Do you love what you do?

Like most aspiring photographers, I have a day job. Hell, I have two other gigs if you count my association as Writer/Content Manager with www.junebugreview.com. Needless to say, I am one busy mofo.

My love for photography began when I was a junior in high school, taking a few classes, to broaden my artistic portfolio. I studied Graphic Design all four years, as well my last year in Junior High - right around the time Corel Draw was the standard for desktop publishing.

I really just wanted to make good with my then girlfriend's family. Her step dad was a combat journalist in Vietnam, and shot only Nikon and Pentax for the Army. He had tons of cameras and equipment just not getting used. I figured "hey, he won't mind, right?"

Needless to say, it was a love affair from that point forward. However, after high school her and I split up, hobbies changed, and I couldn't afford $10K in equipment while going to college. So, I moved onto other inexpensive things. Cars, beer, books, girls, etc.

Fast forward almost a decade, and several career choices later, I got bit by the photography bug again. Luckily, I have an awesome group of supportive friends who let me use and abuse them for my artistic pursuits.

Not to mention, my timing couldn't have been better.

Now that most of my friends and colleagues are at the age where they are having kids, getting married, celebrating anniversaries, and working on their own side projects, everyone needs pictures!

I'd say the best part about it all is that I'm still thirsty for it. I love the learning curve. I can draw influence from other photogs. I study whenever I can and never take myself too seriously.

If someone proposes a project for me that I just don't feel I have skill-set for, I'll be honest and point them in the right direction. Whether the logistics are infeasible. Or my availability is just an issue, I'm going to make sure I can pull the job off before offering my services.

I'd say this is the start to a beautiful thing.