I am asked this question so often and honestly I don’t have a super elaborate story. I have read countless biographies from other photographers that sound a little like this:

“I was handed a film SLR before I hit puberty” or “I started taking photos of my kids and fell in love with it.”

Neither of those descriptions fit me. I am not married with children and I didn’t spend my childhood snapping endless photos. I will say my mom took thousands upon thousands of photos of my sister and me growing up, and even was a scrapbooking consultant at one point. However, she isn’t a professional photographer nor is she the reason I got started in photography (you still take great photos mom 🙂 ).

Really, I just picked up our family DSLR and started experimenting with it. I captured scenery on vacations, candids of my friends, treasured family memories during holidays, and enough sunset photos to fill a stand alone album. I’m not sure why I loved photography initially, but I can tell you why I love it now.

 

1. I believe life is meant to be remembered and celebrated.

Life is short. Why not have it photographed? Photos capture moments you will cherish forever. Personally, photos are how I remember many times throughout my life. I seriously think I have a terrible long-term memory, but when I look at photographs it almost brings me back to that moment, and I remember more details about it.

2. I love connecting with new people.

This sounds so cliché but it’s true. I love meeting new people and building relationships. I don’t just show up and take photos.  I get to know my clients on a personal level.

3. I love capturing stories through photography.

Everyone sees things differently. I love sharing my perspective. I strive to capture how moments felt, not just how they looked.

4. I like to make people happy and help them see the beauty in themselves.

I photograph a variety of mediums, but my favorite genre is PEOPLE. I know a lot of people think they aren’t photogenic (totally lumping myself into that category). My job as a photographer is to make others feel comfortable in front of the camera, so they are happy with how they look in their photos.

5. It’s a creative outlet.

Photography is never dull because no photo is ever the same. There are always different lighting conditions to work with, different people, different scenery to photograph, etc. It is also a skill you can forever develop, which is great for me because I love to learn. I don’t believe you can ever be a “master” photographer. I challenge myself to learn new skills and grow from every experience.

Finally, photography has made me appreciate and notice more small details in everyday life. My friends always joke, “you wish you had your camera with you right now, don’t you Sarah?” That honestly is so true (and not just for capturing sunsets, but more on that later… potentially a future blog post 🙂 ).