Back in the swing of things

It has been a long cold winter and there is finally light at the end of the tunnel.  Spring appears to be here even though I am sure we will still have some winter like weather for a few more weeks.  

I love SUMMER for so many reasons.  I love the sunshine, and the longer day.  I love being able to take Penny for walks, go golfing with my hubby, and just be outside in general.  I love that it is wedding season, and that the majority of my shoots for the year will be taking place in the next 6 months.  I love that this summer we have a lawn, and that I am getting into landscaping around our house. (so far no dead shrubs, but a couple are looking a little sickly)  I could go on and on and on about why summer is my favorite season, but instead I thought I would share what I have planned in the next couple weeks.  

This week I will be busy finishing up editing on an engagement shoot,  and I will be shooting a boudoir shoot which I am really looking forward to shooting in my new home studio for the first legitimate time.  (Penny has been testing it out)  Couples golf league start tomorrow night so hopefully Kevin and I can get a round in tonight since I have not been out this year, and I surely need the practice.  Thursday I will be heading to Three Forks for my baby sister's college graduation party.  Saturday my hubby, my parents and Carley and her boyfriend will be heading to San Diego for some beach fun and sun.  I am really looking forward to this trip for a few reasons-first the SUN, second it is the first time the six of us have vacationed together, third, I have never been to San Diego and have heard amazing things about it, and lastly I am going to talk Car and James into some fun couple beach shots while we are down there.  Plus, I am hoping to have Carley take a few of Kevin and me to update the engagement photos we have in our bedroom.  I will call them newlywed photos, and I am sure Kevin will be thrilled.  Once we get back from our trip we have the Bird Branding, Bucking Horse, lots of company, and lots of shoots.  The end of May officially signals the start of wedding season with a wedding at the Sac in Three Forks.  Busy month ahead, and I am thrilled that photography will be picking back up again.  

If you know you want a session this Summer, please contact me now so we can work out a date.  I will  be between Miles City and Bozeman a lot for weddings and weekend dates are starting to fill up.  

Well that is my update since I haven't really posted what has been going on with me for quite some time. I also haven't taken any photos of Penny in a while, and I used her to test out some new studio props and backdrops.  This first one is my favorite photo of her of all time.

Warmer weather means more shoots which also means more blog posts so check back often to see what is new with me and Whitney Lin Photography.

Live. Love. Create. Inspire.

Just a heads up....this post ended up a little long.  Read at your own risk of boredom and information over share :)

Although I have made and halfway kept resolutions in past, I have never actually sat down, thought about it, and then put them in writing.  I actually think by putting them here, on my blog, that I will be much more successful in keeping them.  One of my biggest fears as a photographer is disappointing my clients.  So maybe if I share my goals with you, I will be much more motivated to succeed at them.  

You may have noticed my title, and this is a phrase I keep jotting down in notebooks, on marketing material, and on design work.  I actually think it pretty much sums up my resolutions this year.

Live.

Seems pretty straightforward and it is.  However, I also would like to add that I really want to learn to be better at managing my time.  I spend a lot of time reading blogs, checking facebook, and aimlessly wandering the internet for all things photography.  Although I do feel like there is a time for it, it really needs to stop sucking up my mornings.  I really do my best editing in the morning and then again in the late afternoon.  So I am going to try to structure my day around this.  I am still going to allow myself some free web time-but it needs to be around midday when I need a visual boost or after 5 pm.  That being said, I really want to walk away from my computers by 7 pm-including my ipad which I am completely addicted to.  This might not happen during wedding season, but it is something I need to be mindful of.  I don't want my computer to take time away from husband, friends, and family.  This will in turn give me more time to live-see I made it work.

Love.

I really want to take time EVERY day to be a better wife, daughter, sister, friend, and dog owner.  These relationships take work, and it has become even more important to me this year as I am now living further away from so many people I love.  Also, as a new wife, I feel like I am constantly learning what being married is all about.  I am learning that the support we get from each other is the most important kind.  I am learning that doing something for your husband's happiness also makes you happy.  For example, I have been trying to master some Mexican meals for Kev because it is our favorite.  I have never really been into cooking before, but creating dishes for my husband that I know no one else has made him (outside of a restaurant) , and watching him devour them is a serious happiness booster.  It has made me love cooking.  Making Kevin's happiness a priority will only have a positive effect on my own.  I think this is true with my other relationships as well.  If I go out of my way to do something nice for a friend or family member, I will feel the love as well and my relationships will improve.

Create.

So this is obvious in the sense that I will continue to create through photography.  But, I would also like to spend more time working on design.  It is something I am passionate about but don't have any real training in, so I am going to continue to self teach.  I fell in love with designing my wedding invitations, and save the dates, and sometime would love to do this for someone else.  It also comes in hand for marketing material as well.  

On top of designing, I also want to continue to make this blog grow.  I feel like 2010 was the year in which I started consistently blogging, and I want to keep that up.  I want it to not only be a place for my photography, but for my own life as well.  I really want future clients to be able to get to know me through my blog before I they ever meet me.

Inspire.

I really hope that in some way or another I inspire others.  Seriously, starting my own business and putting myself out there is hard.  There are nights when I can't sleep because I am terrified of failing.  I have been in love with photography for as long as I can remember and therefor it is not something I am prepared to fail at.  That thought is crippling.  I will continue learning, and working until I have gotten to the point where I can call Whitney Lin Photography a successful business.  Then I will continue to work and learn because photography is an always changing industry.  It is my dream, and I hope that I can possibly inspire others to follow their dreams, whether they are photographers or not.  

Okay...that got waayyy lengthy and although it wasn't my intent- I am leaving it for the simple purpose that there will be days in the upcoming year when I need to go back and re-read this.  There will be times, that I am stressed, and uninspired, and I am hoping that my own words can get me through it.  So on that note-Happy New Year!  I hope 2011 is a year of growth, prosperity, and inspiration. 

Isn't Penny the CUTEST puppy in the world?  I was dying to try out my new drop it modern backdrop so Penny was bribed with bacon to be my model.  Isn't that backdrop lovely?  I am in the process of turning our family room into an indoor, natural light studio.  Since it is just Kev and I we don't really need a family room yet...so I have talked him into letting me put it to use.  The space is big enough for babies, boudoir, seniors, and probably groups smaller than five.   I can't wait to get it all put together. 

One other small goal of mine is to receive more feedback in the form of comments on my blog.  Don't be shy-let me hear from you!