Katherine R wrote:
I have this problem with eye sensitivity every time I shoot outdoors. Do I just tell the photographer to shoot me with my back to the sun, close my eyes and then open them or what? Also when I squint my eyes, I frown and that just ruins the whole photograph. Does anyone have any advice on this?

OK, here is my trick.

Just prior to the shot, close your eye and then look directly into the sun. What ever you do, DO NOT OPEN YOUR EYES.
With your eyes closed look at the sun for about 30-45 seconds.

This will fully dilate your pupils. This should allow you to fully relax once you are back in normal light.

Mark Ruddick wrote:
I had a blinker one time. We just went to a three count and got some great images.

Here is my trick for blinkers.

I had a model that literally blinked on every shot. Thing is, I was using strobe. One can't blink faster than the speed of light. So I finally figured it out. Some models may unconsciously blink on the movement of the trigger finger. The brain figured out that this tiny movement is what is responsible for the big flash of light.

Simple solution. Simply press the finger half way down. Just hard enough to make the blinker blink but not hard enough to trigger the shutter. If you see the person is keying off your finger then keep doing it at a faster and faster rate. The brain will at some point realize that there s a whole lot of blinking for nothing. Once you get it out of the rhythm you should be good to go.
For severe blinkers this may have to be repeated a few times. I would say this works about 80-90 percent of the time.

K I C K H A M wrote:
Telling the photographer how to shoot you might not bode well.

I don't have super sensitive eyes, but I have a few tricks on those very difficult days.

1. If it's way too much, I say, "I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open. Can I have a three count?"

2. I've learned to squint attractively and good closed-eyes poses. Sometimes it's the best you can do, and sometimes it gets great photos.

3. Pay attention to the rhythm. A lot of photographers have it. Click, 2, 3, Click, 2, 3, Click, etc. If you can time your blinks, you can survive it without having to say anything. Some people just shoot rather randomly, though, so it isn't failsafe.

Some good advice.
But honestly, I have incredibly sensitive eyes and sometimes even the 1-2-3 eyes open trick doesn't work after a while. It's really the best option though if the photographer doesn't want to move you. When I do photography, I have had people with super sensitive eyes and I always adjust the shot as best as I can to accommodate them. As a photographer, I would want to know if that's an issue; especially ahead of time if we are doing an outdoor shoot.