To begin, this blog post is meant to inspire, give advice and include more insight on how I got started with this new passion of mine.
First of all, I would like to give big thanks to my professor at Warner Pacific, Dr. Sean Benesh, (founder of URTHTREK), for giving me the extra push and resources to get the right camera so I can get the ball rolling. Another thank you to my good friend, DJ Biersack (local entrepreneur and University of Portland alum) for giving me the guidance to help create high quality content through editing efficiently. Without you two, I probably would not have picked up a camera to begin this in the first place. Sometimes, you just have to go for it and that is one of the most important decisions to make when wanting to try.
My Gear
Canon Rebel EOS T3i
18-55mm , 75-300mm Lens
Context (A Thank You)
For someone who was very stubborn to begin with before considering trying photography, I will tell you what I was asking myself..why be this way? From my experience getting into this new passion thus far, I can say that originally I would tend to rely only on friends or others for content / photos for my other projects I would work on, which do not get me wrong, was great. However, there was a time where I felt like why not try and learn this myself?
I had no clue where to begin or what direction to step foot in when it came to searching for the right camera. This is where my professor came to the rescue. I was in Dr. Sean Benesh's social media analytics class where during the whole period we would focus on growth and building content, coming up with strategies of how to gain traction plus go over what makes social media so interesting. Truly, I had a blast and it definitely was a very unique class because I got to experience working on one of my own businesses - IN CLASS. Something I would catch myself saying a lot though, is that I do not have a camera to continue being consistent with content. I can say that post class, I have gained more confidence in knowing how to grow an account and get started with something new because I went for it.
Finally near the end of it all, after my professor gave me some advice on what camera is great for starting out, I took the leap and bought one off eBay. The rest is history now. Likewise, I have surpassed one month, of doing shoots almost everyday, completing my first paid event, and now I am starting to feel really good about this. I praise God to the most high if it weren't for Him I do not know what I would do. Big thanks to Him not only for putting helpful and inspirational friends in my life to be there for me, but the nourishment and support all the way as well has been a blessing. I can't ever be thankful enough to do something very fun and pick up new tricks on getting better.
Editing
When it comes to photography, there has to be at least some sort of editing involved and for me personally, I picked up Adobe Lightroom. DJ Biersack introduced this program to me and taught me some efficient ways of editing through this program and I have to say it has worked wonders for me. For starting out, I highly recommend getting into Adobe Lightroom.
Conclusion
Overall, something that I truly believe is that, you can literally do anything you set your mind to do and that is crucially important to soak in because without this mindset, it will be extremely difficult to pursue new things in your life. After a month of pursuing & discovering this new passion of mine, I have learned that if I did not take this leap to try something new, where would I be? Will I hold regrets about not starting sooner? We will never know, but I am grateful that I jumped right in to get my feet wet, to learn and pick up something I can fully enjoy and express my happiness with.
"For those looking to start something, whether it is a business, new hobby, investment or simply just an idea, trust your instinct and just go for it because regardless, you will learn something from it. That process is one beautiful thing, do not take it for granted." - Marcos Romero-Turner (MRT)
Thank you for tuning in,
All the best,