Yesterday, I woke up expecting the weather to be hot and in anticipation for the photoshoot that I had lined up for later in the evening. Unexpectedly, that photo shoot turned into a plethora of valuable lessons, and tips & tricks from my friends. I met with Jasmine to do some shooting with her, and I also scheduled to meet up with Chasity, my friend/editor. Ironically, they arrived at the same time, so that worked out perfectly for me. Jasmine brought Ernestine along with her and I was thinking,

“The more, the merrier. Let’s get it.”

While shooting with Jasmine, I learned a lot more about how to operate my camera and the photography business. She doesn’t realize how much of a wake-up call that was for me. I have been scatterbrained for the past few months because I’ve been trying to figure out where I fit in, creatively. After finishing the shoot with Jasmine, I briefed with Chasity about the blog and the direction that we need to be going in for the future. It was a fulfilling conversation and we both left with the awareness that we have a lot of work to do.

After about 10 to 15 minutes of heavy deliberation on places to eat, we all agreed to go to Maxie’s Pizza and Bar, located in Charles Village. As soon as we arrived, my first order of business was to find a restroom. I had consumed an abundance of water because I felt dehydrated after eating McDonald’s the day before. You can pretty much assume what happened after I devoured the “soy burger of death.”

When I came out of the restroom, Dax was coming in. He had a skater-boy look, but for some reason, I was intrigued by his facial features. My approach to him may have been a little weird,

“Hey, I’m a photographer and you look pretty cool. Can I take a photo of you?”

I will admit that I need to work on my approach, but he was down for my shenanigans. I took a couple of photos of him and then went to join Chasity, Ernestine, and Jasmine at the bar while Dax went to the outside area. Jasmine slightly scolded me and asked why wasn’t I out there with him. Honestly, I was ready to eat. I thought that I had finally worked up an appetite, but there was potential work outside, so I joined him. I proceeded with awkwardness again, but Dax was down for the second round of shooting. Once we were done, I was approached by our waiter about possibly shooting events there in the future. Jasmine served as a blessing that whole evening. Instantly, I started editing the photos on my phone because I already felt that they would be a hit. I showed Dax a photo while I was editing and he was pleased.

While we were eating, I asked Ernestine for her keys so that I could run to the car and grab some business cards. My fingers still had fresh honey old bay sauce on it, but I didn’t care. When money calls, you better pick up!

Not only did I leave Maxies with a potential business client, but I left full of great energy from the great people that I was surrounded by.

Until next time…