the one where I sound like a nerd and give you permission to laugh at me :)

Ok so. This will probably sound crazy...and it's totally understandable...because, honestly..most people won't completely get my excitement.

I don't even know that I'll accurately be able to describe it without sounding giddy or ridiculous or dorky or (enter adjective). Ever since I started posting on craigslist and especially since I made my facebook page, I just have been sooooo excited with all the interest in my photography! I literally smile every time someone asks me to do their pictures or leaves a comment on my page or e-mails me to do their family/children's pictures. Kid in a candy store? Doesn't even compare to how I'm feeling.

It makes me so happy to know that people actually like my work. I definitely feel like I'm improving but I also feel like, no matter how much I improve, I'm never going to think I deserve success. It's something I KNOW I have to work on...but it's really hard for me. I mean, why would people want me to do their pictures if they didn't think I did a good job? I really have to get over that absence of self confidence. Because the truth is...no one is going to believe that I can do a good job unless I believe that myself.

And lately, I've been researching and practicing practicing practicing...I have been working so hard to improve. I guess it's just really exciting when your hard work pays off. Even if it's just something small like photoshoots for 80% off...lol.

That probably doesn't even express the feeling I have...I'm not sure that I could actually fully explain it. But it's there. And it feels oh so good!

Less Words Wednesday

a new post so Stefanie doesn't get mad at me :)

What can I say? I'm in a blogging rut. Not much to update lately!

The only new thing I can think of is that, after LOTS of thoughts/weighing the pros & cons, and talking to people who have done this in the past, I decided to dive right in and post an ad on Craigslist to get more people to photograph. It's not that I don't have people to take pictures of...in fact, I have a lot more than most people who are portfolio building (thanks to my friends/family...particular shout out to Stefanie who has talked me up--probably too much--and had several of her friends contact me!)...but it will be nice to have some new faces, if only so that the faces I do have do not get so sick of me that they refuse to be photographed in the future! Yes, Anne...I'm talking about you! That poor girl is so good to me when I want to try out something new or just get some new photos to play around with!

Plus, it will be good for me to photograph some strangers--that's something I'm eventually going to have to do if I want this to be my profession so I better get used to it now! Who knows if I will get any responses...but I'm cautiously optimistic!


I'll leave you with a few random pics :)

fun with my favorite little guy

Wordless Wednesday (as requested)

I was gently reminded by Stefanie someone who shall remain nameless tonight that I haven't done a Wordless Wednesday in awhile...or posted at all for that matter :)

So...what better time than to show you my latest pics right? Well, I suppose some of them aren't SUPER new...but all within the last month or so...

without further ado...enjoy!

*disclaimer* VERY picture heavy :)













satisfied Stef? ;-)

It's been awhile!

So...I've been absent for awhile. I go through spurts where I post a lot and then don't...have you noticed? haha Anyways, not much has been going on here...just trying to get over this sickness! I've been sick since last Thursday and pretty much despise going to the doctor. Actually, I had a little cold the week before I got this so this is really uncharted waters for me! Keep in mind that I literally get sick like once a year...and that's usually just a 2-3 day cold...I really do not get sick ever. (Stefanie is very similar to me in this way :) I don't what it is about us but we just don't get sick! We're lucky!)

Anywho, since I don't get sick very often, I really don't go to the doctor often. In fact, in high school/college, out of all my trips to the doctor, ONE was for being sick...all the rest? Yearly visits, sprained ankles, almost broken feet, etc. I may be a klutz (or just didn't wear the correct shoes playing basketball...haha) but I rarely get sick. Anywho, suffice it to say that even I know that, after a week, I should probably go see the doctor. She diagnosed me with 'viral pneumonia'...I wasn't aware there were distinctions...but apparantly there are? She also told me that most people who get pneumonia had a cold 1-2 weeks before they started feeling sick with this...that explains that little cold I had a couple weeks ago!

Anyways, I was already feeling a little better when I woke up this morning but I promised my mom I would go in on Thursday if I wasn't feeling tons better. So off I went. I had my mom listen to my chest the other day (she is a rockstar respiratory therapist after all!) and she said my breathing wasn't as loud as it should be...and that it sounded like a viral thing...she knows her stuff! haha I've just been trying to stay hydrated and rest as much as I can this week...I'm sleeping a little better at night but for the past few nights, I was awake so often coughing that I was just exhausted all day long...yuck! So hopefully today is the turnaround I've been waiting for!

So other than that, I haven't been up to too much lately...I went out with a few friends to do some photoshoots in the past few weeks...I was planning on putting up some pics but that will have to wait! I cleared all my pictures off my computer in hopes of freeing up some space...so I'll have to download a few and then put them up later! Perhaps tomorrow since I have nothing to do all day except sit at home?!

Wordless Wednesday

success

So, I had the opportunity today to review 14 hours worth of podcasts from professional photographers. There is a photographer (Scott Hayne) that I absolutely LOVE...I frequently check his blogs for new photos from weddings/senior shoots and I just adore his work. About a month ago, he posted something about this "webinar"...it was basically a free (if you pre-registered..otherwise it cost $59!) seminar from top photographers around the world. They posted about many different things...a lot of them were based on marketing yourself, your photos and your business, which is incredibly helpful. But there were also quite a few on other topics such as: technical aspects of photography, specializing, how to get certain effects, lighting, etc.

Needless to say, I have been in Heaven since about 3pm!

The podcasts are only available for 24 hours (so, just today) unless you purchase them...8--yes, EIGHT--pages of notes later and I have TONS of information that I think will help me in the future.

But the main purpose of this post is to talk about one photographer in particular, Marcus Bell. He started doing photography about 13 years ago...at that point, he was basically at the point I am at now. Where to start? How do I start? How do I learn enough? How do I get people to hire me? Pretty much everything I've been thinking about.

He actually was more inspirational (at least to me) than educational! Don't get me wrong, I learned A LOT from him but I came away from his little podcast completely inspired. I think the thing he said that set me into motion was

"You are the difference between wishing
to be successful and being successful."

How true, right? I mean, when I think about it, what's stopping me besides me? The other thing he said that really hit home was "passion makes you want to work at it 24/7"...*lightbulb going off* "Oh...is that what it is?" How often am I either taking pictures, editing pictures, or talking about taking/editing pictures?? Pretty much all the time (which also means that the majority of my friends/family are probably annoyed with me!). That's passion though. If you're passionate about what you do...if you LOVE what you do, it's not a job to you. Marcus basically said when he goes to shoot weddings or portraits or whatever he's shooting that particular day, he doesn't feel like he's going to work. It doesn't feel like a job to him; it's fun. It's something he enjoys!

That's what I feel like when I'm taking pictures. I'll be honest, before the wedding, I thought I was going to hate having to run around and I worried that I wouldn't get the shots that they wanted or the shots I wanted. I worried they wouldn't be good enough. I worried it would be too hard. I worried that it would feel like work and I wouldn't enjoy it. Guess what? I was dead wrong. I had fun the entire day. From 11am to 10pm. Almost 12 full hours. And there wasn't a second that I wasn't enjoying--no, not enjoying--LOVING what I was doing. It was busy, of course. But it was a good busy. It wasn't a scary busy or a rushed busy. It was a fun, good busy.

The last thing Marcus said that I took to heart was "make a choice to be successful; to be ordinary or extraordinary. But if you want to be extraordinary, know it takes hard work and determination."

Ya know what? I'm going to show everyone what I've got.

:)