so...where have you been?

I haven't been posting new photos for awhile now and yesterday someone asked where I've been... so here's what's been going on:

1. NEW CAMERA!

I've been using a point and shoot for the last year. Yes, every photo on here was taken with a lil ol' point and shoot...but I found that I was starting to hit a wall. Some shots are just not possible- my vision was starting to be hampered by my equipment. So, I waited very impatiently for my tax return and bought new equipment- a Canon Rebel xsi, a bunch of lenses and filters, including a lot of new Lensbaby toys.

A DSLR is a much more advanced camera than a point and shoot, so the main reason I haven't been posting is that I am learning how to use my new stuff.

2. RUT!

Another reason I've been on hiatus is that looking back over the past year of photography, (and I really only have been shooting seriously for a year) I see all my amatuer mistakes and it's driving me slightly crazy. Does EVERY photo I edit need focal soften and a vignette? Apparently I thought so at one point. John was gracious enough to state that every artist goes through "phases," but somehow Picasso's Blue Period doesn't seem to match up to my past zeal for focal soften. I can do better than this.

3. TEXAS!

I bought the new camera in time for our trip to Texas, so I had the opportunity to practice a lot with it on the road. The Texas trip did several things for me: I was able to meet and spend time with some truly amazing creative people (Mary Anne Davis, Emily of Texas, and Hugh MacLeod among many, many others). I also got a lot of positive feedback on my work from people whose work I highly respect. That made a big difference in how I decided to pursue some upcoming projects.

4. NEW PROJECTS

One big decision I made was to focus on some projects. So far, all I have really done is take pictures and post them and sort of hope some magic wand would wave around and something (although I am not sure what) would just sort of...happen. After talking with people, it seemed like the hands down favorite thing that I have been doing is the photopoetry. I recieved some amazing feedback while on the road, and I decided to focus my energy into doing more of that.

Also, I want to *GASP!* make money. My poor, tortured brain is currently chewing on THREE extensive, interesting photo-narrative projects, and they are gonna be for sale in some, hopefully, very interesting formats. They are gonna be so cool! But...they are still in the early stages.

5. HOUSEHOLD STUFF

I have been helping my incredibly amazing boyfriend John launch some pretty big projects, such as his wholesale program and his Amazon listings. Also, we have decided to move to Alpine, Texas, which is taking a lot of work and planning.

6. WINTER BLUES

I live in Northern Michigan (C'mon now, make a mitten of your hand, you've seen other Michigan people do this...see where the top most knuckle of your ring finger is...yeah, I live up there). We have had a terribly hard winter here. To be a photographer, you need to photograph stuff, and for months, all we have had is snow. We live in a remote area, and have been snowed in to the point of not really being able to leave town for most of the winter. How many pictures of snow covered trees do y'all really want anyway?

So, that's what I have been up to the past few months. I'll leave you with this little guy I shot last summer.  I love him, focal soften (applied twice!) be damned: