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"Your Profile Picture Should Be As Unique And Extraordinary As You Are... Is Yours?"
When Selfies Won’t Do
from the NY Times ~ By ALEX WILLIAMS
"There are times, it seems, when an iPhone and an outstretched arm just won’t do.
In an era when social media has given everyone a public persona to burnish, some image-conscious digital natives are taking online-image management a step further, sparing no expense to treat themselves to iconic portrait sessions that produce profile shots for Facebook and Twitter that could double as covers of Vogue — effectively, glamour selfies. And why not? On Facebook, isn't everyone a star?
For Rachel Weinstein Petterson, 34, a software engineer in Los Altos, Calif., the iconic portrait session turned into an act of self-reinvention. For years, Ms. Petterson had been relying on a “conservative” 15-year-old studio portrait from college for her social media profile. But in an era when a social media photo is the first impression you make to the world, she said, that would not do. “I didn’t want a snapshot,” Ms. Petterson said. “I wanted something that said I was confident in my own skin and knew my place in the world.”
Ms. Petterson turned to a duo of Bay Area photographers, Heidi Margocsy and Tara Baxter, for a series of shoots in which she performed more costume changes than Lady Gaga does at a concert. One look was a wind-swept California waif traversing the golden hillsides in a white lace dress; another was an urban vamp crouching against a warehouse wall in a slinky red Catherine Malandrino number. For her Google+ profile, she wore a theatrical chain-mail top, complete with Kabuki-esque makeup and a gold circlet crown. It was her inner “dark princess,” she said. “I wanted to convey power,” Ms. Petterson said. “I wanted something that makes people stop and say, ‘Maybe I want to look at that a little closer.’ ”
from the NY Times ~ By ALEX WILLIAMS
"There are times, it seems, when an iPhone and an outstretched arm just won’t do.
In an era when social media has given everyone a public persona to burnish, some image-conscious digital natives are taking online-image management a step further, sparing no expense to treat themselves to iconic portrait sessions that produce profile shots for Facebook and Twitter that could double as covers of Vogue — effectively, glamour selfies. And why not? On Facebook, isn't everyone a star?
For Rachel Weinstein Petterson, 34, a software engineer in Los Altos, Calif., the iconic portrait session turned into an act of self-reinvention. For years, Ms. Petterson had been relying on a “conservative” 15-year-old studio portrait from college for her social media profile. But in an era when a social media photo is the first impression you make to the world, she said, that would not do. “I didn’t want a snapshot,” Ms. Petterson said. “I wanted something that said I was confident in my own skin and knew my place in the world.”
Ms. Petterson turned to a duo of Bay Area photographers, Heidi Margocsy and Tara Baxter, for a series of shoots in which she performed more costume changes than Lady Gaga does at a concert. One look was a wind-swept California waif traversing the golden hillsides in a white lace dress; another was an urban vamp crouching against a warehouse wall in a slinky red Catherine Malandrino number. For her Google+ profile, she wore a theatrical chain-mail top, complete with Kabuki-esque makeup and a gold circlet crown. It was her inner “dark princess,” she said. “I wanted to convey power,” Ms. Petterson said. “I wanted something that makes people stop and say, ‘Maybe I want to look at that a little closer.’ ”
An exquisite glamour shot can do more than that. It can inspire envy and copycats. “People see images of their friends on social media, on Facebook, and think, ‘God, I want to look that good,’ ” said Ms. Margocsy, whose Petaluma, Calif.-based company, In Her Image Photography, offers “empowerment photography” for women.
For Amy Wall, who runs a spa in Mendocino, Calif., a professional selfie was a gift to herself on her 44th birthday.
“I’ve been hoarding them,” she said. “I leak one out every couple of months, so I can get a little bit of attention at regular intervals.” Since she started posting them, she said, at least 50 Facebook friends have had their pictures professionally done. You work hard. You play hard. You deserve it. Contact Us Today !
For Amy Wall, who runs a spa in Mendocino, Calif., a professional selfie was a gift to herself on her 44th birthday.
“I’ve been hoarding them,” she said. “I leak one out every couple of months, so I can get a little bit of attention at regular intervals.” Since she started posting them, she said, at least 50 Facebook friends have had their pictures professionally done. You work hard. You play hard. You deserve it. Contact Us Today !
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These came out so great!!! I can't wait for our next photo shoot! That was so much fun" ~ Allison C.