Part 1
Writing gives your life immortality...it is your voice long after you cease to speak.
My decision to start a blog about photography was an easy one. The hard part was deciding how to portray myself in connection to the art form. Do I want to say I am a photographer...hmmmm...I think so but am I? I mean I have a degree in photography, I am classically trained on the fundamentals of camera operation, I know how to process and create prints from scratch, but is that enough? I think the digital age has jaded me to some extent...it is making photographers out of everyone and somehow it doesn't feel like a special skill anymore. But alas, I am ready to evolve.
I want to tell the tale-in-progress of StillLife Photography...my journey to confidence, overcoming my setbacks...my fears. I want to indulge in chance...try something new...believe in myself. I want to share pictures, offer tips, accept tips, and most of all I want to share a story...Total improv, no end in sight!
Simply put, I love photography...the way light ingrains itself and dances with shadows...I love taking pictures. From Ricoh to Pentax from Pentax to Canon each new SLR relationship I establish gets a little more complex and I need to bridge the gap between my love for film and the necessity for digital. Half full the optimist believes that digital and film can actually exist quite harmoniously and why not just utilize both?
Part 2
In 2005 I met Jeremiah and everything changed. It isn't enough to say I love him, he is the air that I breathe. Even after 6 years together I hate to be away from him. I admit I am an intense person but truthfully I don't know how to love any other way. In 2007 we were married and in 2009 we gave birth to our first son, Jonas. Jeremiah bought me my first digital SLR, it was my wedding gift. As a promise to his investment I planned to build my portfolio and perfect my digital SLR skills. I always knew photography would set me free but allowed myself to become comfortable allowing the idea of photography as a business to simmer patiently on the back burner. Now that idea is simply not complacent on the back burner...it needs to manifest.
Part 3
Without getting into too much detail, (after all there are two sides to every story, each with its own sense of validity and merit)I was in discussion with my closest friend in the area (since moving to Warren County from my hometown by the shore) about starting a photography partnership together. It made sense to me since we both got along so well...our husbands are lifelong best friends, our children are the same age, and we seemed connected at a very similar core. To make (a very) long story short I discover through social media (the usual culprit) that my friend has partnered with another friend of hers. In a matter of weeks they had a Facebook page promoting their photography, posting shoot after shoot...still thinking we were supposed to work together, I was shocked.
The next turn of events included, lack of communication, a feeling of betrayal, and of course jealousy. To be fair, I don't think she intentionally sought to hurt me but that was the unfortunate result. I struggle with the way everything happened, wondering what I could have done differently while missing her friendship everyday.
Part 4
Jeremiah,knowing I needed a new perspective, proposed a new partnership...Him and me. After some rather animated discussions I began to feel motivated again. Jeremiah is a natural photographer. He is technically charged as well as creative. By profession he is a landscape architect, a skill that is evident in the composure of his photographs. Since we compliment each others strengths there is no fear of competition or one person taking more responsibility in the role of the business than the other...we both have the same vested interest in making this work. That is how we arrived at our name: StillLife Photography LightWriting by Nicole and Jeremiah.
We have two shoots coming up in July--portraits of artists in their element...a guitarist and an embroidery extraordinaire. Things are about to get interesting.
