Being YOU...

Being a photographer is not all exotic vacations (I have yet to be on an exotic vacation), beautiful details, and days lounging about. It is a lot of hard work. I think the hardest thing for me, is finding a place where I am happy at.  It's very easy to fall into a cycle of self doubt. No matter how good you are, you are usually your toughest critic. No matter how many people love your work, or how many people book you, you will continuously find flaws in what you do. One of the hardest things is seeing others work, and wondering why you are not on their level yet.

But through my years as a photographer I have read a lot of articles and books pertaining to photography, and probably the most important thing I have learned is to be yourself.  Sounds simple, doesn't it?  Sure there are trends and ideas that we all love. I for one love photos with a vintage feel and detail shots. But the goal is to not fall into the trap of shooting things that are only the current trend.  Stay true to yourself, shoot what you want to shoot.  Basically be creative and be adventurous.  Your work does not have to look like everyone elses work.  Do something just a bit different that makes your work standout. Don't be afraid to step outside the box and be bold.

Now of course it is easy to say this, but it is a lot harder to do. With this being my 4th year of actively photographing weddings, I still struggle.  I look at others work for inspiration, and then find myself saying why my work isn't as good as theirs. Then of course my husband has to come in and be the voice of reason (which I love him so much for!).  Am I rich? No. Do I take exotic vacations? Heck no! Do I have a super awesome state of the art studio? No.  Do I have a talent at photographing people in pure emotion and love? Yes, yes I do. And that is what I always have to remember.  I have to remember the clients that book me, the ones that trust me with their wedding day, or capturing their pregnancy,the first few hours of birth, or the precious moments of childhood. 

So thank you to my husband for always being the voice of reason, my clients for trusting me and letting me be me (they know what I mean!). 

Random fact: Unless I am in costume (I love to sew), I am actually VERY camera shy!

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