Why I became a photographer

I wish I could say my entire life I wanted to be a photographer, that it was a no brainer for me, and I had always been naturally good at it. But the truth is, photography came to me after a long twist and turn filled journey towards my purpose in young adulthood.

For a long time, I was shooting for the stars, hoping to be a mega corporate commercial real estate agent, someone who moved out of their slow life town to a fast-paced city like Boston or New York. I had even gone as far as getting my real estate license and becoming a property manager for a commercial plaza my boss had owned.

But when I had finally sat down and looked at the life I was running towards as fast as I could, this metaphorical knife in my stomach dug deeper. And I realized the person I was hoping to one day become, just really wasn’t me.  

After months of sleepless nights, therapy talks with friends and phone calls with Mom, I began to understand that without creativity and art my life would forever feel the way it always had, just not right.

But how does one even begin to articulate a life, nonetheless a stable and fruitful life using art? I had always heard the tropes about the unpaid artists, the starving, the broke, the disparaged. But as I looked around, I realized I had already known so many people who lived the real life that I wanted.

So what did I do? I quit my job that I had wanted for so long, and searched for something more meaningful. Although I still wasn’t quite sure what that was, I slowly started to understand what it wasn’t.

After a few weeks of interviewing, I found a job as an administrative assistant working at a local landscaping company, I figured it would be good pay while I figured out the rest. But as the universe always intends, I ended up at the right place at the right time.

My bosses started to see that I was naturally inclined towards skills like marketing, graphic design and you wouldn’t believe it, photography! They slowly let me start to focus more on creative outlets for my position, and as the company grew more and more I have geared myself towards a more creative position, and hope to become the head of marketing for them in the near future.

As I got the opportunity to explore this part of myself, I realized I loved connecting with people through my camera lense. That I felt the most confident I ever have in my life with and that the awkward, clean cut, corporate person I had carved myself into slowly melted away into this person that I love being. 

I love who I am when I am shooting, talking with people and capturing the parts of their lives that they will always want to look back on. It gives me such deep joy and fulfillment to be able to connect with people in this way, and although I still have so much to learn and so much room to grow, I’m so excited to finally be on the journey that feels right for me.