True Love

Since the summer of 1989 there hasn’t been one day of my life that I haven’t owned a horse. I had no outside influence to inspire my love for these magnificent creatures, and neither of my parents had ever owned one, or even knew anything about them. My parents saw a young girl’s passion and surprised me with my first pony, after the previous owners had trained me to ride and tought me everything they knew about horses.

At 12 years old I told my mom I wanted a horse to train all by myself. Once again, my parents supported my passion. With virtually no budget and me teaching myself everything horses thru library books I took a wild, 2 1/2 year old Arabian filly and turned her into my best friend.

Growing up and gaining more responsibilities took my attention away from my horses, and I was only able to spend limited time with them. But even with that time restraint, I always owned them and they were always available to me on those days where nothing else but their spirit could calm my soul.

Now I am going thru another transition in my life, and I have had to make the decision to find new homes for the two horses I own now. It’s heartbreaking, but I know it is just a phase in my life, and I must be fair to not only myself, but my equine friends. I know they will be in my life again when we can benefit each other in life, and not be a financial burden and be ignored.

Horses have always been my best friends, my faithful companions, and my one true love.

A horse is the projection of peoples’ dreams about themselves – strong, powerful, beautiful – and it has the capability of giving us escape from our mundane existence.  ~Pam Brown

When One Door Closes, Go Through The Window

Life’s circumstances often inspire me with my photography, as I’m sure happens with most photographers and artists. My life has most recently consisted of a plethora of changes, decisions, and uncertainties, not only in my professional career, but also in my personal life. I am learning to take life one day at a time, and move forward even after it feels like every door has closed. This mindset is what inspired my most recent self portrait…

Self Portraits: The Ultimate Challenge

I used to always think that one of the greatest perks about being the photographer at an event was that you were behind the camera, not in front of it. I honestly haven’t met very many people who actually enjoy their photograph being taken, even though it might be an enjoyable experience when it’s all said and done. Even most people who are very photogenic and are comfortable with themselves would rather be doing something other than having someone take their picture. I often tell clients in a joking manner to try to lighten the mood “Photographers are like Dentists: Nobody really likes us but all we want is to see your beautiful smile!”

One day I was home alone, bored, raining outside and no models to shoot. So I decided to set up my camera and try shooting myself. Now I’m hooked. With self portraits, you get the best off all worlds. You can be creative with hair, make-up, and costume. You get to learn what it really feels like to “hold that pose!” when it’s oh-so uncomfortable. You understand how to explain to clients “Yes, I know it feels like you’re about to fall over and your legs are burning, but I swear, it’s gonna be an amazing shot!” Not to mention, you will try more things with yourself! You won’t feel crazy asking yourself to do an awkward pose, and if you don’t like the outcome, nobody knows the better!

This is something I’m really hoping to step up going forward: my own self portraits. I live in a rural area and don’t have the finances for hiring a model. Lucky me, I am now a photographer, model, make-up artist, hair stylist, wardrobe coordinator, and editor. I love every minute of it.

Below are a few shots from my last session. I had this idea for a while, and was really wanting to dress differently for it. I was stir crazy and the sun came out for half an hour (this IS Washington State), so the shoot was with my street clothes. I guess this is more the “real” me. 🙂