Wednesday, November 28, 2012

rambling

This time of year is always the same for me; I go more inward, I make plans, I journal, I reflect, I dream, I re-evaluate. I think about my personal life, as well as my business, and I decide what I want to change, how I want to evolve things, and what I want to keep the same. As a very head-strong Aries, I am always looking forward, thinking about what's next. It takes a very concerted effort to be in the NOW, but I try to do that, too.

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In all my musings, I have been thinking a lot about how I want this space, this blog, to look. I always stop people when they refer to me as a blogger. I am not a blogger, but I have a blog. There is a difference. I started this blog when I was still shooting weddings, and it was basically a must for every wedding photographer to have a blog that showed their current work. It was just a smart business move. Then, the direction of my work changed, and the blog became a handy place to share some of the projects with which I became involved. Unfortunately, due to the nature of this type of work, I often can't share photos because of contractual agreements with my clients. In addition, I have found that somewhere along the way, I created some very limiting parameters in my head about what I should or shouldn't post on here, and those self-imposed "rules" are incredibly constricting. And, because of those rules, I am less and less inspired to come here and post.
I follow a very small number of blogs and the ones that most inspire me have nothing to do with food photography or recipes or any of that. The blogs that inspire me are more open-ended, less defined. They have great writing, art in all mediums, funny stories, and always honest words.

I am not too fond of writing so I don't envision a blog with more of my words, but I am motivated to shift this blog into something a little different than what it has been. As I write that, all of my inner voices get louder, reminding that I have always made this blog whatever I have wanted it to be-- sometimes very personal, sometimes all about business. So maybe the change will only be noticeable to me, and that's okay. I think the important thing is that I am deciding that there are some things that are changing for me-- about how I brand myself, about how I share who I am, and about what I want to share.

I am not a food blogger, I am not a writer, I am no longer a wedding photographer. I am a food photographer, but my passion definitely lies in telling stories more than just taking pretty photos in my studio. I want more of those stories here, on my blog. I want to share work stories, of course, but also personal stories, stories that involve collaborations with other artists, quiet stories, and moody stories. And, because I am a photographer, these stories will be primarily comprised of images which is, hopefully, why you come to this space in the first place. :)

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Tuesday, November 27, 2012

2013 farm to table workshop!

I am psyched to announce that the 2013 Farm to Table photography workshop date has been set!

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This past September's workshop was such a blast, I have been chomping at the bit to get next year's dates on the calendar. And now they are!

When: May 23-26, 2013

Where: Whidbey Island, WA

What: 3 days of photography, 2 (maybe 3) farm visits, a trip to the farmers market, delicious meals, lessons in natural light food photography and how to tell a story through images, ample time to play with lots of fun props, and last but not least, time to relax with like-minded people in a beautiful setting.

How much: $1350, which includes everything-- all workshop instruction, 3 nights accommodations here, (please note that rooms are SHARED), all meals, beverages, and snacks.

Click HERE to register.

Hope to see you there!!

UPDATE 11/30/12: Just booked one of the farms that will be participating...I am so happy to announce that we will be visiting and photographing The Little Brown Farm. And the best part? There will be baby goats at that time of year. BABY GOATS!!!! :)

UPDATE 3/15/13: The other farm we will be visiting is Willowood-- a gorgeous organic veggie farm located on Ebey's National Reserve. It's a stunning location with so many great photo opps.

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