In pursuit of a purpose…

When we arrived back in the states, I came down with Covid, literally the day of our return…it was miserable, but forced me to be still and reflect on what I learned on our adventure about my life and my purpose, both in the past and for the future. Not only did I realize that I wanted to pursue Photography full time, but I had gained the confidence to believe I really did have the ability to learn and succeed.

The photograph above is the first photograph I took back in the states, on my back porch, with my little bridge camera, and it will forever be one of my favorites. I was so surprised at the beauty captured that I ran into the house to show my husband, whose absolutely delighted expression sealed my desire to continue pursuing my new found passion for photography.

My husband has always been incredibly supportive of all my “adventures,” encouraging me to complete a Master degree at age 48, bringing me warm chocolate chip cookies each night as I slaved over homework at the end of a very long work day (definitely gained a few pounds!). So I should not have been surprised when this man now insisted that I purchase a “real” camera, I was though, surprised that is, because I still had doubts about my ability and commitment, but he didn’t. Thank God, And I mean that literally.

I purchased a used Sony a7rIV, and a used Tamron zoom lens (couldn’t afford a Sony lens!), and I have never looked back. That was several years ago, and I’ve since updated my lens to a new Tamron zoom lens with a longer range, and added a Sony to my collection too.

Now, all I had to do was decide what kind of photographer I wanted to be when I grow up!! Right? If you are reading this and new to photography, you may have heard that in order to be successful, you have to choose a photography niche…narrowing what you photograph so you can be successful. I have been known to quip that “I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up…”! Ridiculous at my age?…maybe not! But really, who are the “they” that tell us we need to narrow our focus and limit our vision. It is important and helpful to consider the advise and experience of others, but ultimately listen to your own heart and take the photographs that feed your passion.

I Love landscape photography! and I Love portraits! and I Love lifestyle! and I Love shooting Brand photographs!… You get my drift. I have a varied portfolio of all of those listed. Some better than others, but Photography is an ongoing learning process, and your vision will change as you gain experience. Embrace that, enjoy the journey!

For me, the combination of having SO much fun taking photographs, and the arrival of each of my four amazing, beautiful and fun grandchildren (not prejudiced at all!), all of whom have been my favorite photographic subjects at one time or another, convinced me to find the courage to do what it takes to learn as much as I can, to go beyond the mediocre.

I wonder how many of you want to take that step of faith and courage and chase that dream that just won’t leave you alone? I have spent so many years behind a desk, chasing the corporate dream and the titles and the accolades…I have achieved all that I set out to achieve in that arena and I am grateful. It has served me well and supported my family, but I now find it unfulfilling and shallow at times. And more than anything, I do not want to get to the end of my life and regret that I didn’t chase that last sunset, or didn’t drop everything and just play with my grandchildren when they wanted me.

Photography is truly an art, perhaps even a calling? When your heart won’t let it go, and it dances in your head at all hours, especially when you should be focused on something in the “real world”, it is probably time to stop what you are doing and listen.

I never believed I was artistic, but I was wrong. I just had not nurtured the calling, the vision. Now I see everything as though through the lens of my camera; the lighting, the detail, the color, the depth, the subtle expressions and nuances of a weathered face that reflects the wisdom of a long life…or the beauty of the perfect skin of a child, and the light dancing in their eyes with such merriment when they have a secret…and when captured in a photo, the end result is enchanting, sometimes it is breathtaking.

Just the thought of taking such photos inspires and motivates, and gives me hope and courage to forge on and make my own path…it’s never too late, and you are never too old!

Enchanted Ireland

In my last post I said our trip was “life changing”, which I know sounds dramatic…there is just no better way to describe it though…We had worked so hard for so long, trying to be the best we could be at our chosen professions, trying to “be there” for others which both of our professions required, trying to be the best parents (our Sons are amazing in spite of us!!)…there was never a time where we felt free to do something so out of the box, just for us…responsibilities don’t you know…

We landed in Dublin after a very tiring overnight flight, during which the lady behind me decided to talk loudly just at the time when I thought I might be able to sleep! Fortunately, the hotel where we were staying was amazingly kind and allowed us to chck in very early so we caught up on sleep before we met our group for dinner.

And what a group!! Super diverse, and super fun! It was a dual focus trip with some of us there for the photography, and the others along for the music and pubs. So all of us got to enjoy the side trips meant for the “other” side of the group…having never spent any time in bars, and not being a drinker, I was a little surprised that I had SO much fun going to the pubs. Ireland pubs are different…this is a scene where locals come in with their instruments, circle up in a side area and play the most wonderful Irish tunes. There was a lot of Guinness! and a lot of refreshing camaraderie.

I learned about street photography in Dublin, enjoying my first experience participating in photography walks through the city. As a newbie, I had never heard of street photography, but I found it intriguing. I love the experience of exploring a new city on foot, the sights, sounds and smells all bombarding my senses at the same time; resulting in a heightened awareness of the smallest details from architectural design, to the expressions and emotions playing across the faces of so many people I observed and quietly tried to photograph!

Did you know that in many countries it is not illegal to photograph people without their permission when they are in public places? I was very shy about that, and tried very hard to photograph incognito.

There were of course opportunities to photograph the classic Irish countryside with roaming sheep and squared off fields, and the castles and gardens!!…everything I dreamed I would see in Ireland. Along with an unexpected adventure walking a rope bridge over an 80 foot chasm with raging waters below! But one of my favorite photos from the trip was taken in Donegal Town, an amazing, quaint, beautiful place with a vast array of photographic opportunities…the photo is of my husband complete with Irish cap, on a quiet trail covered in lush greenery, leaning against a weathered and beautiful old Irish rock wall. He didn’t want to come home…

But I started this blog to talk about photography, and I went through the Ireland trip to both encourage other wannabe photographers like me at the time who may doubt their ability, and to document what can happen when you find you are passionate about something in your life and decide it is worth pursuing.

Next week, Back to the real world…

Hope and a step…

I started in photography as a complete novice with only a desire to capture the beautiful images I was mostly seeing on the regular bicycle rides I took with my husband on amazing woodland trails.

Being the supportive hubby that he is, he finally convinced me to buy a “decent” camera to learn the art. I fudged and bought a “bridge” camera, which is a real camera wannabe, with better capabilities than a point and shoot…none of which I understood. I definitely had no idea of the difference between a DSLR, Mirrorless, Bridge or point and shoot at the time.

So I started watching YouTube tutorials to learn about the camera I bought, and tried to take some spectacular photos…with maybe a little success…

Then one of the “real'“ photographers I was following sent out an invitation to go on a photography workshop with him to one of many different locations. All exotic and all expensive, and the thought was both intimidating and exhilarating!! “I couldn’t go with a bunch of real photographers regardless of the invite stating it was for all levels of experience. I couldn’t spend that kind of money to learn a hobby I had no idea if I would continue to pursue!” Which is literally what I said to my husband who just listened patiently.

Then enters my wonderful daughter-in-law, after I finally confessed to her my desire to go on the Ireland trip, she looked me in the eye, and kindly said two things that stuck:

1) “Mom, you cannot afford NOT to go, it is an incredible opportunity to learn and you can financially afford to go”, and

2) “You are not getting any younger (said with much gentleness!!), so why wait until you are too old to enjoy it!”

Of course, my husband agreed with her, so off we went to Ireland with my little Bridge camera in hand, minimal knowledge of how to even make it work, and a very bad case of Imposter Syndrome for even thinking I could interact with real photographers and not embarrass myself!

It was life changing…