You don't take a photograph...you make it...

Photography...it's something I love to do and I spend a lot of time behind a camera, looking for the right shot, capturing important moments for friends and family and then posting them to facebook or my photo website for people to view and download...

I seem to be spending more and more time on this "hobby" of mine and sometimes I wonder what it would be like to actually do this as a profession. I've searched for blogs about photographers and found a few. I've also searched for photographer websites and looked at their creative ideas and the outcome "in print." It's always interesting to see the artistry at work in these creative types.

Then today I went to the viewing of a movie at the museum. It was about women artists and their struggles to be taken seriously and to balance their home lives with their passion for their art. Each story was equally moving and the choices these woman had to make were sometimes heartwrenching. Some of their struggles have to do with society and the ways women are made to feel about making the "appropriate" choices for their family...ALWAYS... I found myself getting a bit emotional at some points and I wasn't sure why....at first.

When I was a little girl I proclaimed I wanted to be a concert pianist. I learned to play piano by ear and then later took lessons and did quite well. I could sit and play piano for hours so there was never a problem getting me to practice. At one point my piano teacher and her mother were both fighting over me and who would be the best to teach me! I was about 10 years old at the time and had no idea why there was such a fuss. I never took lessons from "the mother" but she would come and listen to me play at my teachers house fairly often.

My love of music extended to singing too...I got involved in choir in high school and whenever there was another musical group to try out for, I was there and involved. Music was probably the highlight of my high school years and those I have the fondest memories of when I really think about it. Later in college, the urge to sing was still there so I joined the university chamber choir and used it as an outlet. Then...life happened and I stopped singing. Don't get me wrong...I still thought I could be a singer or performer for a long time after that, but did I do anything to get me there? Besides singing at a few weddings and at the top of my lungs in my car I pretty much abandoned that dream.

So what does this have to do with photography? Well, after watching that movie today I am more determined than ever not to let another creative outlet fall by the wayside. I have loved taking photos for many years now but I always say to people..."I know enough to be dangerous" when it comes to photography. I've been the "unofficial" OFFICIAL photographer of an event that I've helped manage for the past 6 years and my photos are always used in all our promotional materials. I show up with my camera at anything and everything and end up taking hundreds of photos and then share them on my website. My theory is that if you take enough photos a few are bound to come out GOOD! It's my way of remaining amateurish to the people that are sending compliments my way. I don't pretend to know what I'm doing - I just know what I like to see in a photograph and also love to experiement too. Digital makes that easier -

This movie has given me the spark I've needed to get this dream underway in a more formal fashion. So...I'm going to call a friend who took a photography class last year and ask her for the info and get this dream started!

Oh yeah...and this is another item for the bucket list...after checking off "take photography class."

* Upgrade photo website to professional level