A Year of Change: Transformative Reflections

With the start of 2012 I created a list of monthly affirmation words and my ONE WORD of the year, Transformative.  Transformative has surely been an appropriate word. This year saw many transformations not only for me, but my family.

Seek the light to find your path

This year my photography expanded and I found jobs that I did not expect.  Besides portraiture and lifestyle photography, which I love, I added product photography, including fresh produce photography, to my list.  My photography has been a way for me to transform my life direction.  For me, photography is truly a passion that was unexpected in so many ways.

Early in the year I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish with my photography.  Whether it was by chance or circumstance, I began to notice more homeless people wherever I went.  That prompted me to reach out to a local organization that helps the homeless.  It was a serendipitous happenstance because it enabled me to use my photography for a mission.  The mission is to help house the homeless people in San Jose, people who have been homeless for years.  I have learned so much about people, life, and the incredible generosity of spirit.  The people who work with the homeless are selfless people. I have been so blessed to be involved with the Housing One organization.

Two people who have energized my photography and my perspective happen to be two friends and fellow students of my oldest daughter.  Sean and Jeiji have me looking at photography in new ways.  I see what great friends my daughter has made, there's nothing like that feeling as a parent.

Long-time connections started to pop-up out of the woodwork offering the chance to take photos for them.  I love the variety of photography work I'm doing -- IT'S SO MUCH FUN and REWARDING.  Plus I am making new plans for the photography work I want to do in the future. 

That list includes:

• Travel & Destination Photography - I have not been cured of the travel bug ever since I was a Flight Attendant.  I want to travel all over the world and freeze time.  Right now I have India on my mind - the colors, the beauty, but also the slums and the rawness.  They all appeal to me.  I also have Australia on the horizon.  The Sydney Opera house has always been on my list, plus the Gold Coast and the Great Barrier Reef.
• Street Photography - I love that you do not need to get a model release when a photo is taken in a public location.  I am beholden to the moment-in-time that it captures, freezing the styles, scenery, colors of that generation.
• People and their pets - being a two-dog family, I am definitely a big fan of pets and animals.  One of my photos of my Golden Retriever is still on the Pinterest Most Popular RePin Boards.  I love that my dog is immortalized on the internet! 
• Social Awareness Photography - using photos to raise awareness about an organization, plight, experience.  This year my family and I made a trip to Mexico to build homes for the impoverished.  It was a pivotal experience, one that I'll never forget.  I got as much out of it as the families who received a new home.  With our own two hands we measured, sawed, nailed and raised the roof and built not only a home but the foundation helping others less fortunate. 

That's the start of my list, a good one for me to tackle.  I look forward to a lifetime of photography. Words and Photos, that's my passion.