I have always loved nature! One of my favorite things to do is to go outside and take a closer look at the world through my lens. I have always had an over-sized imagination. I used to spend hours writing little stories and creating fictional characters when I was a kid. I wanted to imagine what it was like to be small like insects. I used to enjoy watching “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” for that reason. I would go outside and stare at different bugs and take pictures of them, imagining that I was as small as they were and hanging out on a leaf, taking sips from a droplet of water. Seeing the world in this different way gave me a better vision for my photos and helped me grow as a photographer.
Depression creeped into my life at a young age. It took over my creativity, and I stopped going out and taking pictures as much. I stopped doing the things that I loved to do, and I stopped feeling like my creative, inspired self. I eventually got back into taking pictures again, but something had changed in my work. I stopped taking as many sunny, bright, and happy pictures, and began taking more gloomy, dark, black and white photos. I took pictures of broken glass, abandoned buildings, graveyards, and rain on a dark dreary day. I began to not only use my photography to show my bright happy side, but to show another side of me that I hid from the world for so long. By doing this, I learned to convey more emotion in my work and become a better photographer.
Besides being a freelance photographer in my spare time, I am a Broadcast & Digital Journalism student studying at Northern Vermont University – Lyndon. There are many things that interest me when it comes to what I want to do for a future career. I could see myself becoming a field producer for a news station or traveling to film documentaries. I don’t just want to be a photographer, but a storyteller using different sources of media to tell a story. I enjoy making videos and telling stories through narrative films or Public Service Announcements (PSAs). However, photography is one of my favorite hobbies and I am continuing to grow my little freelance online business. I have been trying to build a small business for three years now called Lens of the Eye Photography. For my business, I like to take senior pictures, family pictures, wedding pictures, baby pictures, and more.
Photos by Rachel Carpenter || Rachel has been taking photos for years. Here is a sample dating back to 2017, and some even before she started Lens of the Eye Photography.
When I started my business, it was more of a hobby than anything. I used to go on walks with my dog every day and just bring my camera along with me. I mostly took nature shots at the beginning, and then sell the prints. From there, I started doing some photo shoots for families that I babysat for. After taking more pictures for families, I got more experience and tried to get out of my comfort zone with photography. Nature shots were easy for me and taking photos of people was more of a challenge. I began to take more pictures for my friends and do more senior pictures for my co-workers. Taking pictures of people is becoming easier the more I do it. I decided to look online for examples of how people pose or how to line up people for a family picture. Doing this helped me direct people more and tell them where to stand to make the photo look as good as possible.
My business is still a hobby, but now I charge a fee for a photo shoot. I still have a lot to learn about photography, but I love looking back at old pictures I took to see how I have improved as a photographer over the years. Lens of the Eye Photography is starting to grow more. It’s still not where I want it to be, but I am learning more about my equipment, meeting new people, getting jobs here and there, and building my portfolio. I went from posting pictures without my name on most of them to watermarking my photos. I made my own logo in Photoshop after realizing that my work could get stolen if I don’t protect it. My logo is an eye so that hopefully when people look at it, they will remember the name of my business.
The thing that I love the most about looking through old pictures that I have taken is to see the progress that I have made, the mental struggles I have overcome, and how I see the world differently than I did when I was a kid. It’s a passion I know I will continue to have throughout my life! My hope is that people will look at my pictures, like my landscape photos, and smell fresh air, feel the breeze on their faces, feel the warmth of the sun beating down on them, hear the birds chirp in the distance, and admire the beautiful view of the mountains in front of them. If my viewers feel even a little glimpse of what I felt when I snapped the photo, then my goal has been accomplished.
Follow Rachel’s journey
- Lens of the Eye Photography website: https://lensoftheeyephotography.weebly.com/
- Lens of the Eye Photography Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lensoftheeyephotography/
Feature Photo provided by Rachel Carpenter and Lens of the Eye Photography