This past week, I started to reflect on my past year with Reflected Spectrum.  Although I have been working as a photographer for several years now, it was only one short year ago when I officially formed this company and started pouring every ounce of energy I could spare into building the company and learning new skills and working to become the best photographer I can be.  Although I had been planning my move for months, thinking about names and reading all the books I could find about small business ownership, building charts, projections, and business plans, and researching competition, I found myself completely surprised by the way this first year has unfolded.  It has been a roller coaster of suspense, excitement, and learning- so much better than I ever could have hoped.  I owe all of this to you- my customers, my readers, my friends, my family.  You have supported me, welcomed me into your lives, and allowed me to share some of your most special moments.  For all of that, I am grateful.  As my way of saying thanks, I’m offering 50% off portrait sessions and portrait and wedding prints or digital images for the next two weeks.  Just call or email me any time before March 14 to set up a portrait session for any time this spring, or to place a print or digital image order from a previous portrait or wedding session and mention this blog post.  This offer is open to anyone and there are no limits on order size or number of orders, so feel free to share it with your friends and family.  And thank you all for giving me one of the most amazing years of my life so far!

A club I belong to, Photo Venture Camera Club, hosts a contest each month with a topic that changes each time.  It’s always an exciting event, they bring in a successful experienced photographer to judge all the entries, and we all wait in suspense as the judge critiques each and every image, saving the winners for last.  This month’s topic was “Unusual Perspective,” and this month I was the winner!

You may recall a post from last month, Fighting Flamingo Style in which I talked about winning third place in the club’s January contest.  I am completely elated to have received these awards.  I think oftentimes people see a piece of art that they admire, and they assume the artist already knows their work is good.  Well, let me just tell you, we don’t.  I, as well as most of the photographers I know, constantly question the value of our work.  We go through processes of self-critiquing and examination, all part of the growth cycle that drives us to refine our art, to become better, to take risks, to distinguish ourselves.  However, it is so easy to be too hard on ourselves, as I often am, and over time that can become discouraging.  But these moments of success make me realize why I hold myself to such a high standard, it’s for the quality of my work.  I am driven to continue to become better and better at what I do, not just to win contests, but to be proud of the work that I produce.  Winning contests is not my reason for creating beautiful images, but receiving this honor makes me feel like I am on the right path.

There is a story behind this image.  My husband and I took a weekend getaway to Chicago this past October to see one of our favorite bands, Poster Children.  We had a few hours to spend between dinner and the show, and let me tell you it was a rainy, cold, miserable night.  Finally, the rain stopped and the sky cleared, and we went to the Willis Tower (though it will always be named Sears Tower to me!) for a different view of the city.  Now, I am a big advocate of having a camera with you at all times.  I carry my camera almost everywhere I go, but I didn’t have it with me on this particular night.  I anticipated being out in the rain past 1am in an unfamiliar city, on the train and in a club where people may or may not “mosh”.  This particular night I decided it was safer to leave my camera in the hotel, and boy did I regret that decision!  When we got to the top of the tower, I looked out on the city and saw the incredible night time views, it was breathtaking!  So I asked my husband if he would mind revisiting the tower with me the next night, and he agreed.  So the next night we rode to the top again, this time with my camera and tripod, and I got my images.  This particular image was taken out on a ledge with a clear bottom.  I put my camera (Nikon D700 with Nikon 50mm f/1.8 lens) face-down on the see-through floor and let it expose for about 30 seconds.  After 25 seconds of exposure I felt a tap on my shoulder.  “Time to go” said the security guard.  “Just 5 more seconds please,” I said.