Hi, I'm Leslie

Growing up, having our pictures made was an event.

My mom valued photography even when there wasn't extra money to spend on it. She hired professional photographers, and photo shoots were something I looked forward to.

I loved all of it. The clothes, going to the photographer, the backdrops, the whole experience.

I didn't understand then what those photographs would eventually mean to me. Now they take me right back to people, places and ordinary parts of my life I didn't know I would miss someday.

I just never thought I could be the photographer. 

It seemed so unattainable that I don't remember ever saying out loud that it was something I wanted to do.

Then, while living in Lebanon, Kentucky, I took a photography class. My Aunt Sherry bought me my first “big girl” camera, and somewhere between that class and working third shift at a factory, photography stopped feeling quite so impossible.

In 2006, I packed up and moved to the Nashville area to go to photography school.

When I look back at all of it now, I see God's fingerprints everywhere. In people like my mom and Aunt Sherry. In opportunities I could never have dreamed of. Even in choices I made on my own, without stopping to ask God where He wanted me.

I wasn't always seeking Him first. He was still faithful.

God still showed up. He still used it.

And that still blows me away.

After nearly twenty years as a photographer, I still get nervous before photo sessions. But once we start taking pictures, the nerves disappear.

I get to watch everything we've talked about for weeks, and you've been dreaming about for months, finally come together.

 And somewhere in those couple of hours, I get to know people. I find out what they love, where they're going and what comes next. Long after I've delivered their photographs, I still find myself wondering how they are doing. 

When I'm not taking pictures, I'm probably at home.

My introverted self is happiest at home with Josh and my family.

Josh and I live on a beef farm outside Glasgow, Kentucky. The cows are his herd. I'm mostly just an extra farmhand when he and my dad are desperate for one.

Speaking of herds, I have one of my own.

We have six cats. Six perfect baby kitties.

 I want to go squeeze them just thinking about them. 

Please do not tempt me with another one.

I overthink things. Josh regularly reminds me that not every thought I have needs to be said out loud.

And yes, I have absolutely avoided a restaurant because I knew I'd have to talk to people before I could get to the chips and salsa.

Somehow, I chose a career that lets me spend my days getting to know people. And I wouldn't change that.

 My faith is part of who I am, not just part of the story of how I became a photographer. I love Jesus, and the older I get, the more I want to seek Him first, every day, in every part of my life. 

Well, enough about me. Your turn.

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