Finally! I’m finally getting around to blogging the shoots I got to do during August! Yes, I know we’re halfway into September, but let’s just roll with it. I had some time last month to line up several personal shoots for things I’d been wanting to shoot for a while now, but just hadn’t had the time. It’s a poor excuse that I’d given for too long and was an easy way to let myself out of trying new things and pushing my work a little. Honestly though, after I’d gotten started, I quickly became addicted to shooting personal work! If you’re a photographer that’s only been shooting what you’re paid to shoot, try shooting just for yourself sometime and see what comes from it. One thing that really stuck with me from the Jeremy Cowart Vision workshop I went to last year was the concept of practice. He talked about how superstar athletes didn’t get where they are by only playing during games, but they spent (and do spend) TONS of time practicing, and the same applies to photography. You shouldn’t expect to grow as a photographer either without practicing your craft. So here’s to, well, practice.

If you’ve followed my blog for a little while, I’m sure you’ll recognize Erika from previous shoots such as this one (and the header image of the blog). She’s a good friend of mine and we have a great time working together. I’ve been wanting to start a beauty section of my portfolio and this was a really great way to kick it off. Moving into the studio earlier this year has been one of the biggest blessings for my business. I’ll always love location shooting, but having the studio option now is amazing, and I’m so thankful for it and the friends I get to work with here. I’m super excited to start showing some of the personal work I’ve been working on so here we go! If you follow me on Twitter, you might have seen the next two as a preview from this shoot. I’m thrilled to add these to my portfolio, so I hope you enjoy. Happy Friday everyone! (Hair & makeup by Susan Grant.)