Life Events

Life Events

Traffic jam induced revelation!

adriennesip3 Comments

I've been putting off my post because I was hoping to have my brand new website up and running to WOW you all, but let's just catch up on this one thing…. I'm going to start a business!!! A photography business! I'm super excited about it and here is the story of how I finally figured out that this is what I really wanted to do.

Erica and I were stuck in a horrible traffic jam outside of Seattle a week ago and decided to make the most of our 2 hrs inching along I-5.

Erica: Since we're not going anywhere, let's figure out what you wanna do with your life- that's part of the reason you came to Portland this summer, right?

Adrienne: Absolutely. It was time to find something I felt passionately about…

E: So, have you considered going to back to school?
A: I just paid off my undergrad loans so I'll only go back to school for something I REALLY want to do and I'm not sure what that is yet…

E: OK- what ARE your passions?
A: Youth programming, travel, photography, keeping busy.

E: So- what about doing international trips with kids?

A: It seems right up my alley, but I'd love to settle in somewhere, not move around so much and have a baby.

E: What about creating something that can be your baby? Like a small business? What about photography? (Then she says some super complimentary things about my photos. Thanks E!)

A: Hmmmm… THAT seems… perfect! AHHHHH!!! THAT IS PERFECT!!!!

And then we got to list making and name choosing and pros and cons and last week I picked a name… ADRIENNE LEE PHOTOGRAPHY! Say it out loud! It's got a nice ring to it! Now, I have always loved taking pix, ever since my first camera, that had a disk of film (like a ViewMaster) but hadn't considered it as any more than a hobby. Until that traffic jam. It seems silly… but I had never given photography serious career consideration until then. The past week, I've bought a domain name, watched a whole bunch of online classes about the complexities of self-hosting a website and ordered a tripod. I'm scouting locations to shoot my Portland friends, sorting through insane amounts of photos and nannying 2 little kids. Here they are…

These are from my fancy camera, but quickly edited on my ipad… Getting LightRoom is on my to-do list!

Thanks so much for reading this and for thinking happy thoughts of this new venture. I've got so much to do… I'll be sending out electronic releases so I can use photos I've taken of you or your gorgeous kid or handsome puppy on my new website. I'm working on becoming a professional! 🙂 Thanks to ERICA for the encouragement + the cottage, DAD for the cameras + inspiration, thanks to anyone who ever told me that they appreciate having photos I've taken. And an extra shout-out goes to the Trentacostas who insisted on treating me like a professional when I snapped some photos of them for their Christmas card last year. Life is good!

 

Who’s YUR Daddy?

adriennesipLeave a comment
I'm so lucky that this guy is MY Dad!

Dad and I had such a fun road trip that I didn't want him to leave! Besides all the sightseeing (& eating) that I've already blogged about, Dad bought me groceries, put up shelves and helped me get my bearings in a new city.

Erica had left us the ubiquitous BIKE PORTLAND map and Dad used it to find our way through the neighborhoods that make up PDX. Part of what makes Portland such a progressive biking city is that they have designated bike boulevards- the speed limit is 20 mph and there are speed bumps every block. The result is that, considering traffic, many people can get to work faster on bike than by car! The bike map marks these boulevards in bold, bright colors to make it easy to find your route. But things get dicy when you get driving directions from a bike map.

Our last morning we finally made it to 1 of the 9 breakfast places that Erica recommended, Broders. It is a popular (& tiny) Swedish brunch place & we figured we'd have the place to ourselves on a Monday @ 9:30am. Nope! Luckily, we were meeting Matt there and he snagged the last table while we were figuring out how to navigate around a 'bike only' street. It was worth it!

Obviously, the final stop on the way to the train station was Powell's bookstore to get me not 1, but 2 Portland maps. Dad was taking good care of me! And I needed it!