2016 - Now: A Retrospect.

       I have attempted to post a blog for some time now, eventually putting it off for some reason or another. Mainly i've been staring at the keys wondering what it is that I should communicate with the world. After much internal debate and overcoming of fear, I realized that the writers and artists that touch my soul and inspire me are the ones that are open, honest and themselves. So i'm going to start in the beginning of 2016, here I go...

I

 Depression: The First Part.

Euphoria Burn

Euphoria Burn

"Euphoria is a place where artists and creative people of all types can come together and experience art and music, and get to know each other through participation in a temporary autonomous community that is free from the things that define ordinary society, such as the constructs of consumerism and the expectations of ‘societal norms.’ It is a burn event, focused on art, expression, and inclusion. The environment created is centered on the expression of the participants in whatever manner they see fit, as long as they abide local, state, and federal laws." (credit)

Panther Creek Falls Trail

Panther Creek Falls
Fannin County, GA
3.5 miles to Panther Falls

       It's well into the new year and I must say this year has been a strange one so far. It seems as if everything shifted leaving things scattered, chaotic and in need of growth in order to regain balance. I know i'm not the only one thats felt this shift that happened, many around me, far and near have been experiencing it as well. This escape into the woods helped clear my head, recharge my energy and allowed me time and space to digest the everything thats been happening since the stars and planets came into such a rare alignment earlier this year.

       It had been too long since i'd laid my head down to sleep under the stars whilst listening to natures sweet lullaby. I excitedly packed my smelly backpack and joined some friends for an overnight trip to Panther Creek Falls in North Georgia. The hike in gradually declined, playing peek a boo with Panther Creek, providing a good warm up before it leveled out to a quiet and forgiving trail with a small scramble just before reaching the falls. 

The Great Smoky Mountains.

       About a month ago me and three other friends, grabbed our backpacks and drove to the Smokies for a three day, two night hiking & camping adventure. The smokey Mountains are beautiful, these photographs don't do it justice. We got to experience more fireflies then i've ever seen before. We swung from Tarzan vines, naked, screaming are heads off. We played in creeks and streams. And we had the time of our lives.

Day One
Hiking to the Jumpoff

Espana: San Sebastian & Barcelona.

   

 After a little to long of being cooped up in Arthur's flat, the second that the car was fixed, we eagerly set off for our next adventure. Arthur had heard a lot of talk about San Sebastian so we decided we would go there. The spontaneous-ness was beautiful but little did we realize what our lack of planning was getting us into.

Colomiers

Aug 10 - 15 2013 - Directly After Paris.

       Arthur has been living in Colomiers (which is a suburb of Toulouse) for the past eight months, apprenticing with a two Michelin star restaurant to pursue his dream of cooking and his love of food. We ended up staying at his flat for five days for some needed rest and due to the fact that his car battery had completely died and didn't want to be revived. During these five days we explored much of Toulouse, ate some amazing homemade sandwiches, grudgingly shared one computer, and watched to much YouTube. So basically we didn't accomplish much of anything, but we got to recharge ourselves.

Pre-France.

11 days left. 

       Eleven days until I leave the country for the first time, step onto foreign land & see my best friend who has been tucked away in the south of France apprenticing with a chef for the past eight months. Eleven days until I start living my dream.
       Anyone who has known me over the past six years has known a wide eyed, rambling girl, who will talk to anyone who will listen about her dreams of traveling the world, photographing other cultures & experiencing everything foreign lands have to offer her.
       Soon enough I will start the adventure i've been loosing sleep over ever since the tickets were finalized. In the mean time i've been doing more research than is healthy. Packing and then repacking my bags. And spending to much time indulging in my picky eating habits (because I know all my food particularities & picky-ness will not be aloud once I step off that plane) while watching every episode of 'New Girl' & 'How I Met Your Mother'.

BTS of my recent self portrait.

       It's been a long time since i've done a serious self portrait. I forgot how therapeutic it can be & I will start taking them more regularly, like I use to! Above are all of the shots I liked from the series.

Tennessee.

(May)
This road trip marks the start of my summer.
Somehow speakers, an entire drum set & guitars, plus three other passengers and myself squeezed into my mini van and trekked up to Tennessee. Our Iphones didn't have service most of the drive and we relied on a map that was based off of loose landmarks to get us to the camp sight. We drove through some of the cutest american towns i've ever seen in my entire life. Towns where there's still arrowhead ands and civil war bullets in the ground and tree trunks. (*speaking of which anyone want to do a mini road trip to take some photographs of these places?*)
We arrived at the camp grounds with enough day light to explore the grounds and meet new people. That night was fun, it consisted of human chicken fights, sparklers, live music by my friends the Blackwater Creek boys. I ended up making friends with someone who had a tent, early on in the night, and helping them set it up in exchange for me getting a sliver of it to sleep in! Which ended up being a lifesaver seeing as it apocalyptically stormed for hours and hours during the night and I was lucky enough to stay dry. All in all it was a fantastic, shower-less, coffee out of a pot over a campfire, port-a-potty type of weekend.

Here is a before & after for the photograph I released today!
Its just a simple self portrait, but I thought that it was a perfect example of the power & impact Curves in Photoshop can have on an image. I achieved this image by using Curves, Layer Masks & a small amount of Gradient Maps.
I am currently working on my own color study (because i'm a black & white fanatic). So i'm pushing myself to get out of my comfort zone color wise. So far I am extremely happy with the results!