Reagan Family: Photography

This post is going to be a bit different. Usually they're all about my kids (because, let's face it, they are much more interesting), but today it's about me. Which is quite difficult for me. I can be shy and afraid to put myself out there, because I fear failure. Which is why a recent change in my life was such a difficult and huge decision. As soon as I picked up my first DSLR camera the year Henry was born, my photography passion developed (developed, get it? - Sorry I'll refrain from any more puns). See, I can't even get a paragraph in, before my defense mechanism kicks in and I start making jokes to lighten things up. As I progressed in my photography journey, I realized how much I loved taking pictures. Not only of my kids, but of all my friend's kids. I was never happier than when I could capture an amazing picture for another parent. And so I began thinking about what if I could become a professional photographer. I quickly shot that idea down out of fear (and thank goodness, because my photography was NOT there yet!). But I kept revisiting that idea.

Ok, now this is the hard part for me. The biggest thing holding me back from those dreams was not fear, but a knowledge that I just couldn't handle taking on anything new. After Owen was born, I really struggled. I struggled to balance things with 2 kids and a new CPA practice with Nate. There was absolutely no way I had the drive or ability to start another business. Finally, after many talks with many close friends and family, I realized I needed a little extra help. Something was just not balanced in my body in addition to the stresses of life. It was super difficult for me to ask for help because I felt I should be strong enough to handle things on my own. But after I finally gave in, I felt like a whole new person. This was about Christmas time last year. Long story short, I feel in control again and balanced. I started to realize that if I wanted to pursue photography, that was just something I was going to have to do myself. It wasn't just going to fall into my lap.

And so I started researching, and reading and studying and practicing. I completely immersed myself in everything photography. Following photography blogs, reading about other people's journey's and passions and began to dream again. I realized that a lot of the amazing well known professional photographers are just like me. They are moms. Many of them have not dreamed and worked for this their whole lives, but rather fell into photography like I did. And that was OK. And they are amazing at what they do. There was still time for me to pursue this, even if all I know is being a CPA and a mother. It's OK that I didn't go to school to study this or want this from the time I was a little girl. So I was that person growing up that cut off heads in pictures and had no idea (nor cared) how to take a picture correctly. I cared now. And the hours I logged learning how to take pictures of my own kids, the workshops I attended, the books I read, that might be enough (with lots more learning and practice, of course - there's always more to learn).

And so, in the middle of tax season (of course), I made the decision this is something I really wanted and was going for. Knowing there would be a large time commitment to get started, I waited until after April 15th to officially get started (while still reading and practicing and dreaming). And I'm glad I did, because I really didn't understand how big of a time commitment it really was! I figured, I have this blog, so how hard could it be to set up a 2nd one? Turns out it's a lot harder to set one up for a business the way I wanted, and I have learned way more about HTML coding then I ever cared to know! And being a CPA, you'd think I would understand how much time it would take to set up the entity and obtain licenses, look into insurance and all that, but again I grossly misjudged how long it would take. And so, it's taken me this long to finally get something out there. Still not exactly where I want it to be (and being the perfectionist that I am, it probably never will be!), but it's out there. I have an official website and Facebook page! Which those of you on Facebook have probably already seen.

My photography business is Heather Reagan Photography!! I'm officially licensed and everything!

My Website: http://www.heatherreaganphotography.com

My Facebook page: Heather Reagan Photography

I'm just in the beginning stages and still have so much more to learn and do (including how to balance everything), but I am so so excited about this and wanted to share the news. As you can tell, my personal blog has taken a bit of a hit, but I hope to have that a bit more caught up soon (if only there were more hours in the day!).

Until then, feel free to look at this personal post I put on the photography blog for a few pictures HERE.

For now I am taking it day to day, trying to keep adding things to my website, take a few workshops to learn more about photography and the business side of things and just keep my fingers crossed that people like what they see and want to hire me. Regardless of what happens, I am so proud of myself for putting myself out there. I am not a risk taker, and never dreamed of owning my own business (or 2!), so it was hard to follow my dreams on this. While I have had amazing support from Nate, friends and family, in the end it is MY business and up to me on the direction I want to take it. Super scary and exciting at the same time.

If you have read this far, thank you! I always anticipate writing something short and sweet and then end up writing an essay. I would love for all of you to follow me on my photography journey! If you haven't already, I would love for you to check out my website and Facebook page (if you're into that). And to be honest, a lot of my attention is there, so you might get more timely pictures/updates if you follow those pages. Not that I'm trying to pressure you or anything . . . :)

And with that, I will just share a few pictures of my boys enjoying summer until I can get to all my pictures (such as Owen's 2nd birthday, Henry & Owen's party, our trip to Idaho . . . )

Nothing says summer like watermelon!

My boys have been so patient with all the extra hours I've been logging on my computer and try to help any way possible - my little web designers. . .

OK, so they might be playing Angry Birds, but I'll pretend they're my little HTML coding experts

One of my favorite photographer resources is IHeartFaces. They recently posted this quote, which seems fitting as an end note for this post:

"You can't just sit there and wait for people to give you that golden dream. You've got to get out there and make it happen for yourself." Diana Ross

At the Hospital
I have been looking forward to meeting this little girl and planning her newborn shoot since I had the opportunity to do the Diaz family's maternity photoshoot (see post HERE). So excited, in fact, that I couldn't wait and was so thankful they were up for visitors at the hospital. I brought along my assistants Henry & Owen and enjoyed meeting sweet Madelyn. At less than 12 hours old, she was just a perfect little subject to photograph. (And not related to photography, holding her reminded me how quickly my boys are growing up - when did they get so big?!). And back to the hospital shoot . . .

Snuggles with mama

So much beautiful hair!

The Newborn Shoot
At 8 days old, Madelyn traveled over to our house for my makeshift newborn studio. I was nervous about how much posing she'd let me do, but she did better than I could have hoped! Newborn shoots are so much fun. I mean, who doesn't love snuggling babies?

Although not the clearest picture, I love this one so much because it reminds me of her big brother Benjamin.

She was super sleepy (perfect for posing, by the way), so this was about as much as I saw of her beautiful eyes

Having 2 boys, it was a fun change to be able to dress a baby up in girly bows. . .

And some sibling & family shots . . .

And this last one was not exactly composed correctly, but I love the upper righthand side of the picture. My photography assistant (Owen), came to help out. Of course helping out meant jumping on the blankets and tearing apart my studio, but we'd gotten our shots by then anyway!