In school I spent hours learning the technical craft of design and photography. Over the last 10 years I have spent hours upon hours looking at the sun. The sun in the morning, mid afternoon, and the sun in the evening and how it helps tell the story of the beautiful people in this world. 

 

One of the things I have struggled with is finding my art, the creativity that fuels my soul. In art, there is a constant searching for inspiration to find the home for your soul. A place that gives you the kind of joy that makes you lose track of time and connects your soul to your visual art. 

 

In my childhood I have always been connected to the summer season. The warmth of the sun on my skin, the feeling of freedom I get from spending time in the water, losing track of time playing in the creek behind my house and getting tan lines from my striped swim suit running through the sprinkler. I can remember playing all day outside with my friends until my dad got home from work and the sun was sinking in the sky when we were called in for dinner. We would spend our evenings out for a walk as a family watching the sun go down behind the Tennessee mountains as the sky turned all shades of orange, purple, and pink. I spent time fishing and hiking and playing in waterfalls, blowing bubbles and chewing on the mint we planted that took over our back yard landscaping. 

 

Fast forward to 2010 when I met a farmer who I eventually married in 2012 and now live on a farm where I spend my time doing much of the same thing I did as a child. Chasing sunsets is one of the greatest joys in my life. When I am watching that sun go down that last 18 degrees as night falls over the horizon I feel immense joy in my soul. The sunsets that move from amber, to red and orange eventually fading to pink and blues that blend to purple brings the feeling of wholeness and connection to the Earth and this place we live in. The beauty in the life we were given and the colorful people we are inside. In this beauty I have found my inspiration.

 

Photographing people at this time of day, with these colors dancing to their life songs is truly a once in a lifetime chance I have. It brings me joy to see the happiness come over faces when that sun starts to sink below the horizon to 6 degrees then 12 degrees then 18 degrees when the starts start to peek out. This time of day makes one let all their guards down, let all their own personal judgements of themselves go and forget time and space and just become enthralled in the moment. 

 

To bring all of this full circle the beauty I see in the sunset I also find to be visual the same way in flowers. I have been planning this for several years and I am so excited to be starting a flower farm where I will have a large wildflower field to photograph at sunset where the land will run right into the sky with the colors blending seamlessly into a moment captured forever. Running through a field of wildflowers is a freedom I can’t quite put my finger on that brings so much joy I cannot wait to share with you. I will be hosting sessions in my wildflower field, renting it to other photographers as a safe space to create memories with their clients and moments saved forever. I will also be growing an assortment of cut flowers I will be wholesaling to florists this year to bring unique colors to our area. 

 

 

If I could put a visual to a moment it would be I see lots of people walking around very disconnected from the body they are in, disconnected from the moments they are experiencing, and from the life they are living. When the sun sinks below the horizon I can see all the different versions of themselves they have floating around their head center back into themselves where they feel seen and safe and home.