How’d we get here, Skeetch?

by | Jan 23, 2017

I feel like I’ve told everyone a million times how I started off in ballet at age 9. My mom knew I would be tall and wanted me to stand up straight and not embarrassed by my height, and she knew that the best way to do that was through dance.

What she didn’t know, though, is how much I would love it. And how, even once I stopped dancing, it would stay in my bloodstream.

I was probably 13 or 14, doing Swan Lake. Yes, I was a stick-bug :)

Years and years later, my daughters started ballet classes. I took pictures for my own enjoyment, and when the teachers saw my results they invited me to take pictures for the parents.

I enjoyed it immensely, but at that point I was still taking whatever pictures I could.

Seriously, could she be any cuter?

What changed was when the owner told me about an upcoming ballet/modern workshop he was running. I spent six (or was it 8?) hours taking pictures of classes, and i was enjoying myself so immensely I didn’t even realize that I’d forgotten to pack a lunch.

 I was hooked.

They let me shoot an advanced ballet class, and I loved it even more than I’d enjoyed dancing.

I still didn’t think it was anything I could do anything with, but eventually I came to embrace the idea of niching down and actually calling myself a dance photographer. I realized that as much as I enjoy taking pictures in general, dancing is where I came to life the most. It didn’t matter who was buying or even looking: it was where my heart was.

All my training gives me an advantage in shooting; I can anticipate a jump or a turn, and I know when to throw out a picture because the dancer hadn’t quite gotten their toes pointed when I got the shot, which means dancers know they can trust me to only put out the pictures that truly show their ability.

Who knows where this is going in the future…I have dreams of being a photographer for Disney, of getting pictures of professional dancers (particularly ballerinas, but I’m falling in love with dance in all forms)…it’s going to be fun to see what’s next!