Hi. My name is Brady. I have writer’s block. Truth is…..no, no I don’t. My friends always say, “how are you doing, Brady?” I say, “good”, of course. Then they say, “now be real with me.” It only takes me about 3 more stories of answers, trying to outsmart them, until I completely vomit the millions of thoughts racing around in my head. It seems I have much less to say on paper, or online for that matter, when life’s analytics are playing bumper cars in my mind. So there it is. You now know a secret about me. Generalizing here, but I’d say that there is a certain generation that “over-posts” when they are trying to process and heal from events, changes or tragedies. Well, when you don’t see any activity from me on good ol’ Insta or FB, it’s because my thoughts have just migrated north and got a little stuck in the Bermuda Triangle of my noggin.
“Just post photos Brady. Surely you have plenty of those that don’t require any sort of verbal commentary or interpretation.” True. However, I like my life’s feed to follow in the footsteps of my quest for real . One of the main reasons that I do portraiture for a living is so that I can be real with people while I trudge through the “gotta make that money, gotta pay those bills” work life, which consumes roughly 75% of our lives. I’m truly fortunate to have opportunities that open up people’s vulnerabilities and portals to their true selves. “How do you get people to let you in, Brady?” Simple. All I have to do is give them a little bit of my time and energy, and well of course, let them in to my true self. I’m finding that I gravitate towards relationships that tend to have insecurities with how much I actually share with the outside world. Yes, it’s a lot. Maybe too much. Maybe clients don’t actually want to know as much as I tell them, but if I’m true to myself, they’re going to hear it anyway.
Now we’ve run into our first problem. I spread myself very thin with the acquaintanceships, clients, friends and family relationships. So will I ever really be able to get close to anyone, or even more accurately, will anyone really be able to get close to me? Good question. I have a lot of these “good questions” for myself haha. Some of you dedicated “social media stalkers” may think that I live a pretty exciting life, based on what I portray. Well I do! If by exciting you mean, full of unpredictable changes, unforeseen challenges, heartbreak, struggle, painful prioritizations, failures, successes, and constant growing and learning, then you are right!
Let’s start with what I am thankful for this last year. I had many interesting road trips, flights upon flights, live music performances, photo shoots, and connections to new and wonderful people, that resulted in a solid portfolio to tantalize the eyes. I was able to spend time with my beautiful children, wonderful family, and amazing friends. I even managed to squeeze in some very exciting and loving relationships. I learned a hell of a lot about myself. I conquered some of my biggest fears! So I should be full, right? Right. Amidst most of the collateral beauty (watch that movie), I had magnetized some of the best positive counseling and perspective anyone could ask for. No, this perspective did not only come from my actual counselor, but through many friends, hardships and people on the “outside.”
“Now get real Brady.” The camera has afforded me one specific privilege that holds it’s head up on the pedestal. I know that people consider my “business” a legitimate “business”. However, I’ve learned to let my hair down all the way down to the soul of my artistry. Clients seem to not only expect, but actually get excited, that they get to have another “human” on the other side of that clicker. Now for the real part. I’m human. There. I said it. The anvil has been lifted from my back! Haha. From human to human, I can’t wait to meet you and become some small significant part of your life, because you always are significant to me.
I’m not here to convince you or myself of anything. I’m not even sure if this will encourage you, or just bore you to death. The title to this post is “blah blah blah” for a reason. I do want to share a little bit of my life with you though. That’s been one of my very favorite pastimes. For those of you that journeyed this far though my twisted “whatevers”, I feel you. For whatever reason, you made it this far down the page, I’ve been there. Maybe you were waiting for some great epiphany I’ve had or some solid encouragement or antidote to the poison you’re drowning in. You don’t need that. All we need is people to walk through fires together with, to empathize with, just to feel with. The only difference between some of you and I, is that I get to point and click in these moments, forever solidifying their existence and their beauty in the way I see them. So, blah, blah blah. I said it. Love you all.