Picture Perfect

I recently had an offer from Tom Martin to shoot some pictures at no cost to promote myself and my business. Tom’s a photographer, writer, and tai chi instructor who, over the years, has taken some breathtaking shots at the Kekoka Yoga Retreat. He suggested the offer in order to gain experience for a new venture in his business, Enso Illuminations. I was thrilled.

Before our first shoot, Tom asked me to send him links to poses and backdrops that I thought might capture the essence of my practice and business, or, as he put it, of yoga. He also asked me to list about 10 poses I’d like him to shoot. So I went to the websites of famous teachers I admired, asked a student to send me some Instagram links, and went onto Facebook.

I was sucked in by pose after pose and backdrop after beautiful backdrop. “I can nail that pose,” I thought. “I could hold this one for the split-second it would take Tom to snap the shot.” “That one might tweak my SI joint injury, but how cool would it look beside the water?” I wondered what I should wear.

To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of social media and go on it minimally. Aside from the political bickering, there are too many posts, including those of famous yogis, that, to me, smack of inauthenticity and self-aggrandizement, of people living and promoting their #bestlives.

But, man, the poses looked so cool! There were many I started with 20 years ago and love to this day; others that, in my 30’s, I never thought I’d be able to do but, at age 58, suddenly can; and so many I’ve watched my students begin with and grow into.

Instead of 10, I made a list of a gazillion and eagerly brought them to the next day’s shoot. The session lasted about an hour and, as Tom clicked away, I found myself working harder on some of the poses so they’d look picture perfect, and relaxing more into others. Can you guess which ones looked more yogic?

If you guessed the more relaxing ones, you’re right! If you guessed the more picture-perfect ones, you’re right!

What the social media yogis bring to their beautiful shots actually are their authentic, best selves. Maybe their best selves want to serve others in their pursuit of yoga. Maybe their best selves are trying to make a living doing what they love in a competitive business. Maybe their best selves are passionate about the sheer joy of the practice. Maybe their best selves just want to look beautiful.

Whatever their (and your) intentions are for wanting to be picture perfect (or not), I applaud you in your pursuit of growth. I applaud you in your current understanding of authenticity.

I applaud you for being yogic.