This is the New Year | Pittsburgh Photographer
Well, hello there. How are you doing? Here we are, 2022. I’m doing well enough, if not stretched a bit thin with COVID stuff, online kid schooling, winter blues, and, you know, life in general.
While I don’t subscribe much to resolutions, I am big on reflection and intention and trying to be a little better than I have been in the past. I think the end and beginning of a year are a fine time to do some of this, so I’ve been spending the last few weeks trying to really analyze ways to improve my days a bit. I feel like I always *know* what I should do better or differently, but implementing and making changes are obviously the harder part. I do not excel at this part, and it always feels like one half of myself is dragging the other half of myself, kicking and screaming, to get up earlier, be more present, get more done, work out more, focus better, go to bed earlier, eat fewer pb cups, etc. You get it. I assume.
I'm getting VERY excited for an upcoming trip to Seattle I have planned. I haven't been on a plane in what feels like forever. I do think its been about five years, ha ha! Hopefully this year I will be able to take a few trips more trips, as I really miss traveling and have had the bug now that my kids are getting a bit older, and a bit more independent. Plus, thanks to COVID, I finally have a pretty flexible working schedule. But anyway, I have been participating in a six-month mastermind group, lead by one of my very favorite photographers, Elena Blair, and this coming weekend I am attending a retreat as the capstone of the experience. I have formed some awesome friendships with some of the other photographers in the group and I am so looking forward to spending the weekend in a cool new-to-me spot and talking all things photography with like minded peeps! I just love Elena's no-bull shit approach to her photography work and her business. When I first considered starting a business as a photographer, her work was some of the first family photography I felt drawn to. I loved the realness, the emotion and expression in her work, and the connection between subjects. I also loved the absence of saying-cheese-at-the-camera shots.
Aside from that, I thought I would start out this year, by sharing some of my personal photography work. I have been taking a photo every day for the last few years. With many grains of salt. I don’t expect or demand perfect adherence to anything I take on. I’m just not that kind of person and I think I already have plenty of shortcomings to beat up on myself over, so I’m not taking on anymore at the moment. I just do the best I can, and if I am too busy, or forget and skip a few days, meh. For me, this flexibility is what keeps it fun and prevents it from feeling like a chore. It’s still a really great practice that brings me a lot of joy, and I love love love having these photos at the end of a year. So... here are a few from our winter so far!
