Welcome

Now that I've gotten my site off the ground, I thought it was time to get around to creating the blog that I kept meaning to create "someday".  I've had so many experiences in setting up my business and in pushing my photographic comfort zone where I've thought, "I should blog about that!" so my hope is to share some of these thoughts here.

I always find starting a blog challenging. I've got all these ideas swimming around in my head, but once I get a layout done up I find myself staring at the "compose" screen, cursor blinking maddeningly, as if to say, "Well, when are you going to write something?" It felt a bit like that starting my website too. Creating a layout was easy, but deciding on the content was more than a little overwhelming. I found myself starting to second guess every selection I made. "Is this one REALLY good enough?" "If I hadn't taken this, would I want it on my wall?" Where I thought I'd be really excited to get my site off the ground, in reality I was dreading it. Where I thought I'd feel confident and proud as I looked at this group of hand-selected shots that I was in love with when I took them, I was self-conscious and almost embarrassed... "Is this really the best I can do? Are these all I've got?" I even pulled the site just after I did a soft launch to a couple of friends, although now I couldn't even tell you why - I'm guessing pure fear.

Thankfully self-pity, party of one, was unable to get a standing reservation and after a few days I was back at it with more determination than before. The thing I found about launching a business is that it never feels right. I didn't like the way this or that looked, I didn't know what to say in my bio, I didn't have enough photos in this or that gallery. Finally I realized that I could rationalize my way out of ever going live with little effort, but if I was serious about wanting a photography site, it was time to throw myself to the wolves.

After a few months of having my site live, I know I still have lots of work to do. That's the reality of having a business - the work is never done. But that's also the fun part of it. Having to generate new content means having that much more of an excuse to spend a few hours with my camera, seeing the world through my lens. And having my site is a reminder and a challenge to be critical of my own work and to keep learning and pushing my photographic comfort zone. If starting a photo site is something you've ever considered, go for it. I can't tell you it will be easy, but I can tell you it will be worth it.