What Is the Secret of Success? A Conversation with a Ballerina

Yesterday I photographed Mikayla, a 21-year-old American citizen who wants to become a professional dancer and model.

She has lived away from home in student accommodation since she was fifteen and will finish her studies next year.

Before any photo shoot, I always talk with the person in front of my camera — and for me, anyone who steps in front of my camera is a model.

We discussed what style and type of images she wanted, what she expected from the shoot, what her goals were for the photographs and, finally, why she wanted to create them with me.

Our conversation became surprisingly instructive, and Mikayla gave me permission to share some of it.

New York is supposedly the city of dreams.

In theory, everyone can find their opportunity here.

That is what films show us.

That is one of the stories America tells the world.

The reality, however, is that to break through here you often have to deliver several times more than you would in almost any other major city.

Mikayla studies with an excellent dance teacher.

She works hard.

But every day she has to face rehearsals where some of the dancers around her seem even more talented.

That can create insecurity.

And whether young people want it or not, that insecurity begins influencing everyday life.

They can become machines marching toward a goal without truly experiencing their youth.

Or they go to the opposite extreme, live too intensely and burn out.

It was fascinating to listen to her ambitions.

Despite all of that pressure, she still believes she can become the kind of dancer who one day performs before large audiences, captivates people and builds a following.

Interestingly, there is no direct connection between Mikayla and the young woman I wrote about in my previous article.

Yet it seems logical that a dancer who knows how to use the body, movement and facial expression may also want to explore modelling.

I completely understand that ambition.

One important difference I notice here is that people rarely tell someone:

“You’re untalented. Don’t do it.”

Instead, they often focus first on what the person does well.

Back home, we frequently do the opposite.

We begin by explaining what someone should improve and forget to praise what already works.

Yet that positive feedback may be exactly what gives somebody strength to develop further.

I fall into that trap too sometimes.

I am trying to change it.

What you absolutely need here is belief in yourself.

For a single position, ten, twenty or even fifty times as many people may be competing here as elsewhere.

But belief alone is not enough.

As we talked, Mikayla explained what she believes her own secret is:

She thinks she has discovered what makes her unique.

What separates her from everybody else.

And she consciously emphasises that quality both in dance and in everyday life.

She puts the focus there.

That means people notice her individuality first.

At that point, she handed me my own challenge.

If that uniqueness is the key, then I had to recognise and highlight it in the photographs within roughly two hours in a rented location.

Fortunately, I was not completely alone.

Her mother was present too and proudly explained what she believed made her daughter distinctive.

Until Mikayla finishes school, she cannot fully begin building a modelling career.

But she strongly believes in the concept she has created for herself.

And the answer to my final question — why she wanted me to create her portfolio — was very simple:

She looked through my reference images and felt that the visual style was exactly what she was searching for.

Whenever possible, I like to retouch images together with the model immediately.

That is how the photographs below were created.

Part of the BANHALMI ecosystem

For the professional context and practical side of portrait photography, visit the BANHALMI professional website. Related art series, books and exhibitions are preserved in the BANHALMI ART archive.