I photographed Jayne and Bryan’s wedding the day after Thanksgiving.
Driving out to photograph their wedding, earlier then I’d be out of the house most days let alone the day after Thanksgiving, I realized that there is nothing else in the world that could possibly take me out of my cozy house with both my guys still in their pj’s except this, what I do for a living. Â I love it, can’t do without it and it isn’t just the taking of the photos, the editing the processing, the creating it’s a lot more.
I was thinking about what I’m thankful for, I usually make this post yearly about Sean and Ares, my friends, my family the people I love, my personal life. And how often do we hear from people who photograph for a living about “how amazing and how lucky we are” to be doing what we do. Â It’s cliche to see a blog post about some photographer loving love, or taking photos, or film, or our awesome clients (and I’ll tell you I remain gobsmacked by the people who find me and let me celebrate their lives with them, they are all awesomesauce), it’s cliche because it’s impossible not to be moved by the realization.
But as I drove toward Ann Arbor I started thinking of how thankful I am for all the other stuff too. Â I’m thankful for the crazy amount of hours I worked when I was first starting, two jobs, one full time and a girl in love just starting out all the other time. Â It taught me that if I really do want something I do have the strength to work my tail off to get it! Â I’m thankful for the decisions I made early on, some weren’t great and some failed completely but I learned so much from them. Â I’m thankful for the photographers I learned from and the photographers who taught me not everyone is going to be nice but that is okay too. I’m thankful for white shipping boxes, custom labels, Dirk from UPS and the nice ladies at the post office. Â I’m thankful that Kerri has taken over the ordering process. I’m thankful for Kerri and realizing I needed someone to help. Â I’m thankful for workflow, good archiving, backups. Â I’m thankful for the years I spent in engineering so I can troubleshoot and fix my own tech, I’m thankful for my studio and finding amazing mates and talented artists to share that space with! (there is art flying around all over the place!) I’m thankful for Seth Grodin, my accountant and online calculators. Â Among other things I’m thankful for all the women business owners I’ve met who astonish and inspire me with their drive, ambition and kindness teaching me that :
Mindfully growing something doesn’t just apply to a garden. Â You can do it with a business too.
I never thought when I went to follow my dream I would not only live it but I’d discover another love along the way, taking care of it. Â And I am so thankful for that.