Fresh Morning

A little while ago I signed up for Ideas Tap, a great artistic network for youth 30 and under. Every month they have an Editor's Brief, which is basically a competition around a theme. January's was the theme 'Fresh'.

So I entered my first Brief with these images and this to say:

"A new day with bright morning sunshine and a hot cup of coffee in a brightly coloured mug is a wonderful and fresh way to start my day. Pull up a chair, sit back and enjoy a cup!"

Botanicals

I was combing through my photo library. Would you believe I have over 14, 000 images that I alone have taken? I was a little stunned but then again, I have been known to be prolific on a shoot.

I'm still playing with this blog layout, so if you see something odd, I'm probably in transition.

Here are a few botanical images for your viewing pleasure…

When You Least Expect It...

… something amazing can happen.

Take a good look at the address for this site. Notice anything?

If nothing jumps out for you, I'll fill you in. I have my own domain name, like real people with real businesses do! Strange how a collection of words in a specific setting can make you suddenly feel like a legit entity, but there you are.

The best part of all of this, is that I didn't do it. I had hoped to eventually, since buying a domain name isn't really all that expensive, but I just couldn't do it right now.

Knowing this, a friend did this for me. I read the email he sent to tell me and just sat there stunned!

Flabbergasted.

Shocked.

Amazed.

Moved.

Almost to tears.

It's a small thing, but it was incredibly generous and thoughtful and I keep going I might just gush all over the place.

I am truly lucky to have such wonderful people in my life. They know it, but just in case they don't, I'm telling them again.

Thank you. This will make a difference.

Image Previews!

While I work on perhaps some snazzy image gallery options for this blog, I have some images up on the Facebook page for you to browse. Check them out HERE. Enjoy!

New Beginnings

Like so many things in life, sometimes you don't take the leap until you've exhausted all other options. My family is important to me, and so is being around to watch my daughter grow up. She's certainly a handful (as most two year olds are) but she more often makes me laugh and smile than anything else.

I've always wanted to do this, you know, be my own boss and make a living doing something I am passionate about. When I'm behind the camera, I feel in a totally different world, an altered state of being even. Not every shoot is productive, but just getting out and forcing myself to take a closer look at the world around me is enough.

Very soon I will be opening up a shop on Etsy where people can buy my fine art prints. As soon as it's open I'll announce it here and on my Facebook page.

Spread the word, follow along and wish me luck!!