6.21.09

I realized the other day that exactly a year ago today I started this blog. I sat at my computer on a lazy Sunday afternoon eating toast topped with huckleberry jam I'd bought the day before at the Missoula farmers market. I loved the way the light streamed into my small little bedroom I rented while I was in school. My computer sat by the window, where I spent most of my time if I wasn't in class. 

I started the blog so that friends and family back home could see the pictures I was taking and track the adventures that happened along the way. 56 followers and hundreds of anonymous readers later, it has become WAY more than I ever could of imagined. It's served in place of my website, connected me with people all over the country, been a constant outlet for creativity, and motivated me to keep on trucking because, well, people are watching after all. And I LOVE that!

So this is me saying thank you. Thank YOU. All of you that read this. Thank you for stopping by every day, every week. Thanks for the lovely comments. And thanks for supporting what I do. Because sometimes it doesn't feel like I'm doing anything. And then I realize how many people are watching and sometimes quite moved by what I say or a photograph I take.

So if you're reading this, leave a comment! Let me know you you are, especially if we haven't met yet. And if you haven't done so already, become a follower! Because, well, there's no reason why you shouldn't be. Especially if you fancy yourself here often :)

Happy blogging! And happy Monday!

It was one of the best weeks. And ironically a lot went wrong. But in that wrong, a lot was learned.

I lost my waitress job. But after the initial frustration of feeling misunderstood and moneyless was gone, I felt lighter on my feet than I had in months. It literally felt like a HUGE pile of bricks had been removed off my back. I immediately immersed myself into the things I loved. I felt creative, driven, and motivated to be the photographer I knew I could be. And I began working on the physical steps to get there.

I am checking the paper for jobs, but in the mean time have been hired as a photo editor for a local wedding and commercial photographer to do post processing of weddings and possibly design work as well. I finished revising my new wedding prices and designing a cute handout for potential clients. I've been working on my logo, starting an etsy account, and next up is advertising and marketing as well as updating my portrait prices. AND Chad and I photographed our first wedding yesterday with Matt from Allison Ragsdale Photography. It was an amazing learning experience and a great way to kick start the wedding season for us. Matt and Allison have become great friends and a fun photography resource for bouncing around ideas. I'm photographing another wedding next weekend with a photographer from California, and another in early August!

There's a lot of behind-the-scenes work to be done, but it feels good to at least be working towards something I love.

 

here's some images from my week...

 

 

for $2.00 at a thrift store this week I updated our miss-match plate collection. Aren't they pretty?

I bought new nail polish: bright yellow :)

found the most beautiful peppers at the farmers market Saturday morning.

watched the sun dance on the driveway.

bought myself flowers.

and baked my favorite biscuits.

sante fe.

I played tourist (minus the fanny pack) two weeks ago and spent a couple lovely days in Santa Fe, NM with my mom. We experienced a city-wide power outage in the middle of the day while trying to find somewhere to eat. You'd have thought the world was ending the way everyone was acting. We sat and "people watched" as we shared the last Frito chili pie from a hot dog stand that was running out of food due to the madness. Luckily the outage occurred right as we were leaving the Georgia O' Keefe Museum. It was the highlight of the trip and wasn't even supposed to be open, due to a change of exhibits. The other highlight was going to the Andrew Smith Gallery where I got to see some original Ansel Adams, Annie Leibovitz, Henri Cartier Bresson, Alfred Stieglitz, and more. (I think I completely geeked out on photography just now.) 

I got a little burnt out on art after just two days. Weird for me, I know. But the storms and skies while we were there were amazing. Better than anything on canvas.