That AH-HA moment
I was digging through my filing cabinet and found some old disks of images. I decided that I might share a personal story with you about my journey to being a full time professional photographer.Back around 1999 I was going through all kinds of life changes. Questioning what I was doing and why before becoming a full time photographer. I was working as a lab technician in Nanaimo at North Island Custom Images with Glenn and Lynn Olsen, printing (the old way – enlarger, darkroom, negatives) other peoples photography. I was always on the internet looking at photos (still do) when came across a website for male models. Of course I was looking at the photos for their technical qualities. I decided right then and there that I should send them an email letting them know I could do photography for them in Canada (they were based in LA, of course) It was a big deal for me to send that one email. To set aside all my fears about not being good enough and so on, I just sent the damn email. That email definitely changed my life... I got an email back!With that one decision the dialogue started with Malemodels.com and more precisely with Greg Powers. Greg and I fast became friends talking by phone and email about photography, (we were at about the same level then) which ended up with me being invited to LA to photograph some new male model portfolios. That in itself changed the game for me. Remember at that time I was not doing photography full time.. only “on the side”. I still had huge doubts about my abilities and not a whole lot of confidence either, but regardless of that I ended up doing a few trips to LA. One of the trips saw me on the beach, under the Santa Monica Pier, photographing some incredible young men. Wow. I was photographing one particular man (I'm so bad I can't remember his name). He was in the water with waves splashing up over him, staring directly at the lens .. and that was it.. my ah ha moment.. Here I am, In LA, on the beach, photographing this gorgeous man.. AH HA..This is what I was meant to be doing, full time. none of this part time stuff.. full time.. this is what I was meant to be doing! Can't get much better than this!
Its incredible to me just how one decision (sending that first email), one moment of bravery, one action can help to change the course of ones life. I knew photography was what I should have been doing, but I wasn't doing it. Up to that point I had lead a different life, one I knew wasn't quite the right fit, photography was a huge part of it but wasn't all of it. From that point on I focused on making photography my life, and I have. Its had its ups and downs to be sure but I wouldn't want to change a thing.I encourage you, if things aren't quite right, to take a chance, send that email, ask for that job, go for what ever it is that you are trying to achieve. If you don't try you will never know, if you do try and they say no.. so what.. its just a no.. its just a.. “this isn't the right fit”... keep trying.. the right fit will come along. 
