Savannah Shaffer | "Confidence"
- Stephanie Ann
- Aug 9, 2017
- 3 min read
Getting to know Savannah went a lot differently than I had thought. In the process of trying to figure out the flow of this new business, I thought of the idea of creating blogs that express the impact some of these stories have had on me (or anyone else in the business). And, well, Savannah's story happens to be the first that came as a somewhat shock. So I'm here to share my experience in knowing her story, photographing her, and finally editing a a video we shot two months ago. (Links listed below).
A few years ago when I started University down in Southern California, I met Savannah for a short film project our freshman year. I knew she modeled and I told her after our shoot how I'd love to work with her. Flash forward to 3 and a half years later and we're at premiere night for junior and senior films. She's wearing this white jumpsuit, looking amazing, and I go up to her to say hi. We get to talking and I remember how we never shot together. At this point, however, I have made a vow not to do meaningless photography with models (in other words, no more shoots "just because").
I explained to Savannah that night about my new business and she was extremely supportive. I asked if she'd be interested in telling me her story and shooting with me and she agreed. I wasn't quite sure when I'd be in the area after I moved home, but I left it at that and we parted ways. Weeks later, I returned from England at the LAX airport and had a scheduled shoot with Savannah.
Everything was done a bit scrambled. She emailed me her story in advance and spoke about all good things. In fact, I was stumped as to what part of her written story would be a good lead at guiding her photo shoot. She seemed well put together, satisfied, and quite the happy camper. I had a feeling something was missing and that perhaps she wasn't entirely in tune with deeper emotions the way I happen to be. Then again, I wouldn't know.
Upon meeting up with Savannah in person, we tried to figured out if we should shoot her video portion or photo session instead. It was in that moment, however, that she confessed she wasn't sure what to say for her story. She expressed to me that she felt like it was nothing compared to the previous story and didn't have many struggles. I was intrigued that she opened up about feeling that way and decided I would work my "magic" and really know this girl.
So I did. I asked her why she felt like her life was going good and how that actually made her feel. She ended up opening about what got her into acting and how things have been fairly easy for her while growing up. People saw her as put together, but there was still something within her that was trying to "be someone else" in order to feel good about herself. Savannah learned through friends that when she broke down and felt low, she was more desirable to be around because she was real and people needed to see that.
Although there was more to her story that I can only wish to know more of, the amount that she opened up about helped me learn what someone with great confidence is actually like and how very human she is. It helped me see the inner depths of someone I might have previously judged because I've never felt that sort of confidence myself and have struggled quite a bit my entire life. I've fought so hard to get to where I'm at and I'm in so much debt, not even able to stay living in Southern California and wondering how she was able to stay there herself. But knowing her story truly humbled me in that moment and helped me see that she has her own struggles and that I'm equally as important as she is.
Besides knowing how she feels with the way life was dealt to her, I was inspired by her confidence to not care what others think around you and to instead focus on how much you believe in yourself. Savannah proved her story in her shoot by how easily she was able to model and walk around a public place in the city with no problem. She is a walking reminder that if you stick to who you are, there's no better place to be than in your own shoes. She helped me think twice before I judge someone who seems to have "more than I do." On the outside, she's appears confident because on the inside...she knows who she is now.
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