ARE YOU READY TO SEE YOURSELF WITH COMPASSION IN PHOTOS?
Do you struggle with seeing yourself in photos?
Do you find yourself taking them, reacting to them and putting the camera away?
Well I'm here to tell you its not you or your body that is the problem. Nor is it your camera skills or creativity. You are not the problem.
The problem is the messages we've been taught about our body, about the ways we 'should' be seen, photographed. We've internalized 'body standards' of what makes a 'worthy' body and those messages leave the majority of us out of that.
But our bodies are worthy...no matter what. And it's time we reclaim our power back from those bulls*t body standards!
For the last 10+ years I've been helping people shift how they see themselves through the lens. By picking up the camera and reclaiming our power back through it. By creating a new narrative and telling the old one to take a hike.
Here's the thing about our relationship to photos...we can't do the work by reading about it or theorizing around it. It is an experiential process. We heal by taking the photos. This program is designed to help you put your body acceptance into action and do the work to make that shift in how you see yourself.
You are invited to join Be Your Own Beloved and to begin a journey to see the person in the photograph with compassion. Yes, we'll need to wade through some of the self-critique as we walk towards compassion and a more neutral relationship with ourselves in photos. But don't worry, I'll help you navigate how to break out of the cycle of critique and give you tools to choose a new path.
This class is about self-portrait photography but it is also so much more. In Be Your Own Beloved I'll guide you through 30 days of selfie activities and help you open up the door to seeing yourself with more compassion.
This class can be a doorway to a new way of seeing yourself: with more kindness, more self-compassion and to begin to treat yourself with the same reverence that you would someone who is beloved to you.
You deserve that same reverence, that same appreciation.
Yet for so many of us, it tends to be the opposite.
We think we aren’t photogenic. We see photos of us as proof of stories that keep our negative self-image thriving. We stop after taking one photo that we don’t like, closing the door to seeing ourselves with kindness.
Yet this is why taking self-portraits has so much potential to be healing.
Why hundreds of folks from around the globe have found transformation in their self-image and body acceptance through this class.
Because we get to decide what we take as the truth of how we see ourselves.
We hold our own map towards self-love or self-hate & we have the opportunity to guide our own way there.
THE BE YOUR OWN BELOVED JOURNEY INCLUDES:
-Daily self-portrait activities & explorations delivered to your inbox!
-An invitation to the community course space, our Class Flickr Group
-A Daily Worksheet with Journalling/Reflection Questions
-Supportive encouragement & feedback from Vivienne (as well as from your incredible classmates)!
-Two live calls during class. If you aren't able to join the call live, recordings will be available for you!
-A Video Resource Library with 10 Videos to support your journey and answer your questions! As soon as you register you'll receive access so you can start exploring the videos even before class begins.
-A Be Your Own Beloved PDF including the class prompts and journal questions
The Course:
Be Your Own Beloved is an adventure into exploring self-portraiture as a body acceptance practice We will create space during this month to cultivate self-compassion through self-portraiture!
It is structured as a 30-day photo adventure designed to cultivate self-compassion through the practice of taking self-portraits.
The way the course is structured is gentle but the effects of taking part are powerful! Each activity will take only minutes of your time but you will notice, when we take these little steps each day, they add up to create something pretty powerful during the month as a whole. Not only that, but through the process of taking a self-portrait each day, we begin to re-write the stories that are tied up with our relationship to our self-image.
You can just do the activities (which is more than enough by the way) or you can dig deeper and explore the worksheets and the resource library to support you even more in the process..
While we will be focusing on our own self-compassion adventure, we’ll be doing so in a community space! You will be welcomed with open arms into a beautiful community from around the world.
What you’ll need for class:
-A camera of any sort! A DSLR, point and shoot or iPhone are all great options.
-Access to the Course Flickr Group (its not mandatory to participate in the Flickr Group but is a really powerful, enriching experiences so I encourage you to at least come visit the group). This is also where I provide feedback & encouragement on your photos.
Register for Be Your Own Beloved:
JOIN IN FOR THIS POWERFUL 30 DAY ONLINE EXPERIENCE:
Dates: February 1st-March 2nd 2023
Cost: $179 CAD (Approx $140 USD)
Prices are in Canadian Dollars and PayPal will exchange it into your currency.
Enter the Earlybird Code EARLYBIRD to get $20 off when you join in before the new year!
OR JOIN THE CLASS + ADD ON A coaching session with Vivienne
As a companion to your Be Your Own Beloved experience, you can now book a 45 minute Coaching Session with me during your Be Your Own Beloved class. I’ll give you one-one-one support around what might be coming up in the process and help you find more resilience and empowerment around your relationship with photos.
Cost: $250 CAD (Approx $196 USD)
You can use the Earlybird Code EARLYBIRD to get $20 off this option as well when you join in before the new year!
If you'd like to gift the class to someone (or have someone gift it to you) for the holidays feel free to email me before (or after) you sign up via the above links and let me know. Send me a message via the contact form on this site or at vivienne.mcmaster @ gmail.com and I'd be happy to provide you with a printable gift voucher!
The Flickr Group was incredibly supportive and loving. I have never used Flickr and had no idea what to expect. The feeling of safety and trust is incredible. People’s willingness to be vulnerable is so compelling – such an honour to be trusted and supported and seen and accepted. Amazing.
-T.B.
So much beauty shared. I have been absolutely astounded by so much positive energy.
-Deborah
I did not expect all of the support and love that I felt from the other participants. I didn’t know that this would be such a safe place. It was helpful for me to see and hear about other people”s struggles, to realize that we all battle the same demons, to understand that I am not alone. It was so powerful to share in everyone’s story, to revel in their bravery and to cheer them on.
-D.I
About Vivienne:
I’m Vivienne, your guide in this online class. I created Be Your Own Beloved after many years of using the camera as a tool to find my way back from a deep struggle with negative body image and self-hate. The curriculum in this program is derived from the same tools that I used to heal how I saw myself and find my own voice of how I saw myself (outside of my inner critics voice).
I want you to know that when you sign up for Be Your Own Beloved, I’m going to be in this journey with you, cheering you on and leavng supportive comments on your photos. Of course I’m also available to answer any questions that arise. You’ll also see me participating alongside you in class as I believe if I’m asking you to show up in the photo activity, I had better be willing to as well…and there’s always new awakenings that happen for me too). I SO look forward to getting to know you through this class and don’t hesitate to email me if any questions are arising!
Past Participants have Shared:
So far this has been a real awakening for me in so many ways. And I had no idea that it would be. I have never ever spent this much time in front of the camera. I feel so much love. It is startling. I find myself wanting to take better care of myself, to look better, dress better toconvey who I am as a person. And the really cool thing is seeing glimmers of the person I thought I had lost.
-Deborah
I had no idea that a self-portrait class would yield such a peaceful heart! I didn’t realize that the practice of consciously taking my picture could help me feel so much better about how I look and to be so much more accepting. Thanks Vivienne!!!
-Julie Lubbers
This was one of the most helpful loving things I have ever done for myself.
-Amy Elaine
To me, the idea of a self-portrait, or really most any photo online = utter terror. Vulnerability off the charts. Issues galore attach themselves to the shutter of the camera and bring forth sweats of anxious “no f’n way”. Tag a photo of me on Facebook? I will untag and maybe report it…no need for discussion. And yet I was drawn to this course by Vivienne’s transformative and empowering stories about the experience. As I seek to extend and expand my own interactions with a photo a day as a spiritual practice, I let curiosity win out over fear and signed on. “Count it as professional development” I convinced myself.
Now, a month later, after posting my last two pictures to the classroom site, I’ll say this was no mere continuing ed experience. The learning of this experience has been great and worthy, no doubt a reflection in days to come. I just want to say THANK YOU Vivienne and the amazing classmates who shared so much courage and strength in such a simple and profound daily workout.
-Michelle Favreault
Vivienne…. I LOVE the way you teach/lead and engage with your class! I’ve taken many online classes and yours is the first and only class where I felt completely connected to you, our teacher. I think the opportunities you offer to connect via Instagram and Flickr, both through the photo comments and the discussions, are excellent. Mostly I appreciate and admire the fact that you were so interested in all of us that you not only checked on our pictures regularly but actually commented on each and every one of our photos! I really love that…. and I’ve never had that happen in an online class before. Thank you so very very much for everything you gave us during the class, and that includes your tons of wonderful soul nurturing, heartfelt information, and also your constant presence in the class and your kind and caring attention. You are very special and the work you are doing here is truly wonderful and so very, very important. You are helping to heal the planet, one soul at a time…
-Janet McQueen
For those of you on the fence, trust me. Sign up. I’ve taken two courses with Vivienne and I’ll surely sign up for more. Vivienne is compassionate without being schmaltzy, creative without being flighty, and meets learners where they are. Her ability to create a community seems easy but as an online educator, I know how hard it is. Her classes are well worth the investment and they made me love the camera and myself.
-Amy Stevens
QUESTIONS?
I took the last session of Be Your Own Beloved. Is it okay for me to join in again?
Yes, absolutely! I use all of these prompts regularly and I definitely experience them differently depending on the day, so I think it would be mighty powerful to dig deeper into prompts you’ve done before. So YES! Come join in again!
Is this a self-portraiture class?
Be Your Own Beloved is an adventure into self-portraiture, but as you’ll discover, self-portraiture isn’t just about capturing our image but rather it is about seeing ourselves in a new light and in that way, this class is indeed about self-portraiture. That said, there is no pressure to take a specific type of self-portrait at any time during the class. You can take photos of your feet or something in your hand. You will be asked to take some sort of a self-portrait each day as part of creating a self-care practice through self-portraiture but I promise you it will be oh so much fun and you will feel very supported!
Do I get feedback on my photos?
We have a course Flickr group where we will be sharing our photos throughout the class. I will be spending lots of time in the Flickr group exploring photos and I love to comment on photos and cheer you on! The feedback you will get throughout the course will be encouraging and as you’ll find, it becomes fun to cheer each other on in this adventure! You will definitely receive supportive feedback from me (as well as your peers) on many, if not all of your photos during the class.
Can I do the Mentoring Session after class is over?
The mentoring session is only available during or within the month after the class is finished as it is designed to support you during the experience or to help you integrate the process in the weeks after class is finished. So ideally it is done during the session but of course if there are extenuating circumstances we can do it afterwards.
It says the prices are in CAD. What would that be in my currency?
Indeed, I’m Canadian, so the prices in Canadian currency but when you put the class into your cart, paypal will let you know what it will be in your currency before purchasing the class. You can check here to get a sense of what it would be though it may be a slightly different rate via paypal.
If you have any further questions about this don’t hesitate to click the contact form and connect with me!
Is the class for women only?
No, the class is welcome to all genders and all bodies. While cis women are usually the majority of participants, it is open to men, trans folk and those who identify outside of the gender binary. I use gender neutral pronouns in the class to welcome folks of all genders and to not assume the gender of anyone’s partner either. Safe space for all of us, including women, trans and non-binary folks, LGBT community and men dealing working through body acceptance is of the utmost importance to me. Each class I’m in awe of the diversity of backgrounds and life experiences we each bring to the group and the safe space we create together.