And I'm nowhere near perfect yet.
Something that I have been thinking about a lot lately has been my progress and development as a photographer and artist. After originally purchasing my first DSLR in December 2006, I shot mostly bands at locals gigs, my friends or my dog. Beyond this, I then began to expand into landscapes and get a little more curious with my shots.
I featured a lot of photography throughout my final two years of visual arts at school, and was honoured to have my HSC major work (for those non-NSW peeps, that's my major project for my last year of school) displayed as a highly commended and top marked series. Following my graduation from school in 2009, I progressed onto studying a BA of Fine Arts at UNSW, only to drop out 1 month into my degree. It wasn't me, I wasn't happy with my studies, and I knew I wasn't in the right place to undertake those studies.
That's when I neglected one of my favourite pastimes. I put away the camera, and it only reared it head on occasions like birthdays and christmas. I was like anyone else who shot those "Kodak moments". I forgot who I was for a while.
In 2011, I finally decided on a new degree to study, and additionally undertook studies in a Diploma in Photography. I focussed on sunrises and landscapes. I took photos of flowers in my garden and adventures with my boyfriend. I found a love for something I had thought I since lost.
2012 marked my exploration into shooting "fashion". In the beginning, I worked with my friends, we styled the shoots ourselves and I definitely spent far too much time over-editing the images and using preset curves I downloaded online.
So below, without saying much more, I have placed a comparison from my very first "fashion" shoot, to a true test shoot, with the very same model.
The quality of my work has expanded in leaps and bounds. I've spent time shooting in studios and teaching myself photoshop. I've lost patience in my editing, and spent hours trying to learn a technique I valued. I definitely have a long way to go, but when I compare my own work from time to time, I can see the progress. At the end of the day, this is for me.
