But what even is this?

I have loved photography for as long as I can remember, but it was never really the photos themselves that interested me. To be honest, the subject matter didn’t really matter to me. Others saw an image… I looked at a story, as if it were living and breathing before me. 

For me, it was the feeling behind them.

I would look at the colors, the expressions, the environment, and immediately start imagining everything happening outside of the frame. Where could this story take me? I wanted to know  what the people inside it might have been thinking, what was REALLY happening? Did the storm darken the sky? Did the bird quickly lift its wings to fly off into the sunset? I always wondered, “What happens next?”

Sometimes I created entire worlds around one picture. Full storylines, characters, histories, and plots, all from a single image. I could hear the sounds of nature, dance to the music in the atmosphere. I could live the moment. 

Honestly, I didn’t grow up knowing how to use a professional camera. I had never even touched a digital camera when I finally decided I wanted to be the visual storyteller. I knew I had the creativity. That part was never really in question. I had ideas constantly, but no real way to turn them into art. The ability was there, but I wasn’t sure what to do with it. 

I didn’t know how cameras worked. I didn’t know anything about lenses, lighting, editing, post-processing, or how to properly use and care for professional equipment. I definitely didn’t know how to build a photography business. Let me tell you…. There is SO MUCH that goes into each and every part of the process of being a visual storyteller. 

So I enrolled in the Digital Photography program at F.I.R.S.T. Institute and started learning. 10 months of 5 hour days, 5 days a week. It was labor intensive, but so worth it. 

Once I started, I photographed everything.

I practiced every day. I experimented. I made mistakes. I figured out what worked, what didn’t, and what I wanted my work to become. Looking back at my first few photos, it’s nice to get a good laugh out of them. My growth is something I’m beyond proud of, and I know my personality… I will never stop growing and pushing to be better than I was yesterday.

I had to learn the technical side of photography, editing, client work, and running a business, but learning is something I genuinely enjoy. I knew those were skills I could build, especially with how determined I can be. 

The more I practiced, the more I realized I was not only passionate about photography.

I was really good at it.

Now, three years later, I am building my first brick-and-mortar studio.

That is still an unexpectedly wild story for me to write. But one, I’ll proudly continue writing for the rest of my time.