Overcoming Theft and Setbacks in My Photography Career

The full story 😤 I had spent the last 2.5 years saving up and building my gear stack to finally be perceived as a professional. I had just done my first big job and things were finally looking up, only to have it swiped away in 2 seconds. In my mind the thieves didn’t just steal my gear. They stole my dream. And before you ask, no I didn’t have insurance at the time so that was definitely my fault. I have since learned the hard lesson haha. So there I was at a crossroads. This had been a dream of mine since I was 8 years old but now I was given every reason in the world to quit. 😭 I just lost around $10k worth of gear that I poured my heart and souls into being able to afford. 😭I couldn’t shoot projects cause I didn’t have a camera 😭And I was on the verge of being bankrupt. That’s what you call a come to Jesus moment. And that’s what I did. I prayed probably harder than I ever had in my life up to that point and He came through like always. A few weeks went by and I was able offered a multiday project, the only problem. I didn’t have any gear and it’s not like I could just borrow a friends camera for the day. So I could either turn it down or find a way to get the money to buy the gear I needed. And here’s the crazy part. The project was willing to pay almost exactly the amount I needed to cover the cost of the new gear! So I was breaking even on the job but that was my sign from God that He wasn’t done with me yet. So I put everything on a new credit card I applied for (probably wouldn’t recommend this haha) and whatever I couldn’t afford I rented. I accepted the job and the rest is history! Since then I’ve been blessed to have 3 cover photo features, as well as other full page features. I’ve worked with many of the top travel brands in the world, and even pay it forward by teaching others how to do it for themselves. But it all could have been derailed if I made one different decision. Life is about choices. Sometimes you don’t know how crucial they are till years down the road. But I know at least for me, I want to look back on my life and say I left it all on the field. Be blessed and stay stoked😎🤙