My First Blog
Welcome to the very first blog post of Elizabeth Reagan Photography! I’m so glad you’re here.
I’m going to keep this first one very simple with just an introduction. That may be the wrong way to do a blog? I hope this isn’t like the time I did the Valedictorian speech at middle school graduation and it came off like an Oscar acceptance speech. ::nervous laugh:: Some of you may already know me because we are friends, or because I have photographed you, or both. And if we have not met yet, I hope we will soon!
One of my favorite things about being human on this planet is getting to know other people. Photography gives me a small but meaningful glimpse into someone’s life, and I never take that lightly. Most of my blog posts will feature sessions I love, outfit ideas for photos, favorite locations, wall art inspiration, and helpful tips to make your experience easy and enjoyable.
But for this first post, I want to share how I became a photographer.
Growing up, I was always all over the place with my passions and interests (still am). Although, I always spent lots of time with a camera and in the dark room with my dad. Let’s see, I wanted to be a ballerina (of course), a chemist (short-lived), a lawyer (this would have been a good one for me), an architect (my models in 9th grade architecture were sloppy at best), a stand up comedienne (listen, I’m still not ruling this out), and by the time I applied for college, I had settled on being a documentary film maker.
A semester or two in, I fell in love with photography after working with color in the darkroom and learning about some of the greats (Henri Cartier-Bresson, Alfred Stieglitz, Sally Mann, Cindy Sherman – just a few of my favorites). I loved the simplicity and quiet nature of it as opposed to film and the intersection of technology and art. It was much more compatible with my introverted ways. (I know, I said above that I love to get to know people! Listen, I’m allowed to contain multitudes).
After college, life happened and I pursued other paths for a while. I found my way back to photography when my children were young. Friends began asking me to photograph their families after seeing images of my own little muses, and from there, my business slowly grew. Over the years, it expanded into different types of sessions and more wonderful clients than I ever expected.
And here I am now, a family and portrait photographer in Fairfax County, Virginia (<–that’s for the SEO). When I’m not working, you can usually find me outside with my two kids, camera nearby, feeling grateful for all the winding paths that led me here.
