I read this article this morning from a photographer on a regret she's made as a photographer and a mom - not getting in photos with her children due to her own insecurities.  I can relate to this just from being a girl and from being the photographer in the family. We always have tons of pictures of Jason on vacation, but good ones of me are rare.  


I've tried to get better since having a meltdown after a trip to Italy where the only pictures I was in were unflattering.  I wasn't liking my body at the time and didn't feel like it was fair that I always tried to frame my friends and family so that they would look good, but then no effort went into photos taken of me.  Really it wasn't anyone's fault but my own because I hadn't voiced how I felt until that moment, so things have been better since, but I do have to make a conscious effort to hand the camera over.  

As we welcome our first child, I think this will be more important than ever.  I liked the line of this article that stated: 

"Photographs help children tell themselves the narrative of their lives, of how their parents loved them and how they were once small and then they grew and changed and prospered. Photographs stake a claim to our past–it was us! we were there!–that let us know that we matter."  

I believe this to be so true.  I myself, like the photographer that wrote this article, treasure photos of myself when I was little with my parents.  Those photos matter so much more than the ones of just myself as a kid.  SO learn with me and get out from behind the camera!

Its been hard getting established here in Germany.  We moved at the end of July and I feel like we're still not settled in.  Its honestly been a lot different and a lot harder than I had expected.  After Kuwait, I think I just thought Germany would be a cake-walk.  We're slowly getting acclimated though and things are starting to fall into place slowly.  

Photography here is something that has been more difficult than I had thought as well.  The community is so much larger than I had anticipated and getting involved/meeting people has been harder as well.  In Kuwait there was one central activity office that I connected with and was able to get involved and get some photography practice there.  In Colorado, I just contacted the City Parks & Recreation department.  Here, I'm not even sure where to start....  So that's why this page has been silent.

I'm still looking for opportunities and have not given up hope.  I still continue to photograph for just myself and friends/family.  Also, thanks to Jason, I have also started learning Adobe Lightroom to help streamline my editing process.  

So things are progressing, they're just a little behind the scenes at the moment.  Soon there will be a new little subject for me to practice on though, so get ready to see a lot of her face on here :)

I have moved a lot throughout my life.  So much so that I get a little nervous when people ask "Where are you from?".  There were times when moving tore me apart, but I've overcome this and now I often welcome a change.

Even when my world seems to be turned upside down, however, I have always had these constant points to hang onto.  Places that loved ones always were.  These constants created a web in my mind that was more "home" than any structure has ever been.

One of these constants has gone out, however.  This week, as we make our way to Wooster for my Grandfather's memorial, it may be the last time I have a reason to ever go to this town that I've been traveling to since I was born.

Its a very odd thing to try to deal with.  

I took some photos of some of the classically unique things about this place, while I was up there last and wanted to share a few.

Working part time, getting ready to move, volunteering my time as a beginner photographer, and then editing photos is proving to be quite difficult to keep up with.  I am fairly behind on photo editing the various volunteer positions I've been doing.  Luckily some of that is ok, because its just volunteer, but its something I need to work on getting faster at.

I shadowed the photographer that I previously mentioned, to a wedding last weekend.  For every 1 photo I took, she took at least 20.  I can't imagine going through all those for one event, let alone as you do event after event and they start stacking up.  

I'm starting to go through my photos and edit them to send her, but plan to pick her brain a little on her process and how she approaches a batch of unedited photos.  I seem to spend way too much time on each photo.  

I can't help constantly feeling like I have SO much more to learn.  Hrmph....

Today was my second to last Photography 1 class.  I've been learning a lot.  The tips I've picked so far are invaluable.  However, I have to say that the photos I've produced from the class so far have not been too pretty though.  Most of the time I'm practicing a skill more than I am worrying about my subject matter.

This next week we're printing our photos though and will view the class photos in a gallery style setup.  I'm feeling very non-artistic at the moment, so this challenge is a little nerve wracking.  Wish me luck!

I have always been in love with photography.  Since I was old enough to own a camera of my own, I have been obsessed with documenting my life.  Its something that I have always enjoyed and been passionate about.

As you can imagine, constantly moving has led to some challenges in my career, as I try to find my "place" in each new location.  When I was in Kuwait looking for an Interior Design job, I did some volunteer photography in my free time.  I really loved the experience and the finished products.  We also were able to travel quite a bit while we were there, so it was fun to practice in cool and interesting places. 

Additionally, maintaining my blog over the past 4 years has challenged me to document our life and take more photos.

My experiences over the past year, career-wise, have shed a harsh light on the fact that I don't necessarily want to be doing what I've been doing for the rest of my career and that its time to make a change.  I have therefore decided to seize the moment and take step one on the path to becoming a photographer.

I've signed up for photography classes to brush up on my technical skills and am pursuing opportunities to practice, continuing to hone my skills, researching, reading, and building my portfolio.

Stay tuned!