How I Stopped Obsessing Over the Perfect Photo

Bad habits die hard. 

On me: top via Hashtag Love & boots via Public Desire

Photography: Vernice Tan

I know what you're thinking.
How does the topic of this article relate to these photos?
Trust me, I'll explain in a second, however, can we take a moment to appreciate how sick these shots turned out!?

Every year, a carnival arrives in Richmond and that's a double win; since I can take photos while going on rides.
And unlike last year, this year was no exception so Vernice and I scheduled a shoot and decided on two outfits to photograph that day.
Usually, we shoot a larger quantity of outfits since doing a shoot in bulk is more efficient and allows for us to hermit for a couple of days to edit and finalize our content. 
And as per usual for each shoot, I began to become over critical towards myself in terms of poses/expressions and asked Vernice to repeatedly take the same photo again and again. 
(Thank you btw to all my friends and photographers who had to tolerate my 're-takes')

Regardless of how many photoshoots I've done,  I always second guess and overinvest in getting a perfect shot.

To me, I always feel like I want to do better and sometimes it gets in the way of the overall result.

Such as me getting worked up on a specific shot when really there were ten photos before the last re-take that were usable.

Subsequently that wastes time where I could have shot at a different location, and at the end of the day, I realize how silly I was for obsessing and that sometimes it's better to let things be.

Initially, when I started working on Ko-morebi, I would always obsess with having a certain standard, that eventually I burnt out and started to view photography like a chore instead of a creative past time.

However, now that I'm more aware of this habit I try to give myself a time limit or a number of times I can re-take a photo. 

(depending on its use)

If it's an iPhone photo I let myself re-take a photo two times before I stop, because if the photo is not coming out the way I want it to by then it's time to move on. 
For photoshoots I allow myself to invest fifteen to thirty minutes to a location just so I can get more variety, that and it allows me to figure out what kind of background I want, and what adjustments I should make to certain poses. 
Aside from those rules I personally use, my tip is to not overthink and to enjoy the process instead of trying to force something. 
From personal experience, the best photos turn out to be the ones caught spontaneously. 

Till next time lovelies!

Komorebi(n.): Sunlight that filters through the leaves of the trees

Xo Charmyn