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Whew, been away for a while. Let's catch up. So one of the reasons it has been difficult to update this blog is that we have put our house up for sale. This has moved the PC to the basement on a coffee table. This is about as un-ergonomic as you can get. It is a back killer so I have prioritized my time there to Photoshop and other post processing only. So why have we put the house up for sale? There are quite a few reasons. The first and most important was to lower our cost of living. At some point I will become a professional photographer and that will reduce my income significantly, for a while at least. Right now I have the cushy job in IT paying plenty. When you have been making plenty for a while, you start to acquire things that have a significant recurring cost. So in a sense, one is enslaved to things one has acquired. The challenge is to shed these financial responsibilities to allow for enough freedom in life to move about. For example, changing careers. I found it pretty easy to do so. I surprised my self. I guess once you have a goal in life or found something you really love to do, the superficial things you once held dear take on such less significance.
Ok so that’s one good reason. Another is a chance to move to a more interesting neighborhood. Our current location is a pseudo suburb just north of Atlanta. It’s not bad but it’s not exceptional either. Our neighbors are typically way older than us. We can relate on a person level but they are at such different point in their lives that it doesn’t go much further than quick pleasantries. These people could never be our good friends. So we look for a neighborhood of like minded individuals with great places to eat and especially drink. Nothing like a good neighborhood pub.
Unfortunately with all this great planning and effort comes the worst selling market in a long time. At least it gives up a chance to meditate on what we really want and what would be best for us. The discussion now is whether we want a bungalow or loft. Well for the photog career, loft wins. Abbie (the wife, so you know and I don’t have to say, “the wife” anymore) is quite the champion of the loft life. She has surprised me. As she always does. So we wait. We wait for the house to sell for less than we wanted so we can buy another dwelling for less than the seller wanted.
On to the photography career goals. Some really great stuff is happening. I’ve developed some direction in which I want my career to go. The idea is that you are to specialize in something in order to be successful and known for something. The problem with that is that I love to shoot everything. After some meditation on the subject, I determined that I love headshots and some kind of commercial photography. These seem to be the most dynamic. You get to meet tons of people and go to some great places, all the while the creativity is in your hands. I’m not trying to force anything yet but guide with a light hand in the direction that’s pulling me the most. Also, I love the Strobist stuff. That will definitely be a big part of the picture. So with that said, I had my first paying job last weekend. Whoo Hoo! I did a commercial headshot for a friend who is a local actor. It was fun and I learned a ton about some of the headshot variants like commercial and theatrical and how to get someone to smile big without looking insane. Even though every ad featuring a human has them smiling so large they look crazy. Advertisers sell happiness so I guess this is what it looks like. The other big news is that I have a legit website now at zazenphoto.com. My good friend Alex hooked it up and it looks great. It also links to this blog so we’ll see if we get some readers. Other than you of course. ; )

Ok that’s plenty for now. Hopefully my writing will improve with my photography. The following weeks will consist of the Strobist exercises that I’ve been messing with. Stay tuned!

ML