Why I take pictures...

Task #1. I want you to think really really hard about why you want to take pictures. I want you to write down in point form on a piece of paper all the reasons photography appeals to you. You aren't being judged or marked on this, and you don't even have to share your list if you don't want. Dream big, be brutally honest with yourself about what you consider the benefits of taking pictures are; whatever it is, write it down.

• I love being able to look at a picture and remember the feelings and memories of that time in my life.
• Capturing a special moment.
• Getting to see my baby growing and going through all of life's beautiful ages and stages.
  
• The feeling of awe when something turns out just right.
• Doesn't take a lot of time. I could never sit down and paint or draw or anything like that (even though I've tried) because I just don't have the patience.
• I can take 30 pictures at a time and I know that one of them will turn out beautiful. If you wreck a painting, you have to start all over from scratch and it takes a lot of time to get back to the point you were at when everything went wrong.
• People amaze me... I love capturing their expressions and emotions.
• Babies... Babies... Babies... I'm a baby stealer and have been since I was small. With photography, I get to play with babies and don't have to worry that their parents will think I'm weird for wanting to.

Do you plan to make an income from it and have it as your new career?

• I would love to make an income from it but I don't ever want to price myself out of the family market. I know some people can afford a bazillion bucks for the perfect photo shoot but I know how I felt when I thought I couldn't afford to capture those beautiful first weeks of my babies life.
  
  I was so jealous of everyone else's pictures and thought there was no way I could afford having such beautiful moments captured without going broke and then I found Tasha. She took beautiful pictures of my baby and our family when she was 6 weeks old. Marrah was crying the entire time and I thought there was no way we would get anything good but Tasha got beautiful pictures anyways. I want to be there and do that for another family who thought they couldn't afford something so beautiful.
  

Do you plan to enter contests so that you are internationally recognized?

• I don't know if I ever will enter contests... it would have to be an amazing picture before I would feel confident enough to even send it in.
  

Are you wanting to be a boutique photographer or do you think you see yourself as more the studio type?

• Probably more of a boutique photographer. I think at some point, I'll invest in some good lighting and some backdrops just for variety's sake but not yet.
  

If you become wildly successful as a photographer, what will that look like for you - a studio, professional designations, and $berzillion gigabuck workshops?

• A billion beautiful pictures of beautiful children... other than that, everything else would icing on the cake.
  

Are you planning to photograph people or things?

• Mostly people. I think photographing things would just be spur of the moment as the mood arises thing for me.
  

Do you fantasize about a small home-based business with just enough income to stabilize your income or offset your mortgage or maybe even just a humble hobby that pays for itself?

• I would love my photography to at least pay for Marrah's daycare so I can work part-time comfortably and have time for my daughter as well. For now, just having a hobby that pays for itself would be great since I've made no money so far... hehehe.
  

You would be wise to explore the photography of others already established in the industry - who inspires you?

• I love Anne Geddes! Even though they are not candid's in the slightest, I love the idea of such adorable ideas for different ways to see a baby. I think eventually I'll have a whole room full of different cutesie things for the babies and kids to play with just to make things more interesting.
  

What is it about those pictures that you admire? Are they technically perfect? Are they effective at drawing an emotional response? Are they breathtaking or mind-boggling? Are they seriously fun? Funny?

• Other than that there are babies in them, I don't know what exactly it is that I admire. I love that they are all different and there are so many interesting things to look at in them. I love that all these neat ideas are out there for me to look at and get ideas from. I read her biography and why she does what she does and it inspired me. I love the images of the mothers and their newborn babies and how they look almost a part of them. I love the colours she uses and the emotions they evoke in people that see them.
  

After all is said and done, you should be able to answer this question for yourself: WHY do you want to take pictures?

• I guess I want to take pictures because I want to experience all the emotions life has to offer. I want to meet families and see their children grow from teeny, tiny babies to wonderful little people to adulthood with children of their own. I want to capture moments that take my breath away. I want to capture those special moments in my own children's lives. I want those memories to look back at when I'm old and gray and to say that I did something important in more lives than my own.