HYDRA :: This is the first (in what has ended up being an on-going series) of my 'flower-head' self portraits. It's from early 2015 and it was the very first time I photographed myself not as a 'self-portrait' really, but more in order to create an image that had been on my mind.

I had arranged for a friend to come to the studio for a creative session - I didn't do these often, in fact I think this was maybe only the 3rd or 4th time I'd made time to do this type of creative, artsy shoot. But unfortunately the friend ended up having to cancel and I found myself alone in the studio with all these beautiful fresh flowers and creative energy to burn.

So I started building a flower sculpture on my head by jamming the stems (somewhat painfully) through a sort of high ponytail on my head. It wasn't the original concept I'd planned to shoot with the friend. It took a bit of balancing and the back looked dreadful (I probably broke a lot of hair, too, eek!) But I think it was worth it.

This photo will always remind me not to make excuses - just because I am all by myself and don't have that perfect model/outfit/prop/location/whatever, I won't give myself a 'pass' on shooting something I feel the need to create. It's such a valuable lesson for this time we're in, now!