has ever captured all of me.
It’s also where I explore new creative ideas. My self-portraits allow me to test lighting setups, fabric movement, and posing angles , to experiment freely without pressure. Often, the poses or compositions I discover through these sessions later become inspiration for my clients’ photoshoots. It’s a way of constantly refining how I guide women into shapes and moods that feel natural, strong, and emotionally resonant. to remind myself how it feels to be on the other side.
Like every woman, I wrestle with self-image and identity. Self-portraiture has been both the problem and the cure, my way of resetting when thoughts spiral. Sometimes I love what I see, sometimes I don’t, but that’s the beauty of it, honest, imperfect, and real.
A photoshoot is full of moments that don’t feel perfect. You might take a hundred shots to find the one that makes your heart stop. The others can be hard to look at, yet that one image becomes something deeply meaningful over time. It takes courage to let your photographer see those in-between moments.
To allow someone else (your photographer) to witness those unflattering frames takes trust. Will they still like me? will they see a part of me I don’t want them to see, that I don’t allow anyone to see?
This need to control how others see us keeps us from ever showing our whole selves, the beautiful, the awkward, the raw.
Many of our women tell us they want their portraits to feel “authentic,” to “look natural,” to “just be myself.”
That’s such a brave request, because being truly yourself means lowering your shields. It means letting yourself be seen. A nude shoot, at its heart, isn’t about nudity at all. It’s about revelation, standing there with nothing to hide behind and allowing someone to see all of you.
In my own self-portraits, I often play with a mix of nudity, body paint and veils — part camouflage, part exposure. It’s that balance between protection and openness that mirrors how we move through life as women.
As photographers, we see all of it — the belly rolls, the awkward arms, the twisted expressions — and we still see beauty. We look at you through a lens of light and artistry, searching for what’s true and beautiful beneath the surface.
We see the whole story, and we honour it.
That’s what we offer at Zest Photography — not just a photoshoot, but an experience of self-discovery.
It’s an invitation to show up for yourself.
To play, to explore, to create something that reminds you who you are.
We’ll guide you, light you beautifully, and help you see what we see — but the real gold lies in what you discover along the way.
Keep blooming,
Jessica, Zest photographer
If you are interested in booking a Zest Photography family, couple, modern glamour, boudoir or nude portrait photography experience, call 0862453150 or email us at info@zestphotography.com.au.