This session marked an 8 month milestone for Eli, and an end to 8 years in a beautiful studio space at River Ridge Arts Building for me. It was bittersweet, to be sure.
The owners of our building were ready for retirement, and finally found some interested buyers. It was hard to conceive of the fact that all that extraordinary light will no longer be appreciated by artists and photographers, but at the same time I was ready to accept that perhaps it's just the end of an era, and it's simply my time to move on to bigger and better things...
I got there early on this day, thinking our appointment was was scheduled at 10 instead of 10:30. (My mistake!) I was thankful I had that time to myself. I spent that half hour really feeling the space and reflecting back on how far I'd come since the day I first moved in to the building and helped paint the walls, how many times I'd climbed the steps to my room, the countless hours I'd spent there, the great relationships I'd formed within those walls, and how much I'd changed both professionally and personally.
By the time Eli and his parents arrived I was soft and a bit emotional, and they were so sweet and almost honored to find they would be my last clients ever in that studio.
Eli is such a sweet, angelic boy (it's easy to see in the images.) It was almost poetic how easily the session flowed. The cloud cover that morning even allowed me to take advantage of the garden out back halfway through our session; an opportunity that has been RARE in the years since I moved in. The light back there tends to be very harsh, and it has always seemed like the garden was "under construction" in one way or another every single summer. Ironically, it's completed now.
I hold everyone I've had the honor of meeting in that space in high regard and I feel so lucky to have had such a beautiful room to work and grow in for so long. I'm actively searching for a new place where I can spread my wings a bit further. In the meantime, I'm busy enjoying shooting in the great outdoors; it's always been my preference, anyway!
There was still moving out and cleaning to be done after Eli and his family left that day, but this was the last time it would be my studio in that capacity. Before I closed the door behind me that morning I took a deep breath and a good look around. If I'd have had my way I'd probably have stayed there forever, but if I know anything about myself it's that I can tend to be a creature of habit, even when everything in the universe is sending me clear messages that it's time to let go or try something new. It felt like everything was going to be okay.
Exciting things are underway for me. I am looking forward to it, and I look forward to sharing it with my clients!
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