Happy birthday & anniversary to me!

      Today, I am not only celebrating my birthday; I am also marking the anniversary of the day I became a professional photographer!  36 years ago today I photographed my first wedding and launched a career. 
      I was turning 17 and had worked all summer mowing lawns and playing guitar and singing at Jim's Steak House in Pampa to pay my parents back for the new Mamiya/Sekor DTL500 camera that they had bought for me at the first of the summer.  
      I also spent all summer reading the camera manual - and everything else I could find - to learn how to make the camera do what I wanted it to do.  There were no shortcuts or automatic exposure options.  I had to learn how to manually set the camera's aperture and f/stop for the proper exposure and I had to learn how to use an off-camera flash that had to be set manually, too.  Fortunately, film was fairly cheap and processing wasn't terribly expensive either, so I shot film, sent it to a lab, got it back and tried to figure out what I had done right and what I had done wrong.  Then, I would go shoot more film!  Sort of like that whole shampoo ritual - "lather, rinse, repeat."  It was work, but also rewarding and fun! 
     So, when my aunt called me a few weeks before my birthday to ask me if I would photograph my cousin's wedding on August 16, I jumped at the chance.  When you are 16 going on 17, you think you can do anything!  I now realize that it had little to do with my wonderful photographic ability.  I got hired because I had a camera and I was cheap! 
    Obviously, I didn't really know what I was doing, but I learned by taking classes and working for other photographers.   I improved my skills and eventually launched my own business.   Looking back, I am grateful for that first opportunity.  I love my profession and I love that I have been so blessed over the last 36 years.
     Thanks to all of you who have allowed me to be your photographer!  I look forward to many more years helping create precious memories just for you!

Purpose-driven Photography

      My brother called me last week to tell me about an online story that he had read about the importance of photography in recording history.  I am not certain that I found the exact same article, but in my surfing around I did find this quote at   http://www.goshtac.com/history.html :

"As dedicated photographers we must understand our place in recording the history of people and places that we photograph.  Photography is not just about today, but is a recording of our times so that future generations can look back and learn about their past.  It is a legacy we leave to our future children and grandchildren. We must keep that in mind as we view and photograph the world around us."

       Digital photography has given us a world where we can have instant gratification.  I can take a photo and see it immediately!  I don't have to wait till the film is developed and returned from the lab.  How much fun is that?!?  I can send the image quickly from my computer to my friends so they can see the beauty I have captured.  And, I can shoot picture after picture after picture on my memory card and store them on my computer without the expense of having prints made.  Bur should I?
     "Photography is not just about today....." and yet that seems to be the main focus of most photographers now.  Most seem to take little thought about the real purpose, the real value of photography.  They simply snap away, load the images on their computers, apply some cool effect in PhotoShop, and post them for their friends to see on Facebook or other social media.  This is great, and allows us to share our lives with each other now, but what about later?
     Are we passing our history on to future generations?  Will we even be able to share the photos we are taking today in a few years.  What happens when your computer crashes or when your cd gets scratched or lost or when your memory card fails?  
      Technology is fantastic, but it changes quickly.  What will happen to your treasures when it does?  CD's and DVD's are known to last 10 to 20 years, computer hard drives crash and lose data, memory cards fail,  new technology replaces old every few years, but photographic prints can last over 100 years.  
      How important are the family photos you are taking today?  How available will they be in 20 years or 50 years?  Photographs are treasures of the heart, a "legacy that we leave to our future children and grandchildren."   Where is your legacy?

Give one heart; get back two

     Twenty three years ago today, I lost my heart.
     I lost it to a little 8 pound 11 oz newborn named Timothy Shane Stevens!  All he had to do was grab my little finger and look into my eyes and I was a complete goner. Till that moment,  I never knew just how much you could fall in love with a child or how much joy a child could bring to your life.  It is a moment that I will never forget! 
      At 23, Tim is still a joy for me!  I have loved watching him grow into the strong man that he is today.  It has just happened so quickly.  Yesterday, I was snuggling with this tiny, sweet baby.  Today, I am talking on the phone to a tall, handsome, kind man.  A man who loves his wife, is passionate about his dream, and works hard to be the kind of person he should be.  A man who has faced tough times and big obstacles, but is still standing strong. I am proud of him and look forward to seeing all that he is able to accomplish and become!
     Yes, I miss that tiny baby, the rambunctious toddler, the funny teenager, and Tim at every age in between. I miss kissing his fuzzy head when he sat beside me on the sofa watching TV.  I miss the long, face-to-face talks that  we had for many, many nights when he was in junior-high and high school.  I miss his hugs now that he is in too-far-away Dallas.  But, all those memories make me smile.  They are a treasure that I carry with me every single day. 
     Happy birthday, Tim!  I love you more than you can ever know! 

Mom