I was already in love with photography when I was in high school and got my first “real camera” (a Nikon N50, a film SLR).  And then proceeded to take the camera (and rolls of film) with me everywhere.  And when families began asking me about taking photos for them, I was so excited and completely dumbfounded at the same time.  They were trusting me with precious memories, with capturing their families, and I couldn’t wait for our sessions!  So many families have hired me and trusted me and loved me so much during our sessions that it was if they’d welcomed me as one of their own!  (There was even that time I was in jeans and a t-shirt taking photos of a family who was dressed much nicer than I was when an elderly couple came by and asked if he could take a photo for us so I could be in it!  I so should have taken him up on that because I would LOVE to have that picture now!)  Getting to grow with a family has been one of my favorite things because as they’ve added children and the kids have gotten older, it’s been so fun to capture them as they’ve learned to walk, learned to talk, and learned how to be a big brother or sister.

It was these families, these kids, these teenagers, that have helped grow my business, given me experience not just in shooting but also how to run a business and do customer service well and I will be FOREVER grateful.  As my business has grown and I’ve explored different areas of photography – anywhere from travel to families to weddings to corporate and real estate – I’ve discovered what my loves are.  In a sense, I’ve grown into my business and into my photography and it’s been fun (and terrifying!) to realize that there are some things I need to focus on and some things I need to refer to other photographers.

Way back when, I remember telling some friends I wanted to do photography… just not weddings!  But the first summer a friend asked me to second shoot with her, it was like I’d been bitten by the travel bug again.  And I fell in love.  The engineering side of my brain loves the routine to each wedding day.  Mary Marantz said recently that shooting weddings is like living in the movie Groundhog Day because we get to shoot weddings over and over and we keep getting chances to get better and better at what we do!  And then the creative side of my brain loves how each wedding is uniquely its own with its own differences and venues, its own life and love. And then there’s my heart… my heart adores the couples I get to meet and walk through their engagement with.  And when we arrive on their wedding day with all of our gear, I might as well be attending a close friend’s wedding each time because that’s what’s happened!  We’ve built a relationship and not only do I get to spend an entire day with friends, but I get to document one of the happiest days of their life.

Swoon!

So, all of this to say that as this year continues to click by (how is it almost June already??), I’ll be wrapping up some family sessions that are on the books, but other than close friends and family (including the brides I mentioned above!), I’ll be referring inquiries for family and baby sessions to some of my favorite photographers in the area.  We all have our gifts in everything we do and I have some friends, who happen to also be photographers, who are super talented in capturing little ones with their families!  So, you may be seeing some family sessions on the blog from time to time, but the majority of those will be personal sessions that are close to my heart.

This image from Sheila and Bill’s departure from their reception seemed SO fitting for this post!  More will be on the blog tomorrow!