Wednesday's With Susan | Behind The Scenes

I'm currently listening to some sort of soft jazz from a playlist I found on Spotify (of which I am obsessed with. Call it what you may, but the colder months were made for jazz in my opinion), the cats are flopping around on the carpet and running into the walls, and I have found myself reading an article on how to travel with a baby under one... I dunno, I just really like the blog it's from.

It even has a minimalist baby packing list... And 35 travel tips.

And, if you're wondering, you can find it all by clicking here. You know. Just in case.
  

Anyway, for this post, I wanted to share some behind the scenes photos from this shoot with my cat.  

I tend to create concept photos on Wednesdays, or at least I try to maintain a schedule like that, and actually, it's been proving to be quite a useful thing as I get used to it. I don't know, I didn't think a "creative timetable" would work for me, but it has definitely been beneficial; if only for it being something to look forward to during the week. Still, sometimes I create whenever the moment calls for it. I like to move when inspiration directs, although admittedly, that doesn't always happen (hence the schedule). Which is exactly why I write down my ideas. You know, so I can waist time by second guessing myself and all that, but still have the idea tucked away somewhere.

It's a useless stage that I'm trying to skip.

But recently, I've been determined to go through those idea books, filled with my past scribbles (hard to decipher, but I like to think that it's somehow part of the inspiration), and create from them that which I thought I couldn't do. Ah, yes, there it is: Couldn't. What a horrible word. If anyone came to me and said they couldn't do something they dreamed of, I would tell them the opposite is truer than they think and to just try, just make a first move and let go of self imposed perfection. But somehow I have a harder time telling that to myself.

It seems, though, that the change of season has brought me back in a way. It always does. And now I am creating with these things in mind, that I indeed can, as God has shown me, as it was with this photo. My Wednesday with Susan photo.

Poor Susan.

In hindsight, I can see many things. I suppose life will always be that way. I am never all that I wish I could be. And if I was to be anything, I assumed I was supposed to be whatever that was right now. 

Kind of crazy as I think of it.

There is ambience to this life, weight to unmeasured moments, joy in the slowness, the everyday, the now; and I can miss the music of what is in front of me, of life as it comes, if I rush, if I let crawl over me the beauty that is of the now, if I tumble through the days without looking for what can be in the time given, without recognizing each moment as a gift from our heavenly Father.

Something God has been teaching me in my recent devotions is to bloom where you are planted. To work, do, walk, with Him, in the now, where we are, here, in each our circumstance. As Joseph did in Egypt. As I should here, where God has seen fit to place me, for this moment.

So with that, I leave you with these images of pure rejection below from when the nap was rubbing off ( I stole her away from it you see, so as to use the drowsiness as my advantage), and some of the photos I used in the end composite above. 

Oh and Happy October you guys! 

Summer Days | Welcome Back

Hello, my wonderful little blog, and welcome back!

I decided, without much ceremony, to take a break from blogging during the summer. The funny thing being, around the middle of it all, I realized I hadn't even mentioned that to myself, hadn't bothered to pass a note of absence or even a smoke signal. And, in a way, I didn't know if I would return, and quite frankly, I felt my self standing wordless during most of my summer days, while my doubt stood grounded in the warm earth, as is the usual summer hush on my mind.

However, it seems I have come back for now, for this moment, this day in October; if only for a moment. I do know that I am fully capable of spreading another large gap between this post and the next, but if that is blogging for me, maybe I shouldn't fight it, maybe I should take my time.

And, who knows, maybe I'll post more because of that idea. This, perhaps, is my strange attempt at reverse psychology on myself to get my feet walking.

Maybe it will work.

I think that I wasn't quite sure why I was blogging when summer came around. For me, it needed to be something, this blog, paired with a purpose and a vision and consistency; I, myself, thought I needed to be something, with a purpose, vision, and consistency, as is the idea of growing up and making plans and all that. Or so I've heard. But summer told me no. Summer said to let be what is and move with it all and to be okay with less words and a huge variety of photos. God knows what is the now and what is the future, just take the freaking picture and stop worrying.

I ended up taking many photos over the summer. Mostly just for myself, as personal projects are the most special to me, as in those get-up-at-4:30-for-a-photo-idea kind of stuff that left me in a dark park, alone, because I completely miss judged when the sun would rise...

I also discovered the greatest thing, that is, a black bed sheet. It was a gift. For photos of course. It is *wonderful.* So much can be done with just a piece of fabric, and I went for it. (All the photos with a solid black background where taken with the sheet of glory.)

So, for this blog post, I decided I would share a compilation of my favorite summer photos, without a limit as to what style possess, or if it be conceptual or just a portrait in my neighborhood with friends or if it be simply a snap of my cats; you'll find it below.

I started this blog for my conceptual photography, and for that reason, it will always remain. But, with the change of seasons and the growing up and the shifts of inspiration, I have realized I am called, often, to take many different kinds of photos. This makes branding and marketing particularly difficult (stuff I'm taking classes for, yay,) and all I can say to that is... I'm still figuring it out.And I'll probably end up writing about it.

My therapy.

But as a purpose goes for this space, I have decided to post without restraining myself, instinctively, without going against my intuition and without holding hands to what I have told myself I must be.
So, you can expect random thoughts, behind the scenes, photos of cats perhaps, little stories of my life (aha, favorite hashtag for those Instagram users), conceptual work, portraiture, coffee, books, and maybe even some helpful hints (if you know what movie that's from, bless you).

I have also thought of writing tutorials and how-to's, but I'm not sure what photos to do such things with. If you have any specific photos you wish to see a bit more about, from those that I have posted to the internet previously, please, do let me know.

So, thank you for joining me here, on my little journey through life.  

Keep scrolling for a bunch of summer photos, including some that I haven't posted before (and I'll probably post some on Instagram soon!)