When thinking back over the years, there is one photoshoot that will always hold a sentimental place in my heart.  It’s the photoshoot that made me say, “I think I can really do something with this,” and really inspired what would become my career. 

This was before I had any formal training, or real experience with clients, just a love for creating beautiful images of my friends.  I was given the opportunity to photograph senior photos for a close high school friend of mine.  This particular friend generally avoided photographs, as she didn’t feel as beautiful in her skin as she truly was.  This is not an unfamiliar feeling for me, so it became my mission to help her open up and encourage her to show herself off.  Though she hadn’t gotten to know her beauty yet, I knew I could introduce her through those photos.  As I turned the camera to show her the shots we had taken, she was shocked by the incredible power she was exuding.  Watching her realize her beauty was a kind of magic I had never experienced before. 

This photoshoot inspired a motto that I still follow to this day: “Photography is the art of putting already beautiful things into the proper frames,”  I have, and will continue to, use this motto as the foundation for every project I touch for the rest of my photography journey.