Don't wait to be photographed.

Hello, friends! It's been a minute.

Life has shifted a bit, and I've intentionally returned my focus to what I love most about FlyHippie.

Lately I've been asking myself a simple question:

Why do I photograph people?

For years I've talked about the importance of printed photographs. I believe our memories deserve more than a hard drive or a social media feed. You know this. I also believe in existing in photographs—not waiting until we lose twenty pounds, get a new haircut, or finally feel "ready."

But I kept thinking on it and digging deeper.

People ask me all the time what my favorite thing is to photograph. My husband laughs because my answer is always whatever I photographed last.

A two-year-old? My favorite. A musician? My favorite. An athlete covered in dirt? My favorite. A pregnant mom? My favorite. You get the idea.

And the funny thing is... I'm not joking.

Because it isn't really about what I'm photographing. It's about who.

The truth is, I just love people.

I love hearing your stories. I love seeing your personalities come out when you stop trying to pose. I love witnessing the tiny things that make you unmistakably you—the missing tooth, the laugh lines, the grass stains after soccer practice, the gray hair you earned, the confidence after a promotion, the uncertainty of starting over, the excitement of turning one, and the quiet strength of turning sixty-three.

Every photograph marks a moment that will never exist again.

That's why I believe so deeply in printing them. Not because prints are pretty (although they are), but because every time you walk past one hanging on your wall, you're reminded of a version of yourself that mattered.

You mattered with the missing tooth.

You mattered before the promotion.

You mattered after the divorce.

You mattered while raising babies.

You matter today.

Time has a sneaky way of convincing us we'll get around to celebrating ourselves later. Later, when we've lost the weight. Later, when life slows down. Later, when everything feels perfect.

But later has a habit of becoming years.

It honestly surprises me when someone tells me they haven't had a portrait made in ten years. Why? Because you are living your life right now. You'll never get these years back.

This chapter deserves to be remembered just as much as every chapter that comes after it.

That's why I'm so passionate about my As Is Portraits. Not because they're about taking a picture. Because they're about honoring exactly who you are today.

Six months from now you'll be different. A year from now you'll be different. That's the beautiful part.

Celebrate this version of yourself. Then celebrate the next one. And the next one after that.

Your life isn't waiting to begin. It's already worth remembering.

Life doesn't wait until you're perfectly styled. It doesn't wait until you lose the weight. It doesn't wait until everything feels "finished."

Celebrate yourself. Today. As is.

Learn more about the AS IS Portraits here

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Don't wait to be photographed.

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