Anna Gay’s Picks for Self-Portrait Challenge #3: MOOD

Today’s post is the final part of dPS’s Self Portrait Challenge.

For our third and final challenge, we looked at “Mood” as your theme for taking a self-portrait. I was really touched by all of the posts in this thread, because I saw so much honesty from all of you, which was the main point of this exercise – to pull a real emotion from inside of you in order to convey it through a self-portrait. Thank you all so much for your hard work this week, but especially on this challenge, because all of you showed something of yourself, and a lot of you shared very personal stories with us, and that can take a lot of courage.

Again, with such a wide range of moods to choose from, this was a very difficult task, but here are my three:

Kelly Kardos

There are a lot of very raw emotions on display here, but Kelly chose to show them in a very soft and delicate way. Kelly just recently lost someone close to her, so not only is this photo the product of true emotions, it is also a loving tribute to her friend. Self-portraiture, just like any form of self-expression, can really be a positive outlet for us during the tough patches in our lives.

Anna-Elizabeth

Anna-Elizabeth combines props and lighting here to create a very interesting mood. This image has a dream-like mood to it because of the muted (yet still vibrant) tones, the vignette, focus, and all of her props. The props, especially her books, make us wonder what she is reading and what she is thinking about as she gazes at the sky.

Shovona

Shovona’s image is the perfect example of how effective body language can be in conveying mood. We cannot see her face, but we can sense a lot of different emotion in her body language. She also took advantage of that wonderful light coming in through the window, and by placing herself near the corner of the room, all lines lead to Shovona. This is subtle, but with all of the elements of this photo combined, a very powerful mood is set.

I hope you all have enjoyed the challenges this week as much as I have! Each and every one of you really impressed me with your willingness to participate in the challenges, and I know that, for a lot of you, this was your first time taking a self-portrait, so congratulations to you on that! My hope is that you will continue to take self-portraits, whether it is on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. As you can see, there is much to be gained through self-portraiture. Whether you want to hone your portrait skills, express yourself, or just have fun – self-portaits can be a great way to enhance your skills as a photographer.