Life and Business Update
If you follow me on social media, you might have noticed I’ve been significantly quieter this year. I’ve been very busy adjusting to the changes, like most of you, as well as trying to take care of myself. Let’s see if I can summarize the year up until this point.
When the new year started, I was adjusting to changes I’m implementing in my business this year (taking on less weddings and more portraits) and focusing on updating my portfolio to reflect that. I was also photographing lifestyle and product photography for some small businesses.
In Feb, I went to the Czech Republic and spent a week exploring by myself, growing in my courage and confidence while traveling solo when my husband was at work each day and had the best time ever.
Just a couple weeks after we returned, the pandemic expanded into the US and I was forced to close up shop. I continued working behind-the-scenes from home, creating backdrops, searching for my future studio, practicing self portraits, attempting Facetime photo shotos, and communicating constantly with upcoming wedding clients. I was taking online courses and educating myself almost daily to try keep myself inspired without a camera + clients to spark my creativity. To be honest, this was a rough time for my business and I questioned how I wanted to proceed in the future a couple times.
Somewhere in here, my husband and I moved into a new apartment, I turned 29 and we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary.
Next, the tragic shooting of George Floyd triggered the revolution to dismantle racism in America and I spent weeks reading, listening, watching, petition signing, having conversations, and elevating the voices of the Black community to ensure I wasn’t distracting from those who need to be heard. I’ve done anti-racism work in the past, but this time felt different to me because I realized that I wasn’t doing enough and felt passionately that I needed to be taking more action.
Around the week restrictions were starting to lift, my dog had a TPLO surgery (which is a type of surgery to repair a torn ligament) and started her 12-week recovery which has required me to continue staying home to monitor her closely and help her learn to walk again.
Now, King County has entered Phase two and I’m starting to get back to photography business, but still trying to working through all of the changes I went through over the past few months with new daily actions. I’m assisting wedding clients as they navigate tremendous changes to their plans, currently booking summer portrait sessions while adhering to Covid-19 safety restrictions, listening to and learning from Black activists to ensure my life and business fully welcomes everyone (regardless of skin color, race, sex, gender, religion, etc..) in every step, and planning my two upcoming trips to MI this summer. I’m so excited to still be able to do photography, even if I’m limited because it brings me so much joy.
2020 feels like it’s been the most unpredictable year of my life and instead of fighting it, I’m trying to roll with it and grow with it. I’m uncertain what the rest of 2020 is going to look like for me or my business, but I sure appreciate the love and support from those of you going through it with me step by step. I’d love to get as many of you as possible in front of the lens to capture all the changes in your life and family that we’ve missed while we’ve been apart these past few months, so don’t be a stranger!
And that just about summarizes where I’m at.
(above) Just some random phone pics from the year…