I Came for Just a Portrait, But…

• Feature article •

I basically see myself as a cheerful, energetic woman who enjoys men's appreciative glances, courtesy and attention.

These small “chocolates” from the world around me continuously reinforce my confidence.

I think a beautiful photograph can have a similar effect — another small “chocolate” that adds to feminine presence and self-confidence.

Norbi had photographed me a few years earlier, so I already knew his work and precision both from personal experience and from following his page.

Because I was returning to a familiar place and photographer, there was none of the awkwardness that comes with something completely new.

Only the pleasant preparations and a sense of excited anticipation.

Should my hair be wavy or straight?

What should I wear?

How should I do my makeup so that it is neither too much nor too little in the photographs?

I assume these are the questions that occupy almost every woman before a photo shoot.

What I did not expect was the kind of day — and experience — that followed.

Because of bad news I received on the way there, I arrived at Norbi's with my makeup partly cried off.

The rain had ruined the hair I left home with.

By the time the picture was taken, my clothes had become dirty as well.

And I could hardly have been less in the mood to smile sweetly into a camera.

On top of all that, the photographs were a gift.

Anyone who has been to Norbi knows that every session begins with a conversation, sometimes shorter, sometimes longer.

I think those conversations are good for practically anyone's soul.

They make you feel special and help you tune into the shoot, and that mood later appears in the photographs.

When I explained why I was in such a bad mood, Norbi simply said:

“We can make the most beautiful sad photograph in the world too.”

The sentence worked almost like magic.

I already felt better.

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After a long conversation, I was no longer sad at all.

My confidence and cheerfulness returned, and in the end we even created a feminine, slightly flirtatious photograph — exactly the kind I had wanted in the first place.

I came for just a few good portraits.

I left with much more.

A well-designed portrait session aims to create genuine, confident presence in the final photograph.