Goddess to Sovereign
For a few years I used to label my shoots - ‘Goddess’ shoots. This is primarily because I work a lot with professional belly dancers. But... I recently did an emergency Gothic Lolita shoot for some friends submission to a publication that made me really think about the terminology.
I felt that Goddess wasn’t accurate to the type of photography that I do, not because gender identity and inclusivity - but because I bring the same type of energy to masculine shoots. I’ve been told that my work is very Kinetic and Bold - but I’ve also been told that I also *elevate* through my photography… and it applies to everyone that I shoot.
But God and Goddess shoots doesn't quite sit right for my branding and methodology. God alone is a very charged word. When applied with Alpha energy… no, that’s not what I do.
After the Gothic Lolita shoot, I sat down with my good friend @adareart in order to find a middle ground that is actually my energy that I express on my subjects to capture their energy. We came up with Sovereign.
Sovereign:
A Supreme Ruler
Possessing Supreme or Ultimate power
Majestic and Powerful
In the movie - Kingdom of Heaven (HAH! The irony is not lost on me), Balian knights all of civilian defenders of Jerusalem at the end of the movie where they would become better defenders because they were knighted.
Since naming it that way, I’ve been catching more of those moments when I go back to editing. My timing feels sharper (which is another blog entirely). The shoots feel much more collaborative when my models know what I can capture with my camera, without editing or photoshop.