A Look Back at 2014

This year has been a challenging one, both personally and professionally. Growing pains with MAW and at home have made every step forward especially sweet this year, and while I'm enjoying the last few days of 2014, I am also looking forward to the New Year.
I'm not much of one for dwelling on the past, but I do want to revisit some of the highlights of my year, to keep in mind that no matter how challenging life may get, the good stuff will always happen, too.

Placement - my collaboration with Miranda Herrick

Miranda figures heavily into this year being a professional success for me. We collaborated on this series at the request of the owner of The Framemaker, and it came together wonderfully.
Miranda wrapped and gessoed a globe for me to take to different locations and photograph in my style.
I photographed different collections of objects and supplied Miranda with photos to cut up into her signature designs.
This project stemmed from our compilation on a piece from a few years ago called Heartstrings. Miranda wrapped an anatomical model of a heart with fishing wire, and I photographed the progress at different intervals.

The Facebook banner image for Placement, featuring selections from Heartstrings.

It was awesome to work with Miranda, and the show came together better than I think either one of us expected. To see more of her work, check out her website, also designed by yours truly.

The show turned out beautifully!

Go Now, Don't Look Back - album cover art and design project with Jeff Blaney

When Jeff Blaney asked to use one of my photos from Horse Trails -> Highways on the cover of his new EP, I jumped at the opportunity! What an amazing thing to have a piece of mine chosen by an artist to represent a piece of his musical journey. He also hired me to design the layout of the CD jacket and disc. Jeff gave me a lot of lead time, brought all of the information I needed for the layout to our meeting, and even had rough sketches to work from. It was a perfect project experience.
The album will be released in February, but until then, give Jeff Blaney's music a listen. 

The front and back covers of Go Now, Don't Look Back

Works and Days - being published in an art book for the first time

Miranda Herrick is one of the most talented people I know, and her dedication to art is astounding. We have built this amazing working relationship around our friendship-she is the creator, I am the documenter. I've been working with her for about five years now, and one of my ongoing projects is to document as many of her shows as possible. Having this catalog gave Miranda the breadth of images she needed for the introduction to her book, Works and Days, which is the entirety of her year-long daily drawing project. It was gratifying to not only see my name in print in a book, but to see years of work pay off in such a wonderful way for both Miranda and me.

There it is, live and in print. Woo hoo!!

Some perspective: this is the full set of all 365 Works and Days. They span the color spectrum in order of the months.

All in all, it's been a really good year. I hope you're enjoying the final days of 2014, and happily anticipating 2015. Cheers to the close of one year and the new beginnings of another!

Tips For Organizing Digital Photos (and other files, too!)

One of the most frequent questions I get is "How do I keep all of these photos organized?" While it can be a daunting task at the beginning (especially if you've never organized them before), once you get a system down, it's a breeze.

Choose a system. This can be organizing by year, by event, or by color coding. There is no wrong way to do it, so long as you can find what you're looking for with ease.

As you can see, my system isn't perfect, but I can always find my clients' information when I need it. I tend to organize them by year, with subfolders for each client.

Get an external hard drive with plenty of storage space. Keeping files off of your desktop will keep your computer running smoothly. Storing images on an external hard drive keeps them all in one place, and hard drives are less likely to crash than a computer. 

Most of my files live on my external hard drive. I've had this one for about three years, and I'm using about 60% of it's capacity. Again, note that my system is date-oriented, with events nested under each year. and organized by date.

Purchase backup cloud storage. Cloud storage is perfect for people on the go who like to be able to access their images everywhere and from multiple devices. Verizon offers cloud storage with their data plans, and iPhone users automatically have cloud storage, as well. Using a third party such as Dropbox is also worthwhile, though different companies charge different rates for storage. Do some research to ensure you're getting a fair price-it will be worth it in the end to never lose those precious memories!

Start Small. Starting any system of organization isn't easy. Start with a small task, like organizing the most recent photos you have from the last month. Again, it will depend on how you like to access your files, but getting a few images into organized folders will help you hone your organization system.

We all have to start somewhere.

Don't be afraid to change your process. As you move forward in your organization, don't be afraid to change your system. The entire point is to have access to all of your images and files-if you find your first system isn't as intuitive as you'd like, switch gears and try something else. You'll be happier in the end when you can find everything you need!

Change can be a beautiful thing-embrace it!

Did I leave anything out? How do you keep your digital files organized? Share your tips with us in the comment section below!

Five Steps to Getting Control of an Overwhelming Schedule

We've all been there: taking on too many tasks and not thinking about the reality of our schedules. I recently went through period of saying "yes" to too many projects. It took some time, but I learned valuable lessons in managing my schedule and what my priorities are.

Here's how I came back from the brink:

1. I took a step back.

It's hard to follow this advice when one is overwhelmed.

I remembered to deep breathe. I have the ability to work until I am almost dead with exhaustion. This is not healthy, but it can be very productive...or can it? When I really started to look at my situation critically, I realized that I was running myself ragged by taking on so many projects. I was doing a lot, but accomplishing almost nothing in the process, and I was running at about 60%. I like to give 100% to any task I take on, so this 60% thing was like ice on my spine.

2. The hard edit.

At the opening reception of Placement in June. I look exhausted because I was.

Hard though it was, I cut out extracurricular band membership. Music is fun for me, but I am primarily a visual artist and designer. I set a limit: I sing with only my husband's bands, and I have to draw the line there. That still means performing with three different bands, but it's feasible since we can practice whenever we want. I don't have to schedule anything, we just do it.

I also decided to take a break from exhibiting my photography. While I love showing my work, I saw a recent collaborative art opening as a burden, not an outlet. Until it becomes a healthy, productive exercise again, I'm putting it on hold.

3. Priority refining.
I assessed the projects I have that don't have deadlines and decided where on the priority list they needed to go. Several have been postponed indefinitely, others have been finished, and a few are still in the queue. When time and motivation allows, I finish one of these open-ended projects, but until these clients and friends decide they need these projects completed, I am not going to worry myself by thinking about them.

4. Nurturing existing professional relationships.
I put a spotlight on my relationships with my current clients. If they have a need, I rise to it. When they need advice or just a sounding board, I make myself available. This is easier to do than I initially thought, especially since I started to prioritize properly.

5. Bringing it home.

Taking a walk with the loves of my life. Imagine a schedule coming between me and these two! How silly!

Finally, and most importantly, while all of this was happening, I really focused on my relationships at home. I had overwhelmed myself to the point of being short with and overly demanding of my husband, which created tension in our household. Even our dog, Sapo, felt it. When I started to give Bill the love he deserves, the tension melted and our family unit became stronger than ever.

Now, several months later, things are so much better. I can see clearly where I failed to be fair in my time allotments, especially to myself. Since I've taken these steps, life has balanced out and I'm back to being happy, optimistic, and my can-do attitude has been restored and upgraded.

Do you have any advice to add? Feel free to leave your comments below!

Fall Creek Falls

This past weekend, we headed to Fall Creek Falls with some friends from Wisconsin and attended a night of the taping of Bluegrass Underground. Bluegrass Underground is always amazing, and I highly recommend checking it out whenever you can, but the park is where I focused my lens.
We took a hike around the park, and it was gorgeous. We honeymooned here in early Spring of 2012, and always manage to come back in late winter - before the season begins, but just as the weather is breaking.
We stayed in a Fisherman's Cabin on the lake; it was absolutely perfect: days in the 60s, nights in the 40s.
Here are a few photos of the wonderful surroundings:

Okay, this was on the way to the cabin, but the fire was so bright and amazing.

The falls: the highest falls East of The Rockies.

A gorgeous view on our hike.

Moving water is fascinating to me.

Looking across the gorge of the falls.

View from the cabin's deck.

I like the dichotomy of night time city shots and daylight nature shots I've started to amass. It keeps me intrigued, and I hope it does you, too!

Icy Photo Exercise

As everyone has noticed over the last few weeks, this is a really cold winter! While hunkering down during the Polar Vortex, I took some of these photos of the ice inside our windows.
Enjoy!

Icy tendrils

January Market in Atlanta

It's a rainy day here in Atlanta, and there are flash flood warnings until 3 pm. Luckily, I'm in the AtlantaMart, staying warm and dry, and selling Freshie and Zero to retailers from around the country.
My boss, Beth Lawrence, is a great jewelry designer, an awesome employer, and has an incredible eye for design. One of the skills she really wows people with - both clients and fellow sellers - is her ability to make a creative, cohesive,  and easily navigable display. Working with Beth has made me realize how much more goes on behind the scenes when running a business than the average consumer may realize.
Below are a few photos of the newly redesigned display for this market. Enjoy, and stay inspired!

Full booth shot. It's so airy, and the punches of color are perfect.

The Best Seller Package

Beth has a keen eye for using everyday objects for her displays.

Letterpress earring cards display nicely in a tray with candle-scaping sand.

The Story Collection (on the wall)

Professional photography showcasing the jewelry helps clients get a feel for how the pieces hang on a person.

Creative use for a dessert stand.