vivacious change

so, things are gonna be changing a wee bit around here. if you look at the top o' the page you'll see that they already are!

i'm taking baby steps and gigantic steps in wholeheartedly working towards my vision of making a living as a professional photographer. the last week has been a whirlwind of newsletter writing, address collecting, postcard ordering, brainstorming and mostly just giving myself pep talks about how 'i deserve to live the life i want to live' and that its time to leave my comfortable spot between failure and success where nothing much happens...and its time to see how grand life can be!

so, i'm going to let my blog come along for the ride and let my adventures in the photog business be shared here. i've been really enjoying some other photographers blogs lately and see them as mentors in where i want my business to be in a year. i thought about making a seperate blog to post client pics and business inspirations, but in reality i think its best to keep it all together. so it really just means that i'm likely to most more often (yahoo!) and share a lot more images with you. i won't stop sharing tidbits of my learnings and adventures...i just know that I'm not that good at keeping more than one blog active, so it'll have to be one big ol' happy blog of vivacious vivienne-ness.

to start of this new stage i thought i'd share some of the amazing photography resources that are out there:

~flickr. yes...i know everyone knows flickr...but do you know about the 'texture for layers' group and all the amazing textures and borders you can get there for free. its vast (so be prepared to get lost in textures for a bit)! also, a while back i started adding anyone that i felt inspired by on flickr as a contact. if you are feeling shy, i highly recommend pushing through your shyness and adding people who's work you admire! that way you get a daily dose of inspiraition when you go to your contacts page. its definitely my favourite part of the time i spend online!

~shutter sisters. again...you probably know about this one too. but if you don't, do not finish reading this post. go directly to shutter sisters and be prepared to wake up to inspiration every single day!
~pay-it-forward. i love this site so much. the online photography community is so generous!

~becker's [b] school blog and the new private school. beckers videos and posts are packed full of great business info. the new [b] school is open as of october and i'm excited to see what its all about!

~michelle black's 'the hideout'...a really fabulous forum for photographers. lots of photo challenges, interviews and opportunities to connect to and be inspired by other photographers.

~the pay-it-forward blog, full of photographer resources. there's some fab and free actions, textures, storyboards and templates. plus, its all in the spirit of giving!

~portfoliositez...the super wonderful company that i've gotten my website template through. they are incredibly helpful, totally affordable and especially by and for photographers. i have nothing but rave reviews of them!

~also, have you been to darlene's beautiful blog lately? her words and images are so stunning!

happy wednesday!

alive

Don't ask yourself what the world needs
Ask what makes you come alive
And then go do that
Because what the world needs
Is people who have come alive
-Gil Bailie

and this morning when i watched this video i cried the kind of tears that make me feel so alive.
the power that creativity has in uniting people just blows me away!

ordinary sparkling moments

during a few hours of free time in an otherwise very busy week
i knew exactly what needed to be done.

i needed to sit in the sunshine
on a pink blanket
eat gluten free banana bread
and read the gorgeous book (ordinary sparkling moments by christine mason miller) that just arrived on my doorstep.

i think i'll be ranting about the brilliance of the book for a long time.
its got so many transformative ideas whirling in my head.
pages filling up in my journal, further steps towards my creative dreams

at times i've wondered why it is that i blog and feel so drawn to this world of creative bloggers.
and lately its been so clear. these women are dreaming big and making it happen, valuing their creative endeavors, writing transformative words, challenging themselves and by living artful lives. its like checking in with mentors each day. being reminded of the authenticity i am continually walking towards.

and it makes it so much easier to believe in yourself when you witness so many women's journeys of walking strong in their own imperfect beautiful gracefulness.

giving dreams wings

i've had my website 'almost finished' for a few weeks now....holding onto it like it was a purdy feather cupped in my hand, a bit scared to give it up to the wind. but its time. since my vacay i've felt so much more trusting of my intuition, hopeful that all is happening as it should and very optimistic of change.

i've also spent the last few days reading a beautiful new book 'Taking Flight' by the lovely Kelly Rae Roberts and its given me much inspiration to let my creative dreams fly as they are meant to. her book has also brought about a 'whispering' that my creative spirit wants to paint. it wants to sing too for that matter (especially after singing with my sister in front of a campfire under the most beautiful starry sky)! photography has consumed for the last year (which i'm very thankful for) and my guitar sits lonely in the corner and my art desk is getting dusty. i don't know what weird logic made me think that i need to save all of my creative energy for one medium.

but at the same time i'm eager to move forward with photography. i'm gearing up to start advertising locally and to let add motion to this part of my life (and future). so without further ado....

welcome to:

Vivacious Photography

and do join the mailing list (in the top right corner) if you'd like to receive news in the future about my photography journey!
lots more news to come too. i'm still working on my Maternity/Newborn/Kidlet website and will have a big ol' Grand Opening when its all ready to fly!

wishing you a beautiful weekend!
heart,
v

home

home again. here in between two purring beings. total bliss.

home again. there watching the sunset with my parents, siblings and our new found folks that feel like family.

in those two weeks in the country i felt beautiful, free, at home, adventurous and surrounded by hope. i walked around the city today in flowy clothes, feeling the cottage life still strong in system.

stories to share. a very important one about healing and moving on.

but first, rest and more cat cuddles....