The Difficulty With Culling

So one of the major difficulties with self-portrait photography is that, because the photographer must double as the model, he must be standing in front of the camera when the shutter goes off, and can therefore not see the precise image being taken until after it has been taken, in most cases (excepting mirror reflections).

As a result, in many cases, self-portrait photography involves a whole lot of trial and error, which can sometimes translate to lots of similar pictures to cull through. This is a plus and minus, because sometimes, the picture you thought was good turns out to be blurry, or you find some other problem with it, and taking a lot of alternates yields a better chance to get one that's magic.

The minus is that sometimes, you don't get one or two shots that clearly stand out from the rest - and then you have to consider whether that's because none of the shots are that good, or if it's because none of them are all that bad. But in those instances, it can be very difficult to choose which one(s) to share, especially when different ones have different qualities you like. But you don't want to post them all, because they would be highly repetitious when viewed in sequence.

Usually, I'm capable of making a decision (even if it's a tough one) - after all, that's part of the job description, and I consider it part of the talent that goes into being a visual artist. But sometimes, just sometimes, I have to throw my arms up in the air and say, "fuck it!"

I mean, any one of these pictures would probably be sexy enough on its own, but with so many to choose from, I couldn't make a decision. I remember thinking as I was taking these pictures that if I took enough of them, I would get one at just the right angle that it would look fantastic. What I ended up with was almost a hundred more and less subtle variations on the same theme. These are just the best of the best of them (in my opinion), and I just can't choose any more between them.