Searching for Inspiration

I recently dusted off my neglected camera and went with my mom (and favorite partner-in-adventure)on a quest to find my lost "photographer's eye".

It has been a long time since I took any photographs - both the urge to shoot and the creativity to produce something beautiful has been gone for some time. Perhaps I have lost sight of why I originally began taking photographs; I first took photographs for myself, because the image pleased me, and to share with others the magic of what I saw in ordinary objects. And it was a wonderful feeling.

So, with that in mind, here are a few pictures from our trip. All taken without a thought for whether anyone else would like them! I have discovered that you can't get something magical back in just one attempt, but I do hope that soon, I will feel that creative spark again!

Retirement

I think now is a good time to announce my "retirement" from portrait photography! :) 10 years ago, when my parents bought me my first camera, I fell in love with photography. In the beginning, not a single one of my pictures had a person in it! Landscapes and wildlife scenery were what I focused on. It was not until my brothers graduated from high school and needed senior portraits that I was first convinced to try portrait photography.

A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then, and I have had a good time meeting new people and getting to know old friends even better. It has been a privilege capturing your personalities on film, and hopefully creating portraits that you are very happy with. However, portrait photography never was, and never will be, my favorite thing to do.

In 6 months I will graduate from nursing school, and from then on, will no longer need photography to be my source of income. So, I am going back to what I love, and what inspires me most. Hiking around beautiful Eastern Oregon, waiting patiently for shy wildlife to appear, and enjoying the great outdoors through the lens of my camera. While I will never make much money from landscape photography, I will always be creatively inspired and happy with what I do; and I think that matters most.

I will now only do portrait photography on VERY special, pretty-please occasions. Thanks everyone for some great years and all the fun...

P.S. We have some wonderful local photographers. Here are a few that I think are especially talented, with a variety of styles represented that should please everyone!

Jean Mazac www.doubletakeportraits.com
Amber Fischer www.amberfischer.com
Blake Rosencrantz www.bdrphotodesign.com
Kyla Sorenson http://photography-by-kyla.blogspot.com/

F family

John and Donna - your family photos are finished and the CD is ready to pick up! Thanks!

S family

Kim, your family pictures are ready! P.S. Next year, lets do the photos when it is warmer! :)

Nicaragua

Nicaragua is a beautiful country, although sometimes you must have rose-colored glasses to see it! Selective eyesight is required to see past the squalor and enjoy the great physical beauty of this country. I was not here as a tourist or photographer, but here are a few photographs of the landscape.

Zach C.

Zach, your portraits are finished and ready to pick up!

Maverick Turns 1

I can't believe my sweet nephew is already 1! He is such a smiley boy, which is a photographer's dream...but on the flip side he is always on the go, which can make posing difficult! But he is so adorable I forgive him the extra effort. :)

Here are a few pictures from our informal photo shoot today...