An Artist at Heart

This is one of my favorite photos of myself from my childhood. I was about four years old, and although I don’t remember the specific context, I love how the image reveals so much about the essence of my soul: the artist. 

I was a little bit of a late bloomer when it came to reading - it didn’t quite “click” for me until about third grade (and then you couldn’t get my nose out of a book). However, since I was homeschooled, I was blissfully unaware of being “behind,” and my parents encouraged me to learn in ways that came naturally to me. I remember having such a deep love for picture books. I loved pouring over the pages, soaking up the story from the illustrations. I learned how powerful and effective images can be at telling stories, even without the assistance of language. 

Throughout my childhood, I spent much of my free time drawing, painting, and making imaginative creations out of paper and glue. I illustrated my own stories, making up characters and detailed their adventures page by page. My parents’ home is still full of storage boxes stuffed with my many works of art and story books. Sensing my natural inclination, my parents placed me in art classes from an early age, where I learned all about mixing colors, molding with clay, and the basics of composition. As I grew older, my art classes advanced to topics of color theory, still life drawings, and self portraits. I learned about art history, and discovered a special affinity for the Impressionist era, specifically the works of Claude Monet. I loved how he portrayed light, color and form with his brush strokes, and how his subject matter was largely inspired by nature. 

When asked “what do you want to be when you grow up?” my answer was always: an artist. But I already was. 

Near the end of my high school years, I picked up our family’s digital point-and-shoot camera, and discovered a whole new way to paint: with light. I loved running around the yard taking pictures of flowers, bugs, and sunshine filtering through the leaves of the trees. Again, sensing my keen interest, my parents reached out to a couple of local photographers in our community and set up a few tutoring sessions, and I even shadowed one at a couple of weddings. I got my first dSLR camera, and quickly became “that friend” who always had her camera with her - I was obsessed. My love for documenting the beauty I saw in the world around me that I used to pour into my sketchbooks had now become as simple as a click of a button. 

During college, I got a job taking pictures for the school’s PR office, which gave me experience documenting all sorts of events and occasions. Although I studied communications, I took an elective entrepreneurship class in the business school, which is where I officially started my own photography business as a class assignment. By my senior year, I was running a successful side gig taking senior portraits and even a few weddings. Although I felt intimidated by the idea of running a business full time, I decided to give it a try after gradation. 

It’s been ten years since then, and I’ve never looked back. Although I didn’t have a clear vision for why I loved photography so much when I first began, I see now that the little girl at her artist easel is still inside of me, quietly and joyfully reveling in the process of making art. I’m still just as captivated by, color, form, shape and light. I’m still as fascinated by how an image can tell a story. My style has evolved over the years, and the more I have reconnected with that little girl inside of me, the more I have felt drawn to a more journalistic, documentary style. I love making images that feel real and tell a story. And yet I can’t get away from my roots in fine art, so I find that my work often feels a bit like a painting too - honest, and beautiful. 

Whether I am documenting a wedding, a birth, or a family in their home, my intention is the same: tell the authentic story of what is true, good and beautiful.

When I have the privilege of taking a person’s portrait, I strive to capture both the truth of who they are, and reveal their inherent beauty. The spark of joy I feel inside of me when I glance down at the back of my camera is the same feeling that little girl at the easel felt so many years ago.