11/10/2020
LONG POST ALERT! I have been writing this in my head for over a year and I have to get it off my chest. But as anyone in my inner circle knows, I donât make decisions quickly or take things lightly. I am cautious and I overthink, that is something that is likely not going to change but this post is all about how things have changed. Sometimes I have thought that I donât need to say anything at all, and then other times I want to write every single thing that comes to mind. This is probably somewhere in between the two:
On April 25, 2009, I took my first official newborn photos of a friendâs sisterâs baby. I had already been taking photos for a while but was primarily focused on weddings and events at that time. Even though it was a challenge (aka I had no idea what I was doing) the rest was history - I dove into a world that was very different than any other type of photography I had done up until that point. From there began over eleven years of photographing newborns - hundreds of them. Many of those newborns grew up in front of my camera, with Babyâs First Year plans and then family photos. Some of those same little babies I continue to photograph to this day and I consider all of them friends, even though my joke is that they have to pay to see me! I am forever grateful for those newborns that turned into kids, and the families Iâve gotten to know because of them. But as time has gone on, I have changed and what I want to photograph has changed.
When I finally moved my stuff out of our shared portrait studio during the summer of 2019, I knew that I was nearing the end with these tiny subjects, as bad as that made me feel I knew it was time. I googled things like âwhen to know itâs time to leave a jobâ and read and analyzed everything I was feeling. But everything kept coming back to the same thoughts. The best example I saw from a famous tennis player. When asked why he wanted to quit, he simply said âI just didnât want to do it anymoreâ. I feel like thatâs a pretty blunt explanation but I genuinely understand.
In a creative job, you need to have a certain feeling inside you - an energy and passion. When that fades, your work isnât true to you anymore. I know that for many years I did a good job but at some point, I wasnât growing and advancing, I felt stagnant and stale. And I could see it in my work, the rise and fall of sorts and it was defeating. I could always get enough excitement and energy from my shoots to keep going and keep doing a good job but at some point, I realized that it was not fair to me or my newborn clients to not give 110%. They deserve the best experience possible and I was unable to give it my all. So I stopped. I have turned away newborn clients and referred them to other talented photographers, for well over a year. The ones that I took towards âthe endâ were all really great and I was, even then, torn at the decision that I knew was coming. âWell, those were really good⊠maybe I shouldnât quitâ so I sat with that for a while but then thought about how great it would feel to have ended with three really beautiful sessions back-to-back.
So, the decision was made then and it has been made for quite some time, I just was cautious about sharing it. This has nothing to do with the pandemic, and I donât hate babies⊠haha. And I would like to be clear that it definitely does not mean there is any end to Dunks Photo. DUNKS PHOTO IS NOT GOING ANYWHERE. Despite 2020 being the weirdest year ever, I am doing just fine and I have full plans to continue with business as usual with the other subjects I shoot - weddings, events, seniors, families and barns. đ I do realize that lack of new newborns will lead to less kid and family sessions and while that makes me sad, I know that itâs the right decision. I will still be sharing the awesome family sessions I do shoot on what was my little dunks photo page, which is now being called Dunks Photo - Family.
If your newborn was ever in front of my camera over the past almost twelve years, please know that I value and cherish every single one of the shoots we had. Your babies and families will be a part of me forever and they were a huge reason I have been able to live my dream for so long. Seeing photos of those tiny faces will always bring a smile to my own and sometimes a few happy tears, as well. love, Dunks
