My Past, my present, and my amazing future

So we all have a past, right? We all have to remember where we've come from. This isn't just a personal growth thing, but professional as well. Four years ago I started this photography journey. I bought a Nikon d5100 DSLR camera on Black Friday in 2011, and what blossomed from there is my story. Actually, my story probably started years before that.

I've always been fascinated with photography and taking pictures. In fact, my aunt and uncle got married when I was probably 11 or 12. It was a simple ceremony in my grandparent's yard, but it was still lovely. Imagine this…your 11 year old niece taking your wedding photography on this…

Yes I know what you're thinking! "Wow! That's an amazing piece of technology there." Haha. This was probably my first gig in 1993. (I believe that was the year…) Unfortunately, that "hobby" was set on the shelf until 2011 when I decided that I needed pick it back up again.

So my first few (and by few I mean like 10) sessions were, ummmm….practice? I mean, I guess everyone has to start somewhere. Where I started felt like the baby pool. Wading and trying to stay afloat. It seemed like I was just stuck in the same spot over and over.















Exhibits A and B…photos from my first year. Left is my goddaughter Paige. I've taken her photos every single year since then. Some times twice a year. Right is my niece Kayleigh. Every time I see that edit, I cringe. At that time, I knew nothing of bokeh, the rule of 3's, or good editing style. I was just so excited to be doing something new and different for myself.

Fast forward 4 years….I'm still using my Nikon d5100. However, I've gained a love for prime lenses that I can't fully describe to you. My 50mm lens is my absolute favorite, but I have yet to try the 85mm. I'm told it's the bomb.com! I've taken a photography class, which was definitely helpful. I won a mentoring class with the totally awesome Joanne from Josephiney Photography (check out her site http://www.josephineyphotography.com/), which was super exciting! She's one of my absolute favorites! I've also been able to purchase some actions and presets from Sarah Beth Photography (http://www.sarah-bethphoto.com/). She's got amazing talent not just with photography. Her actions and presets are some of my favorites!

 Meet Violet stage right. Her family is one of my absolute favorites, and I've done at least 5 different sessions for them ranging from maternity to newborn to wedding and back to maternity. Haha. She is the most adorable little girl, and I have so much fun working with her. The basket and chalkboard were the same ones that I used during her newborn session.                                                                                                                                      

Meet Maddie! She's the second senior session I've done for a friend of mine. She's got such cute kids. Maddie and her sister were completely different, but each were so much fun on their own. Maddie was very laid back and willing to do almost anything for a picture. We had a very dreary day on our hands, but we definitely made the most of it! 

Sweet little EJ….look at that face! I mean, come on ladies!!!! Don't act like you can resist it at all. It was like pulling teeth to get a smile or a giggle out of him! But he really enjoyed the lovins from his momma. It was another gloomy day. Actually, it started sprinkling at one point, and we had to take shelter under one of the orchard trees. But alas, the rain stopped. And we were able to get some great shots in! 

“We are products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it.” 
― Rick Warren,

Sometimes it's difficult to look back and understand that we all had to start somewhere. Those beginnings don't have to be embarrassing. They can be proud moments where we tell people that we kept going. We strived on to make ourselves bigger and better than how we started. We just have to be brave enough to take the first step.