Photography: my journey

I was in middle school when my dad gave me his old film Canon camera body with a few lenses. I had no idea how to use it, but the manual was in the bag, and I didn’t mind the reading, so I dove in.

I remember seeing some photos taken with it in family photo albums over the years:

-me, three years old in a mint and cream dress posing in a rattan chair in our living room with sheer pink curtains in the background.

-foreign landscapes, rock formations, and bodies of water I had never been to with wildlife and strange birds I’d never seen.

-my mom, magenta lipstick, in fog grey suede boots, her leather jacket with fringe, light wash jeans, and hair permed, teased to the moon.

Now this was back when you had to purchase actual FILM, wait until you strategically filled the whole roll, carefully counting the exposures on your camera, head to some photo department at a retail store, complete your information on an envelope in black ink, enclose the film canister and then send the film off to return with your prints in 7-10 business days.

I carefully inspected the delicate glass lenses, adjusted settings, practiced composition, manually focused oh-so-slowly and clicked photo after photo of anything and everything that caught my eye: The fresh snow on the playground tire-swing in my backyard with the view of Lake Michigan in the background or my childhood pet Sheltie, Lady, belly-up soaking in sun on a spring day.

I’d save up for extra batteries and pick up film as my middle school allowance would allow. Then I’d send out the film and wait anxiously for my prints to return in anticipation that they were the masterpieces I dreamt of; Magnificent pieces of art.

Photography just “clicked” for me (pun absolutely intended).

I couldn’t draw, I couldn’t paint, I couldn’t dance gracefully enough, I wasn’t very good at most creative/artsy stuff, but photography? YES! That’s it! THIS!

Maybe it’s because I’m detail oriented, and it involves a bit of technology- both strengths of mine. Maybe it’s because I read the whole manual, but there was something about being able to capture an image, a memory of a single beautiful moment in time, to keep forever. To revisit whenever I wanted. People and places were often taken from me outside of my control whilst moving around the world so frequently, so photography was a means for me to keep parts of my world WITH me. Proof of their existence, not just some imagined memory in my mind.

I was hooked. Compact personal digital cameras became “affordable” while I was in high school in the early 2000’s. I saved my lifeguard money for a Canon pocket-sized digital camera that took a memory card. NO MORE FILM! And it came with the perks of inserting the memory card into the touchscreen kiosk at my photo department lab of choice, then selecting 2-day, next day, or 1-hour prints! ONE HOUR PRINTS! I could instantly see and choose each image on the grainy screen too- no more printing out-of-focus images or a bunch of duplicates!

But wait, there’s more- soon enough I could INSTANTLY print them at the kiosk- then, at home on a printer myself!

Fast forward and cameras were built into our cell phones! Get outta here!

Cue smart phones, photo editing apps, and so on and so forth as we entered the digital era.

Then, well…. life happened and I focused on a different path for a bit, but always held photography close to my heart. College, grad school, career, kid 1, kid 2, then my C was born. Something sparked within me urging me to pick up my camera again. I needed something for ME again, I suppose, as I was eyeballs deep into motherhood with three kids under 4 years old.

Looking for a recommendation, I reached out to a friend of a friend who is a freaking BOSS. Check out her portfolio. I typed out a message on facebook messenger: What camera body and lens would she suggest to be a notch above my ancient pocket digital camera? Something with a changeable lens that wouldn’t break the bank but be versatile? I hit send, slightly nervous she would be annoyed with my request as I’m sure she was asked for free advice all the time. She generously responded with a recommendation of a Canon Rebel T5 and a 40mm pancake lens and continued to chat back and forth a bit about other tips. Trusting her expertise, I bought exactly what she told me. [Thank you Sarah for being so kind.]

That was 9 years ago.

I started taking photos of my kids. Then a few of my nephew and friends’ kids. Eventually, a sweet mama let me into her hospital room to attempt my first ever Fresh 48 photos (a sincere thank you Brooke for your trust in me at such an intimate time). Then a few family sessions with friends who let me make mistakes and play around with my camera and poses. Next thing you know, I was subscribing to YouTube channels and researching all things photography and photo editing related. An acquaintance took a HUGE chance on me to photograph her wedding last minute when her photographer backed out. With zero experience with weddings, I rented backup equipment, begged my Uncle Steve to come and assist me, researched posing, reviewed a shot list, generated an estimated timeline, and practiced changing camera settings until my brain surrendered to sleep for a few hours the night before. (Erin, thank you for taking a chance on me- I don’t know if I could’ve done the same to a newbie photographer!). Soon after, I signed up for mentoring with a photographer I admired- Nicole’s work is everything I hoped mine to be: vibrant, authentic, candid.

It was everything I needed to ignite a fire to get started, so I contacted our attorney and he helped me set up everything I needed to become a legal photography business.

The rest? Is history… as they say.

I’ve since upgraded camera bodies and acquired, sold, or traded-in at least a dozen lenses. Some I’ve bought, sold, and bought again in search for that perfect one, ha! I’ve done portraits, family sessions, newborn photos, fresh 48’s, weddings, and high school senior sessions; Nature, landscape and macro photography; Headshots, sports, and travel photography…. you name it!

These last few years, I paused my photography business while I was in the throes of motherhood welcoming child #4, career changes, a pandemic and its aftermath, among a million other projects that came with selling our house and buying our home acreage along with a bajillion personal/family commitments. But if you were persistent and caught me in a weak moment of need for creativity, (I’m looking at you Amanda), I’d cave and pull out my camera, drag you through some tall weeds wildflowers, and photograph you for funsies. And of course, every time that happened, I knew. I knew I’d return to it someday, it’s my kryptonite.

If you know me well, you’ll understand my desire to operate as efficiently as possible and execute to the best of my ability. This past year I’ve spent some time getting up to speed, deciding where my passions within photography fall, learning how to strengthen my weakest points such as culling, editing, and turnaround time; Figuring out how to have both flexibility and boundaries so to offer the best version of myself to clients, while also being present with my family.

After some careful thought, something about 2024 just feels like the “right” timing.

So here I am, announcing my photography return with supports in place to offer my best photography services for: Families, Seniors, Youth Sports, and Fresh 48 Sessions.

My equipment and availability may have changed throughout my journey, but my purpose has remained: to capture an image, a memory of a single beautiful moment in time, to keep forever. To return to whenever I want. In a way, I’ve always been chasing those tiny moments of goodness…. glimmers, if you will….