Well, I did it. I have finally signed myself up for a blog to get my photos and writing out there to share with the world! At first, I was unsure what the content was going to be, but I have decided that this is going to be my outlet for anything that strikes me.
For the past month, I have been working on a portfolio for a travel writing and photography course I took here at UMass. The course traveled to Sicily for 10 days over Spring Break, and experienced the local culture, food, and sites, all while taking photos and writing down the details. It was the first time I had ever traveled without family, so I was nervous setting out, but it ended up being the best trip I have ever taken. I was able to become infinitely more outgoing, and met some amazing people that I hope to be friends with for the long haul.
Upon returning back to the U.S., we had to begin the work on the dreaded portfolios. Back before I had ever used Photoshop, I edited my photos with iPhoto. One click of the "enhance" button, and I thought the photos looked great! Apparently, there is a lot more to it. We have been working for about a month now, and I have gotten through precisely 32 photographs. 32! Is that all? Use iPhoto and I could have enhanced hundreds by now! But, there are so many factors that go into creating a beautiful image that I had never even thought about before! I now realize that I have much to learn before I can call myself "Photoshop savy". Sure, I can do the basics after creating the portfolio. I can organize the images, and tweak the color til it is perfect, and (only under the watchful eye of my professor) I can get rid of things I don't want in the photo, or straighten lines, etc., but that's my limit. Lucky for me, I have landed an internship for next year with a local photographer, which will hopefully help me learn all I need to know.
For now, I am pleased to say that my remaining photos will be printed today, and the dreaded portfolio will be finished save for the vignettes that need to be edited and added in later.
Thank you for reading my ramblings, and I encourage you to view life through a lens of your own.
