Life Behind the Lens

When people hear I’m a photographer, they often picture me spending my days snapping pretty pictures, editing in cozy coffee shops, and showing up at weddings or sessions with a camera in hand and instant creative magic. And while yes, there’s truth in all of that, the reality of life as a photographer is so much more layered.

Photography isn’t just my job—it’s my life. It's a way for me to capture the goodness of God in a moment. It's a way I tell a story of a meaningful season of life. My camera has been with me through different states, different seasons of life, and captured countless different people, couples, and their stories. Some mornings, I wake up excited to dive into editing with a hot cup of coffee, reliving a wedding day frame by frame. Other days, I’m lugging gear across a muddy field, chasing the light, praying the rain holds off long enough to get the shot. You can even find me barefoot in a field or crouching in the most awkward spot just to get that perfect angle.

One thing people don’t always see is the balance behind the scenes. For every hour I spend photographing, there are at least five more hours spent creating content, editing, emailing, backing up files, creating timelines, and sometimes just sitting there brainstorming how to bring a client’s vision to life. Some days feel like a dream job, and other days are pure chaos (the kind where I’m juggling memory cards, running on caffeine, and wondering if my eyeballs can survive one more editing marathon). It’s part art, part business, part hustle.

But it never stops being worth it.

I still get goosebumps when I click the shutter and know I just froze something that matters. The moment a bride’s dad sees her for the first time, a couple laughing so hard they forget the camera is there, a family in the middle of their chaotic, beautiful normal—that’s the stuff that keeps me showing up.

And in between the big jobs and polished galleries, there are the quieter moments that remind me why I started. Hiking with my camera tucked in my backpack, chasing waterfalls with my husband, photographing light slipping through trees just because it caught my eye. This is the way I see the world and every blessing from God around me.

Life as a photographer is messy and unpredictable and sometimes overwhelming. But it’s also full of connection, creativity, and the magic of turning fleeting moments into something that lasts.

At the end of the day, my job is about more than pictures. It’s about telling stories—yours, mine, and the ones that live in between.

-Meg