I wouldn't call myself a crazy cat lady.  Crazy plant lady?  Sure!  But I have so much love for my one furry child, Louie.  He was just chillax-ing on my bed and he looked so cute.  I just had to take photos!  However, about three photos in, he decided that it wasn't worth his time.  That is, until I gave him a lick of my caramel from my caramel apples and then used that as a way to make his fuzzy butt stay still. . .
​I thought these would be great to share because 1) he's cute as heck, 2) his details don't show up on camera until editing.  Contrary to popular belief, he's not an all black kitty cat; he has brown and grey mixed in.  To bring this out, I altered the highlights, shadows, and slightly altered the colors to bring out the reds.   
He is my favorite snuggle buddy. 

Tiktok dreams do come true!  
I saw this trend a little while ago and finally got around to doing it!  Not only did I get the exact shots that I was looking for, but I also was able to work with one of the most amazing couples!  My original plan was to do this with my roommate and our boyfriends, but school comes first. . . so, I put a request on the instagram for two models and this lovely lady contacts me!  They were such a pleasure to work with and made the most adorable pumpkin heads lol 
I hope you enjoy! 

Going off of last week's post. . .
This man.  Jake Stokes.  We went to high school together and if there was one person who could attest to the fact that practice makes perfect, it's him.  We did a quick "session" junior year for practice and his modeling career (sorry Stokes, time to rat you out!).  It went well, and I was pretty proud at the time.  I used him as a model again for an idea that I had not too long ago, so we've got a good 4 years of growth right here.  
You can definitely tell that my editing style has changed, but so has my shooting style.  I used to shoot from above all the time because that was the thing to do to make people look good (it's not by the way).  Now, I either shoot pretty straight-on or from below.  I prefer to see the sky instead of the ground now! lol 
The growth on Stokes part, omg.  He has always been great to pose but he's really grown into his own.  He also makes music now, so you can find him on soundcloud, I think.  Stokes, comment below so that the people of the world can find you!  

Here's a real time capsule for you!  
All photographers have to start somewhere, and this is where I started.  Many a years ago, 10th grade Sydney decided that she wanted to take a photography class because she had gotten a camera the summer before.  While that class didn't necessarily teach me what I really wanted to know, I definitely learned the basics and history.  Given that, I shot a lot of flowers and plants because people were scary.  Don't get me wrong, I do occasionally get a little nervous while shooting portraits sometimes; but I had zero idea how to pose and direct. 
A couple of years after that while applying to colleges, I decided that I needed more in my portfolio other than flowers and inanimate things.  So, I went around my high school and asked random students if I could take their photo.  It wasn't awful considering I hadn't taken photos of people before, but nothing compared to what I am able to do now.  I still got into the college that I had applied to with the portfolio, but looking back, I have grown so much! 
(it was SCAD by the way)
I slowly got better and eventually went to Clemson and got a job working with their photographers and the difference that made!  Oh my goodness!  So much progress!  I worked with all sorts of clients and professionals and if you are someone looking to grow, I suggest reaching out to other photographers and see if they need help.  Once I hit Clemson, I began helping with weddings and really building my business.  
Okay now these are what you are here for!  In chronological order, I present my progress.  We all start somewhere. . .
And don't even get me started on the amount of style changes I went through! 
​
Top Row:  Early High School
Middle Row:  Mid-Late High School
Bottom Row:  Current

You might have noticed that when you scroll through my instagram, my images don't all match each other like a lot of other photographers.  I do not have a set style.  I have a set way of shooting so that all my images have that consistency, but no set editing.  I always thought that you needed all your images to have a certain feel that is consistent.  I am not sure how much I believe in that now.  
I think that each session and each person are different and therefore deserve and require different editing strategies.  I am not sure if this comes from me just wanting to do what I want, or if it comes from the fact that my images don't have the same colors.  I have been working on finding my "style" but I don't think it matters all that much anymore.  It would be nice for my images to be vaguely similar, but they already are by how and what I shoot.  
I would love to have a solid style, but I am not sure that I ever will.  I am a photographer for the art, and helping others see and feel what I do when I capture that something or someone.  

My mom and I were going through some old family photos from when my mom was a baby recently, and we think someone in the family must have been a photographer.  Or at least really good with a camera.  I haven't been up to a whole lot recently, but it is Monday, which means blog post day!  So, instead of sharing my photography, I have decided to share one of my family's photographs that we found.  This is my grandma.  Taken around the 60s.  Classic Nan.  

One day I want a love like my mom and dad.  They met in San Diego while dad was in the Navy and mom was a waitress.  Mama always says that she knew she would end up with dad someday even if it wasn't back in 1995.  It may have taken a few marriages, but somehow they would be together.  
I look up to them so much and always have.  Mom was my age when she met dad and yeah that is a little scary on my end; but since I have been shooting more weddings with local photographers, I cannot help but think how happy two people can be with one another.  On that happy scale, my mom and dad are pretty high up there.  I am so thankful for my parents and what they have taught me about love and life.  So, one day, I hope to have an epic love like theirs.  

There are a few things that I have to say about Balboa Park in San Diego, California.  
1.  It was beautiful and full of art.
2.  The Museum of Photographic Arts was a let down, but there was one or two very neat artists.  
3.  I have decided that I am in love with these cacti (cereus maybe?  If you know for sure then you should let me know ;) ). 

If you are ever in San Diego and are looking for museums and scenery, then I do suggest Balboa Park.  Even if you are not interested in art and things, the zoo is right next door!  Thank you Balboa for the amazing chance to capture your beauty! ​https://www.balboapark.org/

This past week was the last time I will be visiting San Diego for a long while.  My grandmother used to live in Poway; but within the last five years, she got cancer twice and after her moving to South Carolina so we could help, she passed.  She wanted to be in the ocean when she died and we didn't think it was right to put her in the Atlantic.  Grandma was a Southern California girl all the way and loved the ocean and palms of California.  
It was a beautiful ceremony and family that I haven't seen in years was there to celebrate her life.  I wanted to share some of the photos from my trip, but I couldn't just post them and pretend there was a happy reason that I was there.  I see Grandma everywhere and I hope you can see her beautiful influence in some of these images.  

In order to successfully procrastinate, you will need two things - a reason and an idea.  Madi and I were bored and unmotivated to do our homework one day, so we took matters into our own hands and decided to try a witch inspired photo shoot in the hobbit hole of her room.  It was very dark, so I had the ISO up to high (which is scary high on my camera).  We just tried some things and the best part is, we didn't have to study!