Hair Journey Chronicles: The importance of length check pictures

Hair Journey Chronicles: Length check pictures

After I reached APL.

I know alot of ladies (and gents) who follow this blog and site are either starting, or are already on their hair journeys. Therefore, I thought I would share my findings over the past 3 years on my haircare journey in a mini-series.

To start off, I found that what inspired me the most, to aspire to longer hair, were the amazing comparison pics of ladies on other websites and forums. I was so inspired by shoulder length to Bra-strap length (BSL) leaps. They simply dared me to believe I could achieve the same with my hair.
All it needed was a different way of thinking about my hair and a bit of TLC for the tresses.

I admit, it took me 4 months into my hair journey to take the first few length check pictures. Before that, I relied mainly on pics of myself taken by others. This meant I would rarely get a good shot of the back of my hair (and yuo get very wonky hair shots that way too -lol!) However, when I took a picture of my airdried hair after a couple of months of embracing co-washing, I was pleasantly surprised that some of my hair was now APL (armpit length). The above picture was taken 2 months after that first length check picture.

The bottom line is: "watching hair grow is like watching paint dry" Any length you retain will not be obvious to you on a daily or weekly basis. By checking every month or two, you will be surprised - pleasantly - by how long your hair is getting. And you will have some proof to keep doing what you're doing. It may also tell you that you need to let go of changes to your regimen! And that way, when someone you haven't seen ina a few months drwas attention to your hair and its new tendency to "grow like a weed", you won't be caught off-guard.

Now here are the fun tips for getting started:

1. You can wear more than a bra - lol!This baffled me on other websites - so many women would take pictures in a bra - because bra-strap was a length goal! However, wearing tank tops, length check t-shirts (homemade or bought) and clothes with designs that highlight a check point is fine.
2. Start with what you have: camera phone (as above) or camera.
3. Find a good-sized mirror in a well-lit room - You don't want the flash to ruin your picture. The bathroom is a favourite with many, myself included.
   
4. How to position the camera: You can either hold the camera to the side of your body at eye level, or position the camera above your head. Take a few test shots and glance at the mirror to see what angle you need the camera at.
5. Go crazy, take lots of pictures! I love the digital age! Why? Well, you can take a lot of "dud" pictures and simply delete them without worrying about wasted film!
   
6. Look into watermarking your picturesfor free if you want to post them online - there are people who want to pretend your hair is theirs.....flattering in a way, but unacceptable!

Well there are six quick tips to get started.