March 2013.

We went to Columbia SC, and Asheville NC this month.

And my big brother turned 20!

That time I met a snake, and swam with a spider.

Ookay. So. This story is a story. So prepare yourself, you might want to get popcorn.

It started off as just a normal day of hanging out and taking pictures and I had this amazing idea to take pictures down by the lake.

Oh, this should be simple, I've been down there before, it won't be too hard. No. Not at all.

So I went to the lake, and found wonderland, quite literally. 

WONDERLAND! Taken with my cell phone.

It was beautiful! Grassy, mixed with wonderful mud, and swamp, and there was this river going right through the grass, and then the sun was shining, and I could've sworn, I had found my favorite place in the world.

I was quickly proven wrong.

I was getting my shot wonderfully, and it was glorious, and everything, but then! I decide to sit in the river. Yes. Of course you must sit in a muddy river for a good picture? I stepped in and the mud went over my knee and into my mud boots.. But it was still pretty great.

I eventually found a more solid spot, to sit, and enjoy the nice freezing cold water...

This is after I sat down for the first time. You can see a little bit of my out-of-focus rage.

When I met a snake. It didn't get very close to me, (but I swear it was going to turn into Jaws with a snake) and was pretty small and black and just swimming around so it was okay, but I quickly scurried out of there afterwards and went to wash off at the lake, after I washed off a bit my beautiful white sheet, when I thought I'd go and jump in the pool!

I walked in, the chlorine started bleaching the sheet a bit more, and it was all swell.

When I realize there are two wolf spiders in there.

It was disgusting, they probably were dead.. But I don't know!

That was my adventure of recently, but hey, I think it might've been worth it for a good picture? 

Dwell.

Also, on St. Patty's day I went to a ballet school and took pictures of a rehearsal of Sleeping Beauty. It was wonderful.

I'll be doing a blog of them once I get finished with editing them all!

-Edit-
I forgot to mention the fact that each time I've gone back something has gone wrong, worse and worse.
The second time I went back I saw a snake longer than my arm.
The third time I saw a black widow.
*shudder* I don't think I will be going back there again 'till winter.

More pictures on my Facebook page and Flickr!

Restless mind.

Ever been so utterly inspired, you can't sleep?

It feels like my mind is tossing, turning, scrambling and steaming with ideas.

It's almost midnight, I'm sick and unable to take many pictures, yet I'm so incredibly inspired.

And I can't sleep, so here I am. Writing about the fact that I can't sleep.

Good thing about this? I have ideas.

So many new ideas I've never even considered before.

I'm really looking forward to challenging myself soon.

To challenge myself to work with more models,

to challenge myself to try more levitation shots,

to challenge myself to try more street photography,

and just challenge everything I've ever considered to be my style, or thought process.

I think the next few months are really going to be great for my photography.

Be bubbly.

In a way I'm honestly terrified of my ideas. I've never tapped into my thoughts, and plans like this before.

(Or rather, when I have, they didn't turn out.)

But I finally think my abilities might be strong enough to take my pictures to a level they've never been.

And that really excites me.

So, in conclusion. I get inspired when I actually can't do anything about it.

Interesting.

(As always, more pictures on my Flickr.)

Dear, The Past.

"I never think of myself as an icon. What is in other peope's minds is not in my mind. I just do my thing." - Audrey Hepburn

"I want to grow old without facelifts... I want to have the courage to be loyal to the face I've made. Sometimes I think it would be easier to avoid old age, to die young, but then you'd never complete your life, would you? You'd never wholly know you." - Marilyn Monroe

I know I say this a lot, but I love the past.

Probably my biggest role model is Audrey Hepburn.

She was such a great person who just did what she believed in, and got huge for doing so, and I admire her for that.

"If I'm honest I have to tell you I still read fairy-tales and I like them best of all." - Audrey Hepburn

Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe were two of the most beautiful women of all time, yet both of them believed only happy girls were beautiful.

I think that's something everyone should live by, happiness.

"On my darkest days, I wear my brightest colors." - Cyndi Lauper

I've recently been falling in love with vintage/oldies clothing.

Today I went thrifting, hoping to find something that was old-ish that I could use in pictures and found this dress (in the pictures above), it makes me feel like a princess.

It's not the most beautiful dress, and I know that.

It looks sort of like an 90's prom dress.

But I'm okay with that.

My mom also let me wear her pearls, which honestly is the most gorgeous necklace ever, it's magical! As soon as I put them on, it felt like I was in character for the picture.

Being a time traveler is a lonely life.

A life of being lost, and found, then lost again.

To adapt to a time, then lose what you've grasped onto.

Maybe it'd be better to get stuck.

To get stuck in a time you can stay, and rely on.

I'm also in love with Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennet.

But that's for another blog post.

(More pictures on my Flickr!)

Just a girl who likes clothes.

"What makes me happy is dressing, at long last, according to the dictates of my soul."

I'm inspired by many things, one of those many things being clothes.

I've always loved clothes, when I was around 8ish I got my first sewing machine and went crazy with it.

I made many miscellaneous items with clothes I didn't want anymore,

or clothes my family didn't want.

I specifically remember the very first thing I made that actually worked out the way I had planned,

it was a vest made out of one of my mom's old shirts, and then I added little pieces of fabric from my old favorite clothes.

It had a spongebob face from my first spongebob pajamas, a friendship bracelet that one of my best friends made for me, buttons from my favorite denim jacket, a money from my favorite pajamas, a patch from one of my favorite silky "hippie" shirts (what I called it when I was little.), and the list could go on forever.

Quite honestly, I'm inspired by the little kid I was back then.

I wore this vest for a few years 'till I grew out of it; but when I did wear it, I wore it proudly.
It was so beautiful in my eyes, and I didn't care if other people didn't like it or not. I liked it, and that was all that mattered.

I still feel the same way, where society has no boundaries on me, and has absolutely no say in what I think is beautiful, or what I think looks good. But it definitely still can have a terrible effect on me sometimes.

Getting weird looks for dyed hair, weird looks for wearing a tutu, crazy makeup, or even just my knee-high converse.

I hope someday, in the future, people will be more accepting of others,

and think people who are different, are the same.

Definitely inspired by an article about a girl in Vogue about how in high school she stopped dressing how she wanted, because of people, and because of bullies.

The sum of it all; I cut up a shirt today, and I'm realizing how in love I am with fashion, and would really love to pursue fashion photography more, or even just have some more fashion-esque clothes lying around at my disposal..

You know, fantasies of being rich and having all of the clothes I want.

Meet Pierre.

'Love for the art.' 

Today was great! I took pictures all day. It was crazy! But pretty awesome.

I spent the majority of my day cleaning up my Nikon FG, from 1982!

One of the cameras I had in my picture yesterday! I love him. <3

His name is Pierre.

He doesn't work anymore; I took him apart and cleaned out the dust, and everything cluttering the electronics, but found out it's missing one of the major reflectors inside.

So he's just a beautiful prop!

(But I've made it a lifetime goal to eventually fix him.)

I also got film for my Minolta Hi-Matic AF2, it works wonderfully!

I'm really excited to use it in Minnesota, and hopefully get some cool film-y shots, considering this will be my first time using film.

Yesterday I went to the thrift store, and got a black dress for pictures! (which I love and will most likely post a picture of eventually) And a wool high-waist skirt!

I love them, and prepare to see them in lots of pictures in the future.

Also! While taking pictures, my neighbors drove by (whom I've never talked to), rolled down their window, and a little girl asked me to take her picture, it was adorable!

The Photographer.

The photographer.

Well! To start it all off, today is my day 200 on my 365 (yay!), and it's been the most amazing experience of my life. But I'll save all of that gooshy "I love photography and all that it's done for me" talk for when I finish my project.

To explain this picture. It's about what a photographer will do for a good picture. What they'll go through, whether it's hurt themselves, or trespass, or stand outside in the rain, or hang their camera from a ceiling!

We'll all do the most absurd things for pictures. But that's what makes us so awesome.

Photographers are crazy, and we like it that way.

A huge thank you to Laura Parrish for helping me start my camera collection<3 She gave me these three wonderful cameras. Tomorrow I'm going out to get film. So. Excited.

New adventures.

Hello, 2012, I welcome you with an open mind for new adventures. <3
Quite honestly, this past year has been pretty weird. Went through some of the hardest things I've ever had to go through, but also some of the best things. Photography became the biggest part of my life last year, too. I started my 365 in April, and lived through feeling uninspired, lost, and alone. I've also grown so much since last January, it's crazy! Then, I wouldn't have even imagined going to photography school for at least a few years, and now I'm going in 23 days. Then, I couldn't have imagined spending $1,200 on a camera, now I've spent around $1,700 on photography equipment, and excited to spend more. Then, I wasn't friends with my best friend right now. (<3 you Karina. <3) Now, I'm excited to go to school, and have new adventures with photography, and the people who have influenced my life in negative and positive ways.
No matter how clique I feel for posting this, honestly, I can't wait to become a better person, and meet new people. New adventures are just waiting at my doorstep.

I hope all of you had an amazing last year, and have an amazing year to come. <3

Inspired.

Hello, Blogger! I can't sleep because I'm inspired.. So I figured, I'd catch you up on what I've been doing!

Unique.

I tried to be different. (again.)

Frozen.

Winter finally got here.

The cold is coming.

I did my first expansion picture!

The Imperfect.

I dyed my hair pink. (again) 

And sat outside in the cold shirtless for the first time.

The flower girl.

Tried to captured a flowers vulnerability in a picture. (Successfully, I think.)

The Daily News.

And spent my day cutting out butterflies from news paper.

Life is honestly going in an amazing direction. Next month I'm going to Minnesota for my grandpa's birthday!

I'm also going to be doing a photoshoot with the amazing Caitlin O'brien! I'm so excited!

And then, when I get home, I'll be going to photography classes at Gainesville University, and when I'm 15 I can go to beauty school to get my beauty license. Like I said, life is going amazingly.

I miss blogging, and rambling about why I love photography, though.

So -hopefully- I'll blog more often, so I don't have to do these long catch-up posts..  But oh well.

Also, if you actually read all of this, I made an Etsy! Check it out- http://www.etsy.com/shop/Photopluto I'm currently saving up for a 50mm 1.4 lens, so all sales will be going towards that. :)

Hope you all have a great day, and as always, all of my work can be found on my Flickr!