Superpower Portraits

31/07/2026

Presence.
The richness is in the recipe…
That balance of warmth / certainty / openness / discernment

22/07/2026

Last Minute - Brisbane!
Superpower Headshots - Sobu Studio Bulimba
Monday 27th 3pm

✨New session structure & more accessible investment to get started working with me ✨

Session $750
Images $160/ image

Session details here:
https://www.superpowerportraits.com/superpower-headshots

10/07/2026

10/07/2026

You’ve been waiting for something that matches your standards… this is it.

https://enquire.superpowerportraits.com/welcome-1

06/07/2026

I’m always banging on about being able to answer (what I believe to be) the most important question - “Why YOU?”

A few years ago I found myself in a meeting with a (minor) member of the Emirati royal family where I was unable to answer that… and the result was one of my most humiliating moments in my career. Then and there, it became my only goal - to be able to fluently, artfully and truthfully answer that one question - no matter what.

Just last week I was having the same conversation... Why YOU? And someone pointed the stick back at me. “Well… go ahead. Why YOU?”

Now here’s the fascinating part… the CONTENT of my answer changes every single time. But since I have firmly established my own CONTEXT I never need to reach for an answer. I don’t ever have to figure out something to say… or ‘remember’ my answer. Because the answer fundamentally exists within every conversation. It’s something I know - by heart. Not something to be regurgitated through rote memory. It’s just my simple truth that shows up anywhere I find myself.

I can’t tell you what a powerful freedom this is. To not need to control any frame of reference… because every frame is it.

I read a really great quote this morning in Charles Duhigg’s book, ‘Supercommunicators’ (brilliant book for anyone interested in the art of Communication)

“It’s hard to metabolise another persons perspective in just one conversation” - Sheila Heen

But that’s effectively what most portraits are trying to do. We’re trying to control a frame whereby our audience can metabolise our intention… our vision… our value in an instant. That’s not easy by any stretch of the imagination. And so we often resort to defaults. The simplest expression - to communicate in shorthand. That’s the mistake. We reach for ‘approachable’ with a big needy smile. Or we reach for ‘significant’ with the ‘boss bitch' arms crossed with a scowl.

And while those can be aspects of real and valuable postures to explore; without more nuance and control they’re often empty. A counterfeit expression of the very real and personal thing we’ve shown up to create. Devoid of substance behind them, rendering the image shallow. One-dimensional. Overly simplistic and essentially doing the opposite job it’s meant to do. Which is to create connection and recognition, reducing the effective distance between subject and audience.

But the opportunity is in the richness of the recipe. We don’t have to resort to simplistic shortcuts or overly safe defaults. That's just lazy communication. And it’s really not your fault. We’ve come to accept this unfortunate baseline in our visual communication because most photographers just don’t have access to anything more complex. Whether it’s their own depth - or the depth they’re willing to advocate for on your behalf. It’s just unfamiliarity; and ultimately fear.

But what happens when you step into a space where the fear is harnessed? What happens when that fear is a critical ingredient of the process and outcome itself?? Not something to be managed or downplayed or pushed aside or overcome with ‘confidence’. But something to be used… as fuel… to ignite a moment of something real. That's the space I create. A space where you can finally allow yourself to exhale...

So that's just another example of Why ME - in this moment… in the context of this quote. And when I find myself in another frame or context, I have the answer at my fingertips. Because the answer to “Why ME” it’s not something I have to rehearse. It’s the most obvious extension of my Self and what matters most to me about this work.

I just wish I had had that level of clarity when I was asked before. But now... I'm ready.

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Wanna explore "Why YOU?". You can get started without ever going near a camera. Link below ---

03/07/2026

Resonance

02/07/2026

Your photos called. They want to know why you never showed up in them.

01/07/2026

Every time I’m interviewed, I’m asked how AI will affect my business. The answer is always the same… and definitely not what you’d expect.

I’ve been working with an incredible healer the past couple months - Kate Reardon. I’m ready for another shift… another level again. I’d like to release some old patterns/ habits/ assumptions and unneeded ‘wiring’ that I’ve installed somewhere along the way.

She gave me some homework a week ago - journaling around Who I was/ who I am/ and who I’m becoming.

I actually thought ‘this is pretty basic’ and almost skipped it. But I didn’t and what I found was unexpected.

I assumed that what I WAS and AM would be fairly straightforward. And I assumed that BECOMING would be more challenging because I’d need to envision it.

I’m no stranger to journaling. I’ve done all this before. I’ve done a fair amount of both structured and unstructured ‘bellybutton gazing’ as they say here in Australia.

So I started writing… and it was much harder than I’d expected. And the reason I found it challenging was a genuine surprise.

I noticed all these “blank spots”. I’m not sure how else to describe it.

The vague, general, obvious layers were simple enough. But when I wanted to get more granular… I found myself essentially staring in a mirror, at a face I didn’t quite recognise. Not because it wasn’t me… I think it was because I just hadn’t really seen myself for a while.

Identity is a funny thing. It’s seems so obvious. So set.

If someone asked me “Do you know who you really are?” I’d reply incredulously “Of course!” But when I actually tried to spell it out, I found more questions than answers.

That’s why this portrait thing matters so much to me - and why I think most “photographers” get it so wrong. These sessions are a chance to play with the questions. A chance to “what-if” our own understanding of ourselves.

The Purpose isn’t to capture the Answers (to prove that we’re right by recording the evidence). To me the real value is working with an artist comfortable sitting in the Question. A craftsperson whose skill is not “photography” per se, but in creating a space… a container where it’s safe to admit maybe we don’t really know… a space where we can give ourselves permission to explore and discover.

When we approach portraits that way we find things we never expected.

The versions of us we’ve known, but have never seen reflected back… the granular qualities that don’t mean much on their own… but when combined reveal something beautifully nuanced, complex and real.

So my answer to the AI question is a matter of intent. My work has nothing to do with creating Content. AI can generate all the content you want. Cheap and easy.

People work with me to explore their Context. To understand the frame in which people experience us… and more importantly how we experience ourselves. To BE that version. To DO it. To SEE it reflected back. And to know that it’s ours… Until we’re ready for the next iteration.

25/06/2026

There’s an old zen saying “Don’t mistake the finger pointing at the moon for the moon itself.”

I was at a conference last week. Brilliant event. And I joined one breakout session that was about communicating your values - the moon.

And as always, the facilitator said to the group “ok write down your values.” And then proceeded to start a conversation about… well, the finger.

It’s just assumed that everyone knows the difference. The group I was in sat and compared methodology. Not values.

And everyone walked away confirming their methodology is sound - a crystal clear picture of the finger.

No one saw the moon that day.
———

I’ve created a way to access the moon.

It’s called ‘Identity Alchemy’ and the activity itself is the finger… but it’s so impossibly simplistic and unassuming no one even notices the finger.

And when we unpack that, you’re left with nothing but moon.

It’s surprisingly elegant and it’s the very first phase of this identity work… way before we ever pick up a camera. And now you can have it on its own - no photoshoot required.

This isn't about creating content. It's about sitting in your context.

https://www.superpowerportraits.com/personal-calibration