Is lunch with friends.  Especially sushi lunch.  I don’t have a lot of space in my schedule, especially with wedding season right on the horizon … but I’ll rarely say no to making a lunch date work.  This past week I’ve had several lunches with friends, and it’s just something that makes me feel less isolated as a small business owner who works alone all day.  This is definitely something I will make an effort to continue.

Ah, Seattle … how I miss you already.  The music stores, coffee shops, the baristas who tell me they don’t serve drip coffee — only americanos, the cocktails, the thai food and sushi, the cupcakes, the market, everything local and organic, the neighborhoods — especially Ballard and Capitol Hill, the people and their senses of style, the views — mountains and water all-around, and well … I could go on.  Those who know me understand that my absolute favorite thing to do in a new city is walk around all day long, eat amazing food, and photograph that amazing food.  Good conversation with friends who are willing to do the same makes the time spent in a new place even better.

Here are a few frames from my time walking around Seattle with good friends Laura and Eric (both college friends from Madison).  We walked, ate, drank and talked.  Perfect.

Is it possible to cram too much goodness into a single week?  My week in Seattle was one of the most ideal weeks of my life … crammed with goodness, overflowing and awesome.  For three full days — with 19 other talented photographers –  I got to experience Jesh de Rox’s Life As An Artform workshop.  This workshop isn’t about your camera or the technical aspects of photography, but rather about truly experiencing life and photography … bringing the artistry of our work into the rest of our lives.  I won’t write much about it because if you are a photographer and one day get to experience this crazy three day ride (which you should) — I don’t want you to have preconceived notions.  Because this workshop was, at its root, about breaking down our preconceived notions … the ways in which we label things and live on the periphery of true experience.

I left the workshop with beautiful new friends and new tools for how to fully experience my art and my life.  It’s so liberating to rip-off labels we have placed on people and situations.  Labels have a shelf life … as Jesh explained so well.  When people in our lives change, often for the better, it’s only scary and disappointing because we have already labeled them to be a certain somebody.  If we can constantly remove labels and experience people anew with each interaction … we’ll most likely be happier and more free.

Below are some highlights from those 3 days … my new friend Johanna, my favorite musician Damien Jurado (he played a surprise intimate set and then we each got to photograph him alone for a bit), some frames from the experiential photography exercises, and Jesh playing his awesome music.

So Seattle was perfect. Upon my return to Madison I needed to rest for most the week … take in the things I learned and take them to heart. But now that moment of rest is over and I’m ready to move, move, move. I was so fortunate to spend my first full day in Seattle with Sarah and Chris Rhoads of Sarah Rhoads Photographers. Since stumbling upon their blog months ago, I have been fascinated by their brand, passion and big dreams. The way Sarah writes on her blog, almost daily, is really inspirational to me.

We met downtown and Sarah did a mini photo session with me … immediately putting me at ease with her laugh and free spirited nature. You can see some of the images she shot of me here. I adore what she captured — the multiple facets of my personality … and the chuck taylor shot is particularly me :)

We spent the remainder of the day in beautiful Queen Anne discussing my brand, portfolio and future goals (amongst many other things). I also got to eat pho for the first time ever! I kinda like a lot of things about Sarah and Chris, notably how intuitive they were about where I wanted my photography to go and where my true passion lies. They challenged me to set audacious goals and reinvent myself … that no dream is too big and that following the true passions of your heart will take you so far.

And that’s what I really love about Sarah and Chris. They move at hyper-speed, they set incredible goals for themselves, they don’t stop, don’t settle. They aren’t boxed-in to the “shoulds” of wedding photography, or photography in general. They are great leaders in the industry and I can’t wait to see everything they do. The day I spent with them really shifted my thinking … and I’m so ready to go full speed and live the life I want to live.

We went out on a lifestyle/engagement shoot in the afternoon and Sarah and Chris did an awesome job drawing upon Morgan and Dave’s love story (which included sticky notes). You can read more about the inspiration for the shoot here (and see the final images).

After the day was done (brain dump — holy cow! but soo good), they drove me by Kerry Park where Sarah and I hopped out to take-in the view and snap some photos (Mount Rainier was even out). Breathtaking. Sarah and I got to spend more time together the rest of the week (I’ll post about the Jesh deRox workshop in my Seattle Part II post), and I noticed that every time we were near this view point, she would stop to take in its beauty. How amazing is that? She is still inspired by her immediate surroundings … constantly inspired and constantly pushing herself. It really left an impression on me. It was a special day and a special week, for sure.

Here are some behind-the-scenes shots from the session with Morgan and Dave, as well as my shot from Kerry Park.

This morning I returned from breakfast with my friend, Cydney, and the warm air coming through my windows was perfect.  It’s awesome to me how the scent or feel of the air can take you back to certain times or make you remember something long since buried.  Madison has quickly transitioned from winter to summer, with 80 degree temps this week and people wearing shorts and sundresses.  When I feel warm, almost-rainstorm air, I think of walking down to James Madison park with a book and a blanket and reading alone or with my friend, Natalie.  The first time I ever spent real time with Natalie, we read in that park.  And whenever I walk past it, I still think of her, and wonder what she’s doing in New York.  Something tells me she is also walking around and reading … we tend to both really like doing that.

If you just started reading my blog, I’ve made a goal to read at least a book per week until my To Read list is down to zero.  Even for a voracious reader, this task is daunting … especially with wedding season on the horizon.  But in March I managed to read 7 books — a nice mix of non-fiction and fiction.  I won’t list all the books here, as you can see them in the photo below, but my favorites this month were Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann and Never Eat Alone by Kevin Ferrazzi.  The first is a novel about New York City in the 1970s … and more importantly, about the interconnectedness of humanity.  McCann’s writing is concise and yet thick in plot.  Philosophical and poetic without being too obvious.  The second book is a non-fiction work about making real connections with people as opposed to false and empty networking relationships.  You all know about my contempt for networking events and such … and this book gave me several ideas and some insight into how I might step-out of my comfort zone in order to initiate more relationships.  I tend to let people approach me, rather than the reverse.  I’ve always liked observing and taking things in.  Once someone approaches me, I can chatter away and really be in  tune with the other person/the conversation/whatever is happening.  But I’ve held on to this preconceived notion of myself as shy and unable to approach others — sometimes so hard that I wonder if I am missing out on knowing other people who are the same way.

I get most of my books from the library, but when I do purchase one, I like to record on the front page the dates and where I read it.  It becomes a mini-journal in a sense.  I also stick inside the book letters I’ve received while reading the book, or plane tickets, grocery lists, etc.  I keep those things in the pages for as long as I own the book and sometimes I just look back through my bookshelves and open the covers to take me back in time.

Happy April, friends.