Photography captured Me

Well, 2021... You certainly showed out. Not as crazy as 2020, but still. What a year this has been. I have done a ton of reflecting and accessing my life in the past year, and it has sucked..  

So, I look back on my photography and I am proud of how far I had come. All the things that I had learned- good and bad. I cannot believe the comparison of the final photo from 2006 to 2021. 15 years of progress, heartbreak, so many proud moments, and so many tears. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine asked me to take photos of people with Santa at her event. I set the price and everything. He was there for free, but if anyone wanted a decent shot, then I was there. Cool. Totally cool. The disapproving comments of price outweighed those who were grateful that there was a photographer there. Sure $25 is a lot to some and nothing to others. Something in me clicked that day. I had reached a point where I just cannot do it anymore. 

So many tears were shed over this. Like, wow. 15 years and here I am. Nowhere near where I wanted to be by this time. Someone pointed out to me "If it was really important to you, then wouldn't you have put it first." That was hard to hear, but still accurate. I allowed so many other things to come before my photography and I still do. So, I only have myself to blame. 

That was even harder to accept. 

Whenever I talk about it, and even as I sit here and write about it, there is a huge heavy weight on the center of my chest. I truly enjoy photography so much. I love being able to offer great pictures as affordable rates, but something has to give. I have had some amazing clients over the years. Truly wonderful people who have trusted me to help document their lives. I have watched babies grow from newborns to 6-year-old kids. I have photographed baby announcements, maternity, and their first newborn pictures. I have watch families grow from 3 kids to the last kid's Senior year. All through the lens of my camera. 

I do not want that same thing to happen to my writing. I don't want to look back on 2022 and think "Man, that could have been the year I wrote a book." So, I finish this year with only a few photoshoots for 2022 and will not be scheduling anymore. It is time to take a step back and use what I have learned in my photography and apply it to my job, my work at the paper, and my book. It is time to be a published author. 

-Katie