We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us.”

• Ralph Hattersley, photographer and educator

 

The first camera I ever used was my dad’s - it was the Kodak with those weird flash cubes on top. My dad had finally trusted me to take a photo with it. I blindly took pictures and hoped that they were decent when we got them developed.  I thought it was cool as hell. It became a secret passion.

 

I played with photography again in college when I stepped into the darkroom to develop images. I probably should have listened to my heart and paid attention to the ongoing passion - but as adulthood crept in, it stayed in the background. 

 

I carry a deep belief  that the universe tries to guide us on our destined path, and if we stray, it gently  (well, sometimes) guides us back to the path.  I picked up a camera again when I was at a point in my life when I was breaking apart; the universe had made clear that I needed to be on a different path. It may have taken me a long time to get here, but I’m here now. I am finally listening to the universe. 

 

My camera is now a beloved companion on this path of mine. I see the world differently when the camera is with me - even when I’m not shooting an image. The little things that we all take for granted on a daily basis seem to pop out at me, telling me that they need to be captured. Colors, angles, details, facial expressions, barely noticeable gestures. I can’t explain it, and I’m not even sure I fully understand it; I just feel lucky to get to experience it.

 

When I’m with a client and holding my camera, I see those details, those moments - the ones that our eyes tend to gloss over, but that ultimately sum up who a person truly is. The photographs that you will treasure and hand down are ones that show not just what you look like, but who you are, and how you interact with the world around you and with the people you love. All of my study of light, design, composition - ultimately, it comes down to creating photographs that will hold meaning in people’s lives, and it is this process of creating that has brought so much meaning to this path where I have finally found myself.