My Niche
As a photographer, I am constantly continuing my education. One of the things that I hear all the time is that photographers should have a niche. I have to admit, in the past, the more I heard this, the more it discouraged me, because I love so many areas of photography. I love photographing the special moments in life: births, weddings, parties and even large events or celebrations. I also love portraits. Capturing a moment in time to create an heirloom for a family, a high school senior, a newborn, or even an actor, dancer, or business person needing a new head shot is thrilling to me. I even love landscape and animal photography. Traveling and getting to view and photograph God’s vast and differing works of art recharges me.
My website illustrates my love of diversity perfectly. It is filled with images from all kinds of events and moments of life, many ages and stages of people, as well as several fine art pieces and straight digital images that highlight nature. I’ve heard the advice that a website should reflect only one specialty of photography, and I see most others photographers seem to follow that. It has frustrated me though, because I can’t seem to choose what I like best. When I photograph a wedding, that is my favorite. When I photograph a birth, that is my favorite. When I do portraits, they are my favorite. Photography in general seems to be my favorite. Capturing light and color is my favorite.
Finally I realized that I do have a niche, it may be a bit broader than most industry niches, but it’s a niche just the same. I love photographing God’s creation. Whether it is people, animals, or nature, I see His beauty and His light in all of them. I love capturing who He created someone to be and watching them open up to the camera. I love capturing the essence of an unrepeatable moment and using light to create a mood that speaks more about my subject and who or what they are, or using it to create just a little bit more drama. I also love deep, rich, vibrant colors!
Whatever my subject of the day, I love my job. It’s not just a job, it’s a passion and a God given gift. I sometimes feel that I can experience life more deeply while viewing it through the lens of my camera, but maybe it was better summed up by Eric Liddel when he said that he could feel God’s pleasure when he was running. I can feel God’s pleasure when I am taking pictures, it’s one of the things that He created me to do and maybe that is why I’m unable to narrow my niche down to one part of the industry, because photography is part of who I am and I am more than just weddings, births, or family portraits, I have experienced all of those seasons in my own life and I love to be there alongside others as they experience them. I love being the person a couple leans over to and whispers, “How do we cut the cake?” I love being the one that is there to pray through a contraction with a laboring mother. I love being the one to play around with family as they realize how much they really love each other and they start to light up from within. I love all of those things, and I love to get to capture those moments in time as images that will be with their families for generations to come.
That is my niche. I’m a photographer who capture’s God’s purpose and love coming through His creation whether it’s a once in a lifetime moment or a seemingly average day that ends up marking a season of life.