There is only one more day left in 2021 - don't think I forgot about this tradition! 2021 - yes, we are sadly still in a pandemic, but thanks to the vaccine, we were allowed some fun, as a treat! Personally, this year was centered around growth - growing up, moving to a big city & being a fulltime freelance photographer (never thought it would happen so fast). It was a huge privilege to be able to move. The thought of staying stagnant felt worse than the possibility that I would fall flat on my face, and that's when you know you have to make that scary leap! I'm here to say, from the other side, it was completely worth it!
I got to do so many bucket list things like shoot Lollapalooza as my first show back, for 2 incredible artist! I got out of my comfort zone and shot food and wine campaigns. I was just as excited about the food photos as the music photos, which I never thought would happen. I LOVE music photography but it was so thrilling to work in a different space of photography. I got all of my music work this year through referrals - the power of friendship and putting yourself out there is REAL!!
There really are no words that sum up 2020, it was surprising, tragic, cruel, eye opening, isolating, the list can go on. A lot of people I have talked to, including me, felt that they finally had the opportunity they had been working so hard for, in the palm of their hands but then Covid19 hit. It was like the universe was planning for a gigantic body slam and that exactly what it did. This year tore apart my being, I realized so much of my goals revolved around going to shows and collaboration. It took me months, last week was where it really hit me, that I am a whole human being!!! Like who knew!!! A whole human that has personal goals and other passions that I was just ignoring pre 2020. In entrepreneur, hustle culture, we are taught, “KEEPYOURFOCUS, PURSUEITATMAXIMUMSPEED, DON’T TAKEYOUREYESOFFTHEPRIZE!!!” BEEPBEEP 2020 BEEPBEEP, you are not a robot and you should take care of yourself as a whole human. I realized I was only caring for myself if it helped me in photography but that alone is making me unbalanced~unstable really.
I have read more books this year than probably any year in my life, 4 to be exact, but I thoroughly enjoyed them and they taught me some valuable stuff! I also spent more time on my phone than necessary, what can I say Tik Tok has me wrapped around their finger, but i’m trying to get off. I want to say thank you to Harry Styles, driving during golden hour, listening to Golden really helped get through the days. I can’t forget One Direction, I gave them a piece of my brain and i’d like it back now. I also found the perfect song to edit to but i’ll shovel that one til next year.
This year, I really went through a gradient map phase, I want to thank Bradley Hale for the pack he came out with, it is honestly life changing, you need it! I also took some time to get better at video editing. Thankfully I had some clips from 2019 to work with. The film borders and grain are from Ezra Cohen, everything he touches is gold.
I can’t end this year without acknowledging my privilege. I am so very lucky to have a roof over my head, a source of income, access to healthcare and supportive parents that made this year easier to navigate. My heart goes out to the innocent lives lost, the families impacted by their passing due to covid and police brutality. I only hope that we are progressing and putting the right people in power to make changes that will give BIPOC people the necessary equity to be equal. The fight isn’t magically over January 1st, we have to keep fighting for what is right and as my friend Harry Styles would say, treat people with kindness. <3
2019 felt like living on a pile of wet cement with a dollop of whipped cream and a cherry on top. I felt very stuck, stagnant but had some of the most amazing opportunities to create my dream photos. I was really trying to describe what 2019 was like for me and all I could come up with was negative space. A string of months filled with uncertainty, unemployment and no creative spark left. However, negative space is needed (in a photo), or else it would be too cluttered to find a focus. I am so proud of my photos this year and the months I didn’t feel creative enough, fuel me for the coming year.
I am ready for 2020 and all the abundance and challenges it comes with, but before I wanted to share my 19 favorite photos I took in 2019 (in no particular order).
Before leaving for my first tour, I had no idea what to pack in terms of gear and other miscellaneous items. There wasn’t a lot of content out there specially geared towards music photography so I thought I would create my own! I filmed this right after I got back, and thought I would post it now. If you have any questions, you can instagram/twitter/email me and I’ll answer :)
2018 was my first full year of doing music photography. Photography for me is like having a sweet little baby, something I love more than anything that got me excited and energized for the day. Except I got more sleep (well actually I don’t know) and it didn’t shit everywhere (uhh the ebbs and flow of creativity can make you feel like shit soo). What i’m trying to say is that photography has made me feel happiness and gave me a dash of self worth, that I didn’t have before. It is also so fun because you get to make some friends and collaborate with them which just makes my heart warm :)
Here it goes, my top photos of 2018 + some design stuff as always.
