I used to take photos mostly out of passion. I really enjoyed the hidden beauty in life that you discovered when you sit down and have a conversation with another person. Those were the moments I enjoyed capturing. I wanted to tell people's story with an image. I wanted to create an image that raised questions that led to a story. Eventually I realized that I couldn't live in a 250 square ft. apartment forever. I needed to do less passion projects and more work. I've been cleaning out my old art show prints recently and I found this portrait. I decided to contact Jim (the man in the photo) and give him this print from 11 years ago. I totally forgot about how much that project meant to me and the story that the image holds. He sent me a photo of his wall with a framed photo I took from 2009. There is no better compliment than seeing your work on someone's wall. There have been a few times that I've gone to homes to photograph events and I see photos I've taken of their family/friends on the fridge. That is one of the most rewarding parts of my job. I love meeting people and will always make time for more passion projects.

Happy 4th of July! Here are some photos from the Mississippi River in beautiful Minnesota.