Introduction to your photographer

Hey friends!

This blog is an introduction for you to get to know me, your friendly photographer.

My name is Jessica. Mom of 3. I have a Golden Retriever named Curly (as in Curly from the Three Stooges) who is four and a cat named Mr. Willakers who is two.

I was born in East Boston then my family moved when I was about 6 or so. Eventually, I ended up back in East Boston, where I am now.

I currently work full time in the insurance industry. I've been in this field for over 20 years.

My photography journey started a little over four years ago. I was given a start camera for Christmas and thought I would use it for fun. I was determined to get photography down pat! I wanted to learn everything overnight!

I started off like a babe in the woods. I had no idea what I was doing. I quickly thought of a business name, which at that time was "Two Hoots Photography". I set up a domain but Two Hoots didn't feel right. It wasn't touching my heart. So after thinking and thinking, I finally thought the easiest way to pick a name is to connect with it. A name that meant something to me. So that is when I changed the name to "Blue Butterfly Photography". This comes from my love of butterflies and the color blue. Not even the fact that blue morpho butterflies are a real thing! Did you know that the Blue Morpho Butterfly is one of the largest butterfly species?! Pretty cool, right?!

After establishing my name, I researched what photography actually means. I researched different types of photography and started taking online classes. I studied and practiced taking photos of my daughter outdoors. I quickly learned the sun is your enemy! I started shooting on Automatic mode, because I didn't know any better. That changed after a few days of watching an online course. I asked friends to pose for me so I could get a feel of using my camera's Manual mode, Then I carefully contemplated the right time of day to do a photo shoot. I was doing lots of shoots and still taking courses. Shortly, after this I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Fortunately, it was caught early and I was able to go in for surgery and have the lump removed. While recovering I was still researching and taking courses. I was then able to find my style. I feel like I see a lot of photographers that like the "light & airy" style. My style from the beginning has been on the "darker side and true to color". After recovering, I invested in some new lenses, the 50mm and the 85mm 1.4 fstop. I loved the 50 mm and used it all the time until I used the 85mm 1.4 fstop. I really love how the 85mm 1.4 fstop makes the outdoor images look.

Fast forward a year and a half or so, I started charging for shoots. Not a lot, but something to make it worth the grind and to see what, if any, potential I had. Before I knew it, I was booking small weddings, events such as Quinceaneras and business parties. At that time, I still wasn't sure what kind of photographer I actually wanted to be. I accepted any shoot request I got. I learned that standing at events for five or more hours wasn't really my vibe. So I limited myself to family mini sessions. I eventually upgraded my camera and am now using a Canon EOS R6 and added a 35-70mm.

So, to date I have done Maternity, family sessions, mini sessions, weddings, milestones, Communions, Quinceaneras, business parties, dance and portraits.

Over the last year I fell in love with dance photography. I have been able to take some dance shots but would love to do more. I grew up with dance and music. I think that dance photography is what I'm supposed to be doing!!

I hope you loved my blog and thank you all for reading!

Jessica