Everett’s shirt & jeans: H&M
My sweater: A very lucky find on Poshmark. Similar here, here, and here.
In October of 2009, Brett and I went to Apple Hill together—just the two of us. Something about that day felt special, even though it was otherwise an average Saturday. I remember thinking to myself: I want to remember this day. I grabbed the manual for my cheap point and shoot camera out of the top drawer in my nightstand and read it from cover to cover during the one-hour drive. I took about 200 pictures that day, messing with all the settings and trying to be as “artsy” as possible with the light. One of the pictures I took that day is still framed in our bedroom, a faint reminder of life before Everett.
A few months later I was given my first DSLR (thanks Mom and Dad!) and daily life became reminiscent of that weekend in Apple Hill—studying manuals, taking 200 pictures a day, and so on and so forth. I loved filling up our photo albums with beautiful prints from our adventures: weekend getaways, vacations, hikes and walks.
Photography fulfilled me creatively in a different way than writing did.
When I write, I try to find joy in everything, even when I write about the hard things. I try to find the silver lining, the ray of hope….I almost always end on a good note. Photography lets me do that with beauty; it challenges me to find something exquisite every day. I can find beauty in a shadow, or a red leaf, or a sweet moment that would otherwise be forgotten if not for the photograph left behind to prove it. I try to find joy in everything that I write, and I try to find beauty in everything that I photograph. These two outlets, these avenues of artistry, often help me see the world differently.
As much as I love photographing friends and my wonderful clients, this weekend I remembered how much I love taking pictures of simple days and my two favorite guys. Today I am thankful for them, and I am also thankful for Apple Hill, where my love affair with photography began.
