Being able to look back at an image days/years/decades after a moment has passed and being able to immediately remember everything about that moment is an amazing feeling. Spending time on earth can be a very busy and nonstop process. Taking time to look back and reflect on the moments spent is truly a joyous experience to me. I have so many photos from my family… but I wish there were more. There are noticeable gaps in time that I would have loved to revisit and learn more about.
This yearning of revisiting time passed led me to recognize the importance of photography. Even horrible photos are better than no photos! With this mindset, I began approaching taking photos differently. I began recognizing what really works and what doesn’t (composition/framing) without really understanding what I was actually doing. I just knew that some things looked great and some things didn’t.
Eventually, I recognized the need to invest in equipment if I was going to continue down this path. That’s when I purchased my first DSLR. This was a game-changer for me. It enabled me to compose and create images beyond my expectations from the very beginning. The camera turned out the be the crack in the damn though. Once you get a good camera, you need a good lens (or 10!). Once you have good lenses, you need good lighting. Once you have good lighting, you need good lighting modifiers… and so on and so forth. This passion quickly became a money pit for the sake of art. In my mind though, it was totally worth it. To capture a moment so beautifully is priceless to me.
Luckily, people started reaching out to me to begin capturing their special moments and would actually pay me? Woo hoo! How awesome is that?! It was then that I embraced the idea that this could be more than just a hobby, but a way to do something I am completely passionate about and make a modest amount of money in return. I certainly do not do photography for money and will never preclude anybody from having photos done if finances are an issue. I do this because it is fun.
It took quite a few years in my life to find this amazing artistry. Now that I have, I’m definitely not letting go. Each day brings new yearning and motivation to find the and create the next best image. It is a passion now bordering on obsession. I cannot wait to see what comes next every single day!