As I readied to leave the homes of my siblings, Cori and I agreed to try for the "365 Days of Art" thing again. In 2020, I had only managed to post 165 images to our shared album. But the Pandemic, right? Surely 2021 would be easier. How could it not be; I bought my sister's car. This was going to be great year. 365 images or bust.
It would bust. And also change my life.
Dad and I drove the 22 hours from Portland down to Denver, staying overnight in Salt Lake City. I woke up before dawn, hoping to grab some night photography.
I walked around the abandoned streets at four in the morning and managed to only get a bad take of the temple.
Turns out, the best shot of the morning was out the window of our hotel room.
Thankfully, there were still street shots to be had at breakfast.
You'd think I wouldn't have to learn the same lesson twice, but here I was again, learning how much work this "365 Days of Art" project would actually be.
The first six months of 2021 were insane. I had several music gigs, three of my siblings brought their families to Denver for visits, I caught a light case of COVID, and my parents moved out of our childhood home.
Somehow, amidst all of that, I managed to take a swing at some wildlife photography.
Like some hilarious prairie dogs
An uncomfortably extroverted squirrel.
An upside-down niece.
I was taking lots of pictures, but nothing really clicked. After spending a year taking still life photos, those weren't inspiring anymore. I guess self-consciousness and introversion were keeping me from pressing my lens into the newly re-populating world.
All of that would change in July.