the locket that began my photography journey...
As a young child, about nine or ten years old, I was digging in the dirt outside of my childhood home. It smelled of lilacs and fresh cut grass. Growing up in a rural country setting felt like paradise, not a soul for miles.
As I dug my bare hands into the dirt, I discovered something. I thought, maybe it was just a rock. I brushed off the dirt and examined this hidden treasure I had stumbled upon. It was a locket. Cracking it open, I discovered a picture in each side. The right side, a woman and the left side a young child, I assume a mother and daughter.
Painting of my childhood home by Betsy Tripp
In this moment, a spark ignited in my soul. I began pondering deeply into what lives these strangers staring back at me had lived. Who were they? What memories did they make, challenges they faced? I thought, how cool it is that this little treasure was left behind long after they were gone.
my first camera
My first camera was a film camera that my dad bought me at a yard sale. I was so excited to get film for it and start taking photos. At first, I took photos of nature and the animals we had on the property. I remember driving into town to get my first roll of film developed. I was overflowing with excitement! On the drive home, I looked through the photos I captured thinking deeply into how special it was that these moments were now frozen in time forever. These photos will survive long after I'm gone.
After upgrading to a Kodak digital camera, I started taking photos of me and my friends; along with many, many selfies. I remember the day I lost that camera. I was at School Section Lake in my home state of Michigan with some friends. I had left it on a picnic table to go swimming. When I got back to the picnic table, my camera had disappeared. At the time, I was devastated. Looking back now, all I can think is, I hope whoever discovered the camera and the photos it held sparked something inside them the way my locket had inspired me.
In 2011, my parents gifted me with my first DSLR camera for Christmas. It was a Canon T3. I couldn't wait to try it out! I began learning the ins and outs of the camera and all it's many functions. From the moment I got it, I shot in manual. I wanted to learn everything I could about it.
In 2012, my sister became a first time mom. A year later, she asked if I would take photos for her son's first birthday. I eagerly said yes of course, wanting any excuse to get behind my camera. She loved the photos I took so much that I continued to take photos of her growing family. Other family members and friends began reaching out to me to take photos for them. I finally found my niche. I still enjoyed taking photos of nature and animals, but taking photos of people was so much more fulfilling to me. Capturing emotion, frozen in time within a photograph; I knew that this was my calling. This is what I wanted to do with my life; document real and raw moments of the stories unfolding before me.
In 2015, I put together my first website with a price sheet. I charged a mere $75 for an hour session. My clientele was building quickly and my skills were growing with each session. It was time for an upgrade. I purchased a Canon 70D and 35mm lens. A few years after, another upgrade came when my Omi helped me purchase a Canon 24-70mm lens. I made it! I turned my love of photography into a career. My dad's words rang in my head, "Find something you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
From there my business grew and continues to grow as I document the real and raw stories unfolding before me. There is poetry in a photograph; to capture authentic emotion and moments, frozen in time to be seen and felt long after we are gone is something truly special. I am immensely grateful for the journey and the beautiful souls that led me to the place where I get to do what I love for a living.
"Documenting real and raw moments of the stories unfolding before me;
creating legacies held within photographs."