If you like Pina Coladas... {Photographs from my trip down to the cape}

Earlier this month, I took a little day trip down to Chatham {Cape Cod} with a good friend of mine {shout out: Nicole Baas Photography} for a mini photo session she had planned. We made the day of it, stopping into All Points Beautiful to see Ashley Bilodeau Photography's beautiful new boutique, dining at the totally quaint and adorable Hanger B Eatery, eating salt water taffy from a little mom and pop candy shop in downtown Chatham, and, of course, taking a walk on the beach. Because my mom's favorite views are the dunes on the Cape, I shot away to capture some images to send her way. The entire time I hummed "If You Like Pina Coladas..." {aka Escape by Rupert Holmes} simply because it mentions dunes on the cape. The day reminded me of an amazing Anne Lamott quote that has surfaced all over Facebook this last week, "Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you."

While these prints will be a surprise to my mom, I thought I would share them here too, to spread a little of the peace and calm that comes from looking at these beautiful viewpoints. Enjoy!

On the importance of old friends and being fully present

Yesterday I got to spend some time with a old friend and her family. There were no cell phones, no email, no facebook distractions - just good old fashioned catch up. It was one of my favorite days.

Since yoga teacher training in 2011, I set a personal goal to be present in all that I do. Whether it's catch up times like these, time with my family, time with my clients, or time editing my work, my goal is to be there fully. Yes there are times when I'm waiting on that one phone call, and yes I do still keep my phone within reach, but overall I am there, able to prioritize who I am with and what I am doing over some future anticipation or dwelling on something that's already happened. My personal happiness has increased exponentially, my friendships are deeper and I feel like I can connect even with strangers pretty instantly by just lending a listening ear and a present mind. It's not about "unplugging". I love social media. I love my texts with friends. It's about knowing the appropriate time and not letting those things take over when you actually can be face to face. I encourage you to try fully for one day and see how it feels. You can comment below if you'd like.

And, amazingly, my dear friend is starting out on a new photography adventure herself, so of course we spent some time with our cameras, chatting about gear we love and photographing my favorite sitting room in her mother's home.

For those of you aspiring photogs out there, these were all shot with my Canon 5D Mark III and my Canon 100mm f/2.8 L and Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art lenses. If that's interesting to you, check out my What's In My Camera Bag Pinterest board.

A Reflection On The First {Full Time} Year At Tracy Rodriguez Photography

When writing any self-reflective blog post, I always debate how far back to start. Do I write about how my interest in photography began 15 years ago with a semi-functioning Minolta film camera? Do I talk about how in 2004 I attended business school and went into corporate marketing there after because it just seemed like the right thing to do? And then how attending yoga teacher training in 2011 made me question my personal decisions? {read: made me question everything.}

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Photograph by the lovely Nicole Baas Photography.

I started photographing yoga teachers and was fascinated by the incredible shapes the human body could make and even more by the passion and truth that yoga - not just the poses, but the entire practice and way of living - brought to so many of my new friends' lives. One very special yogi asked me to photograph her wedding and it opened my eyes to being a part of such an amazing time in two people's lives. ... It's such a long, interwoven and connected story that brought me here, to today.

One year ago today was my first Monday running Tracy Rodriguez Photography full time. Leaving my stable corporate job felt like such a leap of faith at the time, such a courageous and bold decision. But the truth is that the last year has felt very natural. My "work" is interwoven throughout my life so I'm not "working", I'm living. My clients are a part of my life. Many have become close friends. I practice yoga at many of the studios that I photograph and have become a part of their communities. I wrote down my core beliefs for my business last year and I realized they are actually just my beliefs for my way of living. Everything is interwoven.

And everyone has played a part. My biggest reflection over this past year is how grateful I feel. Grateful to my amazing clients - my wedding couples, my yogis and studio communities, my beautiful families - grateful to my family, my extended, to my husband, to my entire network, really. From my heart, from my soul, thank you. I could not do what I do without a huge community that believes in me doing this. I thank you for your support, encouragement and friendship. Here's to many more years!!

Exciting things are on the horizon but not quite ready to share so stay tuned here, on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram and my Instagram for yogis to be the first to find out what's coming next for Tracy Rodriguez Photography!

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Photograph by the lovely Emily Leahy

I believe…

     … in being a good person, treating people with respect, and doing the right thing above all else.

     … every person has something unique that no one else has, something incredibly special. I value that. That's what I look to photograph.

     … showing someone their amazing self can instill self-confidence. And, your self-confident self can change the world.

Shoot & Share Photography Contest Finalist!!! {And getting over your fears}

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Open email. Jaw drops. Eyes light up. Enormous smile ensues.

Contest finalist?! Top 10%?!

When I launched my first website to display my photography portfolio in 2008 I made a very conscious decision to be brave. But let it be known, I was incredibly scared to put myself out there.

I had to give myself a pep talk. I read a quote on the selfishness of never sharing your work. How in order for people to benefit from your gift to the world, you have to share it with them. So I decided right then and there to put myself out there wholeheartedly and unconditionally. I started to share my best work and my work that well, needed work. And while my inner credit, my inner perfectionist still complained to me from time to time, I used it to learn, to grow, to improve; but never to feed any fears of not being good enough.

When this contest opportunity came up from one of my favorite vendors, PASS {the one who provides your beautiful photography galleries}, I had to revisit that pep talk. Yes, eight years later I was nervous - I'll admit it. I don't feel an overarching need to be formally validated. The validation from my clients is abundant and that's my main goal 100% of the time. But there is something to industry recognition. I look at it as a little something extra. So to read this email after my initial hesitation, well that just made me smile to think ... I almost didn't enter.

I encourage you to be vulnerable. What's your contest entry? From my heart I encourage you to go for it.

The above photo in action was taken by Rachel Hunt on location with the beautiful Nina Petruzzo Yoga.