The Evil Queen- Lensbaby

A year ago, I challenged myself to use Lensbaby lenses for my self-portrait work. I thought I would do it for 30-days. Here I am, a year later, and madly in love with these creative lenses and optics.

I made this self-portrait using my Lensbaby Composer Pro II with the Sweet 50 optic. Let me know if you have any questions, and if you’d like to save on your next Lensbaby purchase just use this link and the discount code wsharon .
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Sony a7riii | Sweet 50 | f/2.5 | 1/125| 1600

Intuition {Self-Portrait}

Intuitively, we gather together. We learn from each other. We share each other’s pain and life experiences as a collective.
We learn we are not so different from one another. We go beyond the surface and we create from a once guarded space deep within. We support, we grieve, we hold space, we grow, we make a mess. We are Artists. There’s no textbook that can teach this experience; this way of learning. It’s in the doing. It’s in the mistakes. It’s in our guts. We are guided by our intuition and we trust the process.
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Thank you to the women who have trusted in me and have gathered together to create in Expressive Self Portraiture. It is a gift and honor to spend time with you.♥️

The Snow Queen

Perfectionism is fear in disguise. How many times have you wanted to do something but told yourself the timing wasn't right or you didn't have enough time? Maybe if ___ happened or ____ then you could begin. Oftentimes, I find the most difficult part with something new is to begin. If we could allow ourselves to just begin, then the rest will unfold. We don't have to be experts to begin.
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I’m currently reading Julia Cameron's newest book, The Listening Path. When she teaches, she cues her students to make a list of 10 fill in the blanks. Each one begins with- If it didn't have to do it perfectly, I’d try ____.
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My very first thought was paint. I would paint. Thinking of all of the things I would do if they didn't have to be perfect was profound and gave me a lot to journal about. Think of all the things we hold back from in fear of not being good enough. We are depriving ourselves of the very things that will make us thrive!
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Let's be brave together and show up and do the work...whatever that work may be.

The Snow Fairy

An important and key part to being an artist is to practice, play, and be hands on. We learn and grow by doing.
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Begin before you feel ready to. It’s no secret, we’re going to experience failures. We’re going to make bad art. There is no exception to that. It’s a rite of passage. It happens to us all, myself included.
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We are going to fail, but we’re going to learn. Be open to the lessons of your failures. Listen to them and study them as if they were sacred secrets. Become receptive. Crack open and let the ideas flow in that are unique to your self-expression.
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It’s in the experience where the magic happens. The doing. Going into a shoot with an open mind and allowing the outcome to unfold before you is where creativity thrives.

The Apple Orchards

Everybody has a secret world inside of them. I mean everybody. All of the people in the whole world, I mean everybody — no matter how dull and boring they are on the outside. Inside them they've all got unimaginable, magnificent, wonderful, stupid, amazing worlds... Not just one world. Hundreds of them. Thousands, maybe.
Neil Gaiman
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Here is the second location from the other day. If you zoom in you’ll see my fingers are as red as the falling apple. No editing there. It was freezing! I have Raynaud’s Syndrome and normally my fingers and toes turn pure white and go numb even while being inside of my house. I reached a new level of cold that day. Does anyone else have Raynaud’s? My daughter plays ice hockey so I have an endless supply of hand and toe warmers!

Fantasy {Self-Portrait}

Fantasy is storytelling with the beguiling power to transform the impossible into the imaginable, and to reveal our own “real” world in a fresh and truth-bearing light.
Leonard S. Marcus
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In my Instagram stories I asked which location you would like to see first from a recent shoot. Here is the location with the most votes.

What’s everyone up to today? Here in NJ we are having a snow day. Is there anything more magical that newly fallen snow? ❄️

Seeker {Lensbaby Self-Portraits)

Seeker🕯
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Earlier this week, I shot these self-portrait in my backyard using my Lensbaby Velvet 56. Since @lensbabyusa lenses are manual focus lenses, I needed something to focus on in the place where I would be standing. I used a dress form complete with a wig and mask on it to stand in my place. I use this because it is similar in size and height to me. Once I grabbed my focus, I was able to place a stick on the ground where I would be standing and move the dress form out of the frame.
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Have a question? Comment or DM me! Here’s the link for Lensbaby’s site. Be sure to use the code wsharon for a 10% discount on your next Lensbaby purchase!

Sony a7riii | Velvet 56 | 1/250 | f/2 | ISO 100

Our Stories are What Heals Us and Others

Our stories are what heals us and others. Our expression of our stories is our medicine. The process is cathartic. The outcome is freeing. 

I had no idea what I was doing the very first time I turned my camera around onto myself. Self-portraiture was a foreign concept, another language. My need for self-expression was so strong that it outweighed my fears of making bad art and using myself as the subject.

It taught me that it’s better to begin rather than spending your time planning and researching. You have to come with an open mind and be willing to mess up....a lot. You’ll find pieces of yourself you didn’t know existed in the mistakes and mishaps. You’ll see glimmers of hope and wonder in yourself.

Self-portraiture is an opportunity to tell your story, rewrite a new one, learn who you are, and are not. The camera is your tool that reveals your soul. This work strips you down to your core. It’s not easy, but the healing and self-discovery that comes out of this medium are profound and life-changing.

I am a better person than when I began this journey of self-expression. This is why I wrote and teach Expressive Self Portraiture. I know what it can do for a person, and I wanted to be able to share this experience with others.

It’s so easy to be critical and judgmental of yourself when you’re the subject. Let’s leave our judgement of ourselves and others at the door. Let’s support each other and hold a light for one another. I will guide you through the process. You just need to take the first step. Registration opens in April!

Who Are You?

It takes courage to break away from the norm and to be different than what’s expected of you. It can show up in different areas of your life. Art is just one way.
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Being different and unique is being yourself. In what ways and areas of your life does is show up strongest for you? For me, it’s in my self-expression. Being able to create freely without expectations and exceptions is so important to me. Once I began to overcome this hurdle, my artistic vision grew wildly.
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Being different can feel like an outsider looking in, but it’s also an opportunity to create your own world and how you see it. Do you dare to be different in a world where fitting in is so valued? 🎭
***Registration for my class, Expressive Self Portraiture, is opening soon! DM me with any questions.***

Expressive Self Portraiture Coming Soon

I’ve always felt different and like an outsider looking in. Creating my art has given me community and support. Some of you have watched my journey unfold for years in this space. You’ve seen me fail and witnessed me succeed. You’ve watched my story unfold and my vision develop and change over time. I’ve gone from being silent to having a voice.
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Creating art has given me my voice and provided me with healing. Now, I’d love nothing more than to help guide and support you on your own personal journey with this medium.
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Self Portraiture demands so much from us. It forces us to see things we’d rather not at times. With the right tools in hand, we can reap the many positive benefits of this type of inner work.
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I’m opening up my class, Expressive Self Portraiture, soon. I’m not going to lie, I’m scared! This is my first time teaching it on my own and not through a school. I’m so ready though.
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Stay tuned for details and if you have any questions at all, email me. I’m an open book 📖 sharoncovertphotography@gmail.com

The High Priestess

I’ve been staying small lately and it leaves me feeling unsettled. I’ve never liked change before and I’ve been faced with my fair share recently. I’m questioning my worth, my abilities, my intuition and judgement.

Self-portraiture has been my lifeline, my remedy to what ails me for several years now. When my Expressive Self Portraiture class was just a dream there weren’t many artists who focused on self-portraits. I was told there wasn’t enough need for it. The audience wasn’t large enough.

The thing is, I’m not looking for a large audience. What I do needs to be in a small space that’s safe. That’s where the magic takes place. That’s where wounds are opened and tended to in order to begin the healing process. It’s where we fall apart and unravel only to pick ourselves up whole again. Stronger. We walk the creative path together as equals.

I will soon be offering new ways to connect with me and to be a part of my updated class. Oftentimes, change is good. I will embrace the unknown and continue to create and use my voice to advocate for this type of self-expression in art. Thank you to each and every one of you who has stood by me and shown your support.

The High Priestess 🌛🌝🌜

Art as Voice: Should You Let Your Photography Speak for Itself?

Art speaks for itself. Or does it? This belief depends mostly on the expected outcome. This false belief is the misconception I have fallen under for the last several years as an artist trying to make a career.

In my earlier years of self-portraiture, I was using my images as my voice. I processed all of my feelings, emotions, and thoughts through this practice. I shared the pictures with the world to lift a heavy weight off of my chest.

I let the work speak for itself.

Were there people who connected with my self-portraits?

Yes.

But I'm sure more viewers were left confused and wanting to know more.

Sometimes I would drop the images with absolutely no context and run and hide. Other times I would add a quote that I found online. Eventually, I began writing haikus to accompany the pictures.

Once I began getting my work into galleries, I learned the importance of titling my work. For far too long, I believed a title was enough. And sure, a title is enough for a gallery and its audience. But what if a viewer wants to know more about the artist? They visit their website and find what?

With mine, they found the images with their titles, and nothing more.

Here I was seeking connection and community, yet I wasn't contributing. Part of the reason was because of false beliefs I had conjured up about not being enough or worthy. There was a fear of my voice, words, and opinions not being needed. There's enough of that out there already.

I'll drop my art right here and be on my way.

I didn't educate myself on the importance of building these connections and communities of support through email lists, newsletters, blogging, and sharing more of myself than just a self-portrait.

So while I do believe that there are a time and place for art to speak for itself, that's not what I want to practice right now. What I want to practice is sharing authentically with you, because that is of the utmost importance to me.

With that said, what is it that you would like from me? What can I offer you? Leave a comment or email me at sharoncovertphotography@gmail.com and let me know the type of content you'd like most from me and how I can best serve you.

* Sharon Covert is a teacher and mentor at The Define School. Sharon's courses, Expressive Self Portraiture and The Art of Authenticity are both available through The Define School. For more information email Sharon at sharoncovertphotography@gmail.com or visit The Define School by clicking this link. You can sign up for Sharon’s newsletter HERE to stay up to date and receive a bonus black and white editing video.

Art is Subjective: Moving Past the Opinions and Judgments of Others

Something that comes up often when I'm teaching my Expressive Self Portraiture class is the fear of being judged by your audience, family, and friends for creating new work.

This is the part where I want to insert EFF that!

I'm passionate about encouraging women to share their art, themselves, their voices. To think that we would even hesitate on sharing pieces of ourselves in this way is absurd to me.

Are we not allowed to learn to love ourselves?

Are we selfish to think that we matter?

Are we not worthy of support in our self-exploration?

These women have such a strong desire and fire lit inside of them to make this type of healing and profound work, yet hold back in fear.

Fear of the opinions, sometimes ridicules, of their parents, brothers, sisters, children, best friends, husbands, wives, colleagues, employers, local acquaintances, and so on.

I've been there.

Instead, we hold back. We create private accounts. We share with an online audience that we will most likely never meet in real life. We seek support and acceptance from strangers. Online communities are formed for human connection. We create work that never gets shared.

Hush 2016

This fear of judgment has been a great struggle of mine, especially in my earlier years of self-portraiture. I've had jokes made to my face about my work with masks. I've had comments publically made asking me if I'm okay.

"Are you okay? Do you need to talk to someone?"

I deleted that one out of sheer embarrassment.

Should I worry about sharing this image because I'm a mother and the other mothers out there may see it? What will they think of me? Is too much of my skin showing even though that's not my intention? Should I feel ashamed for being me and expressing myself in a way that feels best for me?

Lament

What I have come to learn is this.

Art is subjective.

You are going to have people who can read your art like an open book, and you will have others who will see it as a foreign language.

And that's okay.

I've treated it as a learning lesson over the years, and I've made it my mission to support other women who are on similar journies. Because I know they are more than just a daughter, or a wife, or a mother, or a lawyer, or a doctor, or a college drop-out. They have stories, feelings, and desires to explore and express. They want to feel something. They want to find themselves. Be themselves. They are light and love. They are powerful. They are artists.

Not everyone is going to understand your art. But regardless, it belongs to you, and it's your story to share.

You own it.

Art is meant to stir up emotions, and sometimes, those are feelings of uncomfortableness in the viewer. It may bring up the viewers own insecurities, jealousy, or embarrassment and shame.

We all see things differently. That's the beauty of it all. Don't let that be the thing that prevents you from what you're being called to explore and create. What once seemed like a foreign concept to me, is now the very tool I use for self-expression. Self-expression has been the one thing that helps set me free from the inner critic.

Don't censor yourself.

2015

You are worth it. Your voice is worth being heard. Your story is remarkable, and just because not everyone will connect with it, doesn't mean you should bury it.

To all of you brave Artists out there, I see you. I support you. I honor your work and the journey that got you here.

I admire your courage.

Keep creating and sharing with the world.

We need your story.

* Sharon Covert is a teacher and mentor at The Define School. Sharon's courses, Expressive Self Portraiture and The Art of Authenticity are both available through The Define School. For more information email Sharon at sharoncovertphotography@gmail.com or visit The Define School by clicking this link.

How Do You Show Up Authentically in Your Art?

What does showing up unapologetically in your art mean to you?
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For me, it means showing up scared and doing it anyway.
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It means showing up in all of your brokenness.
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It means creating the very things that light you up the most even if it doesn’t align with others.
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It means making mistakes and failing.
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It means being vulnerable.
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It means being present in the moment of creation.
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It means breaking down all of the walls you have learned to build up in order to protect yourself.
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It means being raw.
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Visceral.
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Free.
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The list goes on, but really, I’d love to know what it means for you. ♥️
🌙 Let the Light In🌙

The New Define School Membership Program is OPEN!

Why do so many of us hold back, dial down or even conceal who we really are? Why do we place a higher value on the opinions and judgments of others over our very own?

Imagine the freedom of just being you, creating for you, not editing your life for others.

Create the work that calls to you. Write the words that your soul whispers into your ear. Listen to your Self.

I used one of @alienskinsoftware ‘s light overlays for this self-portrait. Even though it was taken outside I decided to make the background black and remove all distractions.

What have you made lately that’s calling to be shared? Don’t hold back. Don’t allow yourself to become small. Share and support others who do the same, and encourage those who are hesitant.

@thedefineschool ‘s teachers helped shape who I am as an artist today and now I get to do the same work. How grateful am I?! Their new membership program is officially OPEN. Will you be joining? Message me if you do and I’ll see you there!

Your Relationship With Self and Art

What’s your relationship with yourself like? What about with your art?
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I work on my relationship with myself every morning when I step onto my yoga mat, every time I put pencil to paper (yes, I prefer to hand write everything and with pencil ✏️ 🙂), every time I make the conscious choice to put the time in to nourish my body and not choose the opposite, every time I pick up or listen to a book, every online class I take to further educate myself (we can never stop learning), and in so many other ways.
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The other night I shared a little BTS video in my Instagram Stories of me setting up for a self-portrait in my backyard. It was completely impromptu. I had gone outside with Linhsey (my daughter) while she played hockey in the driveway, but the fading light and woods whispered for me to come.
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I obliged.
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While I didn’t create anything magical, I embodied and relished myself in the process. I spent so much thought and time in the winter pondering why I wasn’t out there creating as much. The cold and snow had never stopped me in the past. Now I see I just needed to lean in and trust in the process. It may call at the oddest of times, or lie dormant for quite some time. I just need to trust that whatever I’m meant to create, I will.
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I needed to go through this process the other night of feeling that spark of inspiration, setting up, making the images, and taking it all down again. It’s within that process that my relationship to self grows the most.
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What about you?

A Creative Lull

Who are you right now in your art? What are you being called to create? Or are you being called to take a break and recharge? Could there possibly be something new you are interested in?
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I experienced a bit of a lull with creating art over the last year. I’m a multi-passionate person and I submersed myself in many different outlets from 2018-2019. I allowed myself the freedom to explore different interests.
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At some point I began to feel down on myself for not churning out new work as frequently as I had in the past. Instead, what I needed to do was be kind and gentle with myself. I understand and accept that people grow and change. Art is a process. It’s not made on demand. It comes from a feeling or emotion I want to express- a story I want to tell.
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In January 2019 I made the leap from Canon to Sony. Starting fresh with new equipment can feel daunting! My next few posts will feature new work that I created with my Sony a7r III. I’m currently limited to 1 lens with my Sony, but it’s an amazing lens. I do miss my Lensbaby lenses though! I am falling in love with this newfound freedom and the possibilities of creating with this amazing camera and lens.
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Now that it’s Spring here it’s time to wake up and come out of hibernation! What do you all have planned for the coming months? Leave a comment below and share ☺️

Intro- I'm Sharon Covert

I tend to forget that many of you are new followers and that you haven’t been following my journey all along. I thought I’d give you a little introduction.
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My name is Sharon Covert. Most of the work you see here is self-portraits aside from some still life from time to time and portraits of my daughter. My son is grown and in college now so he hasn’t made an appearance in quite some time. He does spend some time with me behind the scenes though. He’s in the process of putting together some BTS’s videos he filmed for me for my newsletter and an upcoming class I’m teaching. His major is video production. Lucky me 😉
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I began using self-portraiture as a way of self-expression about 6 years ago. I’m a shy introvert but thrive in expressing myself through words, art, and music. Before photography I taught piano lessons to children for many years. It was such a rewarding and challenging experience but I truly enjoyed working with children.
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I currently teach an online course, Expressive Self Portraiture, through The Define School. You could say it’s a dream come true. The women I have met online and worked with have left me speechless and in awe.
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I’m about to graduate from The Institute of Integrative Nutrition in a few short weeks. The year long program has been life-changing and the coaching skills I have learned there have begun to carry over into my photography class. I’m excited for what the future holds.
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I don’t composite or edit in photoshop. It’s not that I’m against it, I just haven’t put in the time and effort to learn the program. I really will one day, but I admit, I am completely intimidated by it! I enjoy the process of creating my self-portraits and finding ways to bring my ideas to life.
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If you’re curious about anything else, or if you’d like to tell me something about yourself, leave a comment below ⬇️! As always, thank you so very much for your support. It means so much to me! ♥️