The motive behind my career as a photographer really comes down to one thing - freedom. Freedom to do what I love, freedom to enrich peoples lives with beautiful photographs, freedom to explore and create, to fail and try again, but most importantly, freedom to dream big and pave a path for other creatives to do the same.
Granted I’m still working on that last part but Rome wasn’t built in a day amiright?
My interest in photography was sparked at a young age when my sweet Papa gifted me his Kodax 35mm film camera for my freshman year photography class. Little did I know that in that moment… Papa was handing me the gift of the rest of my life.
I spent every waking moment in that darkroom. Like, #obsessed. I started where any Photography 101 student does… taking pictures of street signs and graffiti, but soon found my way into the world of portraiture. Fast forward a few years to my college life at Michigan State University where I was originally working toward a Bachelor of Science (I wanted to be a veterinarian because you can’t make money as a photographer right?). I spent a few college years studying in Ecuador, Galapagos, Rome, and London looking for my calling - but found that everything simply pointed back to me and my camera.
So when I came back to the homelands of East Lansing, I dropped my Bachelor of Science and went full steam ahead into a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography. So there I was… a curious 23 year old with a fresh photography degree and cup full of uncertainty.
Then on Saturday May 17, 2014 I was hired as the assistant photographer for my very first wedding gig. This experience awakened a fire inside me I didn’t even know was there. The dresses, the flowers, the joy, the buzzing of family and friends, and the love between a bride and a groom! I felt most alive and in sync with myself and my camera that very moment. It truly changed my life and lit a fire in my heart that still burns today!
So, I hustled, I saved, I stumbled, I learned, but most importantly… I believed. The following wedding season I worked as a second photographer, absorbing knowledge and skill from my fellow photographer, networking ferociously… and in 2015 gave life to my very own wedding photography business, Light Garden Photography - personable, nature inspired wedding photography for outdoorsy couples.
And that’s that friends! The intimate details of how I came to stand where I am today - a wedding photographer, small business owner, and creative crusader.
Thank you so much for reading and for being a part of my journey. I could have never made this happen without the amazing community behind me.