Photo Op

A friend of mine has started to get into semi-professional photography as a way to make extra money, and he asked me if I would pose for him next weekend (he is really desperate for material, this is not at all a measure of my perceived level of attractiveness. He also asked if he could shoot G.). He wants to get some practice in different lighting situations, and apparently I am pale enough to serve as a "challenge" subject for him.  The basic barter would be he gets practice, possibly some portfolio pieces, and I get the service and a disc of photos for free.

My initial reaction was NO, of course.  I've never, ever, never been comfortable in front of a camera--except for occasions when Match talked me into posing for him, because he makes it fun and sweet.

 But after thinking it over a bit, it seems like it could be something sort of fun and out of character for me to try. I am rarely pleased with images of myself, actually, but have come to have a new appreciation for the value of photographs since I've been in a long-distance relationship.  Match and I see each other in person so little, that it really helps to have plenty of pictures of each other available.  I was thinking this might make a nice birthday present for him. 

Last summer Match and I did a similar type of thing with a friend of his that is a photographer, but that was different because we were posing together, and I didn't feel quite so much in the spotlight. Plus, he tells me jokes and complements the whole time and keeps me pretty relaxed.

I don't know this guy (the photographer) incredibly well, but well enough to know that although he has some pretty sexy photos in his portofolio (along with a lot of classic sets), I am sure that he's not a predator, and will do his best to make me comfortable and keep a sense of humor during the whole thing.

Of course, it immediately crossed my mind that I should pick up my running and scale back my food this week so that I'll look nice and taut for the photos next weekend.  Hello, ED, I see you are still participating in the Occupy Cammy movement. Wonderful.

Honestly, though, I was able to consider that EDish message for a few minutes and then take a step back and give myself a reality check.  If this is mostly for Match's consumption anyway, he knows what my body looks like in most situations, so it's not like I'd be fooling him if I tried to change it somehow.  He's also said he actually preferred my shape at a higher weight.  To that end, I think my perception of what actually makes a body attractive has shifted in a more healthy direction than it used to, and I can see that thinner and tauter isn't always better, and sometimes you end up putting yourself through hell just to end up looking *worse*.  I can think of more than a few occasions, when I was farther into the ED, when I would spend weeks buckling down on myself for a big event when I was going to be photographed, only to end up so exhausted and worn out and fragile feeling on the event day that I didn't have a good time and wasn't all that entertaining to be around. I'm done with that bullshit now.

I think I'm going to go for it and try to use it as an opportunity to appreciate my body for what it is. Worst case scenario, I hate the pictures and never show them to anyone.  Best case scenario, I have fun, maybe get a little confidence boost and have a personal present for Match. 

Girly question: those of you that either know what I look like or have experience with photography and such, what should I wear???  We'll probably be doing both outdoor and indoor shots.