The other day I was trying to write a new bio. Lets face it, everyone writes their own bio. I'm not fooling anyone. Mine has been the same on my website since the beginning of time. It's time for change. Clean slate.
So, good... decision made, new bio. Ok great. Now what. The cursor blinking rhythmically on the blank screen in front of me.
Who am I? Why am I Erin Wallis. What makes me, me. Oh lord, someone help me. Lets face it, writing your own bio is not fun, cool or awesome. If you love writing your bio, you are clearly crazy. Where do I start? Erin Wallis is a photographer. Erin Wallis is a new mom to a little girl, Maisie. Erin Wallis was pregnant last year, used to work on cruise ships, used to lifeguard, used to teach swimming lessons, at one point did volunteer work in South America. Does that make me Erin Wallis? Maybe what you've done can define you. The truth is, I think that where you come from helps define who you are in the present. A past can help define what you love, how you see, how wide or how small your view is. Yes, I believe that... but am I my past?
That last poor excuse for a paragraph is the reason why this process is so painful for me. I over think it. Instead of just spitting it out. What do you need to know about me? Better yet, what do you want to know about me? I have no idea. At the moment, I am sitting in my office in my beautiful studio behind my house, sun streaming in through the window. I have lulu's on, flip flops with socks (NOT joking but no one was supposed to see me and I certainly wasn't supposed to announce it to the internet), I am listening to Adele, and drinking a latte. I'm dreaming up ideas about upcoming mini sessions, a new holiday card collection, about to continue editing and tying up loose ends from my last few weddings, all while Bryce is out in the sunshine with our little girl and dog. That is me, right now. So professional.
I'm not sure what might be interesting for a bio. But I do know me. Right now. A little bit of the present, a little bit of the past wrapped up in a super quirky package. There you have it. Not that you've asked, but....
I am a firm believer that love is art, that anything is possible and that you have the ability to design and create your own life. I have a peaceful heart. I eat nectarines in the shower, oatmeal cookies in the bath, and love to walk my dog in the rain. I live in a renovated 100 year old home. I like new houses, I just don't want to live in one. I like things with stories, be it an heirloom ring passed down from generations or a special stone found on a beach in your favorite far away land. I'd rather something be "ugly" with an amazing story, than be "pretty" with no substance. I love the sea. I love to think that when I see a dragonfly float in the air around me, it is my old friend Mady paying me a little visit. As a child, my favorite toy was a wooden Buddha doll. I brushed his teeth and he was my best friend. I like beach fires, mermaids, sour candy, and veggies straight out of the garden. When I was pregnant (last year) with my little girl Maisie, I saw rainbows everywhere. Maisie is my little girl, a little peach and my kindred spirit. Maisie's daddy is my favorite man alive. I have traveled all over the world, seen the Great Pyramids of Egypt, stood inside the Sistine Chapel, ate lunch outside the Eiffel tower, wandered through Monet's garden and bought wool and wine in Chile. I've had coffee in Turkey, sat in massage chairs in Japan, and I once skipped out on visiting the Great Wall of China to buy the Soprano's box set in a crazy seedy downtown Beijing market. I like to think that the world is good, that my baby will one day sleep through the night and that my friends are also my soul mates. I like fresh air, big skies and a room with a view. I choose to see beauty everywhere.
Now, you try it! (but first, have a peek at my little peach, in a bucket)
Us. Self Timer. Coombs Market.
