I believe that every encounter, experience, conversation, and moment in time is incredibly meaningful and pushing us one step closer to something we aren't always aware of but are intrinsically preparing for. This place I stand today, as a photographer, is something I never anticipated but now know is exactly where I belong.
I've been fairly obsessed with immortalizing life in a still frame for most of my life, and I've used a number of mediums to do this--writing, painting, song writing, and photography (to name a few). But it was a couple of years ago, while living in San Francisco, that my passion for photography began to evolve and present a new path.
I had been working at an investment company for a few years, feeling stifled and so incredibly far from my true path, when I met Cupcake. We had been acquaintances for a while but when she took a job working at the same company as me, the purpose for our paths crossing quickly became obvious. I guarantee there was more than one reason for these two girls born under the sign of Cancer to meet, but the one that propelled me into the brave life I now live was our shared love of photography.
Cupcake and I spent the next year setting up photo shoots in unique locations, trading off as models for one another and sharing ideas and inspiration. It was through her that I discovered my love of portrait photography, as my focus for the previous 15 years had been nature and fine art. We currently co-author a blog now that we live 3,000 miles apart: Sprinkles with a Chance of Rain.
I had another chance encounter, while living in San Francisco, that provided a glimpse of the future that was possible for me if I left the career that made me feel empty. I met an inspiring photographer, Alyssa, who I knew through an old friend. I spent just one evening with Alyssa but in hearing her story, pouring through her portfolio and seeing a part of myself in another....well, a seed was planted. It was only a few months later that I quit my job and began planning my move to the East Coast where I eventually started my own business.
This beautiful woman shared with me her suggestions and ideas during the tough transitional period I experienced during the first few months of my new life. With one phone conversation I felt motivated, capable and excited. I will be forever grateful to her for her inspiration and spirit. Sometimes, life unfolds in an extraordinary way. This woman had started her photography business after someone else had done for her just what she had done for me. Many years before she had moved in next door to the world renowned Elizabeth Messina (photographer) who inspired her and acted as her mentor. This incredible gift is truly the essence of life.
Check out these phenomenal women. Their style and the way their souls shine through their art is simply beautiful:
I love these pictures
ReplyDeletethank you so much!
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