#storyofbeing

[kellysauer]

so i’m not sure what comes next this week after spending a lot of it delivering a super beautiful new shoot, but let’s try this favorite image, shot with my friend @lacygeary in charleston. i am so deeply grateful for the few real friendships i have found within the wedding industry over these last few years. it makes shots like these so much more beautiful to me. even if i’m not doing or achieving everything i think i want to be, moments like this remind me that i am truly very rich, sharing this beauty with others who feel it too. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #portrait #friendship #fineartportraiture #charlestonportrait (at Charleston, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/B7bAoDNDA0A/?igshid=1l4ufvwibgx6m

[sacredworld-blog]

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A post shared by Richard Mauro Ricchiuti (@zebrajellyfishphotography)

CEO Tom Clark of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation recording his presentation/story on the development of the Anheuser Busch Brewery in Fort Collins back in 1982! #anheuserrbusch #metrodenvereconomicdevelopmentcorporation #zebrajellyfishphotography #fortcollins #fortcollinshistory #beer #storyofbeer #northerncolorado #fortcollinschamberofcommerce (at Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation)

[kellysauer]

In Our Woods, Sometimes a Rare Music⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ Every spring⁣ I hear the thrush singing⁣ in the glowing woods⁣ he is only passing through.⁣ His voice is deep,⁣ then he lifts it until it seems⁣ to fall from the sky.⁣ I am thrilled.⁣ I am grateful.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ Then, by the end of morning,⁣ he's gone, nothing but silence⁣ out of the tree⁣ where he rested for a night.⁣ And this I find acceptable.⁣ Not enough is a poor life.⁣ But too much is, well, too much.⁣ Imagine Verdi or Mahler⁣ every day, all day.⁣ It would exhaust anyone.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ [ Mary Oliver, A Thousand Mornings ]⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #spring #poetry (at Fresno, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvgzl7wjpJj/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1qjmo6d5q7pj2

[kellysauer]

i don’t want to say goodbye 😭⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ but i do have things to do at home. some gardening (i will have to sort keeping new plants alive as we go into summer), setting up some studio spaces in my charleston house (it’s time to figure out the “european” look in my carriage house), sorting a summer kitchen (so we can at least cook outside when the heat it too much), and working on creating a third bathroom so i can set up our B&B section of the house. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ and then there are the personal things i have to figure out, finding some outdoor space for me to claim in my own backyard so i don’t have to feel trapped in our city (i am thinking i may need to take the dogs out somewhere to run - did you know we got dogs?), learning how to show my kids that they need personal space to be okay (who teaches kids these things these days?), and simply finding my way forward to begin shooting again (i am thinking of sorting @exquisitrie now, and actually blogging the last couple of things i have shot, and i had the loveliest @peterandpiper.co session yesterday with @bridie_coombes and her people...).⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ i can’t stay outside of time forever, and i am ready for home, for a good book or two to read while i fly, a good cuddle with my littlest one (who has lost her words to describe how she misses me), and a good long sleep in my own bed. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ as much as i needed to run away, i also have reasons to return. and having a place in the world to be is a valuable thing - no matter how hard it may be to be in that place sometimes.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ pray me a soft landing tonight? it’s a school day tomorrow.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ #bykellēsauer #kellēsauergoes #storyofbeing #theartofslowliving #wiltshire #england #travel (at England) https://www.instagram.com/p/BxrAjzvj5OL/?igshid=lbmiseva9lhv

[kellysauer]

to live in this world⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ you must be able⁣ to do three things⁣ to love what is mortal;⁣ to hold it⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ against your bones knowing⁣ your own life depends on it;⁣ and, when the time comes to let it go,⁣ to let it go⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ [ Mary Oliver ]⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ #quotes #poetry #bykellēsauer #theartofslowliving #livethelittlethings #storyofbeing #spring #blossoms #maryoliver (at Fresno, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BwWtBq9DCBM/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=10rtfwq65wdwi

[kellysauer]

i’ve been playing around with some blur lately - even when i’m shooting for brands. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ in this particular image, i wanted to tell a story about my friend @carriemoe, founder and ceo of @type_a_society, about how she is never still, but filled with so much fun and passion and, well, *movement* in every step of her process. she’s one of the most amazing people i know, and while this image might not peek into her fresh brand launch (coming soon!), i just can’t resist sharing it here as part of my own inspiration this spring. isn’t she beautiful?⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ the thing i love about my friend carrie is that she’s pushing hard through disappointment to find her fire renewed as she moves into this new phase of her work. i relate so hard to her resilience and her choice to push back again and again to make her splash in the wedding and branding world. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ does anyone else have times where you are kind of waiting for life to come back after a huge disappointment? for myself, i’m never quite sure whether to manage it or simply be quiet while it passes. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ i came back from italy with so much fire; i’m not sure where it went. i think i’m feeling torn between my real life and my business, whether i should keep trying to shoot for clients or just give it up for the lack. i’m not exactly great at creating my own market locally, and i’m not big enough for people to want to pay my travel. for now, i’m taking a very big personal step (i’ll tell tomorrow!), and i’m beginning to feel a bit more alive that way.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ it’s people like my friend here who push me forward anyway, who remind me that there’s still beauty to be sought and fire to be had, and don’t give up, because you’re bigger than your disappointments. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ i mean, her smile. she’s so beautiful, isn’t she? i’m so grateful for her. ♡ ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ have you done anything to renew your own fire? what was/is it? i would really be interested to hear!⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #branding #portrait #inspiration #theartofslowliving https://www.instagram.com/p/BwRtWtMDoQL/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=ebiqmgpo99ha

[kellysauer]

when you’re young and your world ends for the first time, you grieve hard for your happy ending. when you are older and it has ended a thousand times, you begin to suspect that this time wasn’t the end either, so you don’t need to grieve just now; there’s another world awaking. . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #morningslikethese #theartofslowliving https://www.instagram.com/p/BuJhyksDjf4/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=yvzctr19z8v0

[kellysauer]

feeling a little blurry today - i guess mondays can cause that. but you guys. i have this amazing gift of a call to look forward to with @carlianna today, AND we’re getting solar power installed on our new house, AND my new office is an amazing place to land now (we got this wonderful chair yesterday 😍...) so if i overslept my alarm, it’s not because i’m not looking forward to my day. ahem. i hope your monday has some highs in it. happy day, right? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing . #editorial #magazine #vogue #fashioneditorial #fashionphotography #voguemagazine #bridal #weddingdress #fashionmagazine #bridalstyle #blur #bridalfashion #monday #bride #nocrop #inshot #weddingfashion #mondaymotivation #highfashion #bridetobe #nyfw #bridalgown #fashionphotographer #weddinggown #elle #weddinginspiration #bridaldress #weddingday (at Charleston, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/BorESIVnXcm/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=443eoqvswjn5

[kellysauer]

forgot how much i [don’t] love working on my own websites and branding. it always seems so possible when i begin, and then i start questioning everything. and i do mean everything. and then it’s all “hello, identity crisis!” if i had money to throw at things, i would pay somebody else to tell me who i am and what i should be. but i don’t, so here i go again on what i know, wishing i could outsource, thinking seriously about quitting my photography business and only being a homemaker/blogger, and - OH WAIT, fixing my website that already exists so you can get to it again... . . i am having a very strange week. and i’m feeling stubborn. i really don’t want to take the world by storm - i just want to be more accessible to people who might like to work with me! . . so, today i am giving you - and mostly me - some flowers. because they know who they are, and it isn’t more complicated than simply appreciating them, and that’s nice and simple for a morning to-do list. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #branding . #florals #marketing #website #theartofslowliving #instablooms #webdesign #seekthesimplicity #socialmedia #verilymoment #business #digitalmarketing #petals #fromhere #sopretty #bloom #blooms #aquietstyle #thatauthenticfeeling #feelfreefeed #momentsofmine #marketingdigital #morningslikethese #flowersofinstagram #livemoremagic #entrepreneur #seo #botanical (at Fresno, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/BnWDPW-nGnV/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1wz1a35im5x9p

[kellysauer]

i knew a dreamer once, a visionary who saw the world as it could be, and who had the support of others to bring his dream into reality. as the years passed and he lived his dream, he himself passed from visionary to figurehead and finally he was set aside by those who had helped him build his dream as the dream he dreamed became bigger and more important than he was. . . over the last year or so, my own dream became bigger than i am. somehow my heart has become less important than my work product; somehow i am now required to set my heart aside in order to shoot the things i want to shoot for people who want a certain outcome. . . like this other dreamer i knew, i feel i am being forced to move on to another dream now, leave this industry that seemed to support me but will not let me break the rules. i am living in a thin place, making art from a broken heart, daring quietly to keep a place for me so i can make a place for others who need to be this real. . . i know that i may not ever be a six-figure success story. but i may get to be a good friend to real people who don’t just want a product from a hired camera. i may get to give my heart to others’ dreams and give courage to those who will be far more successful than i. and along the way, i may get to make art that *i* need; i may get to say what i need to say about being a person in the world. this is my dream, and i may not know how to make it pay, but i do know that i can’t take my heart out of it in order to bring it to life. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #dream . #business #branding #theartofslowliving #marketing #success #seekthesimplicity #entrepreneur #verilymoment #dreams #dreambig #aquietstyle #thatauthenticfeeling #ambition #believe #feelfreefeed #momentsofmine #socialmedia #instaart #graphicdesign #brandidentity #littlestoriesofmylife #brand #inspiremyinstagram #lifeandthyme #bridal #gown #movement (at Wavering Place Plantation)

[kellysauer]

sometimes you just chase the light and forget about the rest of it . . 📷 w/ @clairepettibone and @jordismylie . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #bridalfashion . #fashionphotography #editorial #fashioneditorial #monday #fashionphotographer #vogue #bridal #mondaymotivation #voguemagazine #bride #fashionmagazine #weddingdress #elle #fashionshoot #bridetobe #weddingday #nyfw #weddinginspiration #weddings #magazine #bridalmakeup #highfashion #hautecouture #fashionweek #vogueitalia #brides #weddingphotography (at Hollywood)

[kellysauer]

i have been experimenting with a rather unofficial break on social media over the last few weeks, partially because all my creativity has been going into our move, and partially because i want to recognize myself again here. it’s a quirk of my personality to disappear sometimes when I am grieving and need to reset my internal world and then to suddenly reinhabit my own skin and know who I am and what I am about again. . . this move has effected just such a reset, and i want to say the real things and share the tangible and not be up in my imagination all the time. . . i’ve been moving away from commercialization of my art and my real life; i want to be more than a brand. my “why” starts at making a place for me to be in the world, and ends with making a place for others to be in the world, and that’s not really about monetization or marketing. i can’t believe how much freedom i am finding to think differently right now - to let my work be my reward for now and do what i love if i can do it. . . My coming trip to charleston is almost completely personal, a chance for me to photograph some couples for my wedding portfolio and to capture images of some dear friends in new places in their lives. . . it’s probably not a great business model to shoot so much personal work, but i’m excited about what the coming months may bring. i feel like i have just become real again, as if i have been a mere sketch and someone added color. i’m grateful to feel a little free to be a human again. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing . #editorial #bridal #theartofslowliving #fashioneditorial #bride #seekthesimplicity #fashionphotography #weddingdress #verilymoment #fashionphotographer #aquietstyle #thatauthenticfeeling #feelfreefeed #momentsofmine #weddingday #weddinginspiration #weddings #fashionshoot #bridalmakeup #littlestoriesofmylife #inspiremyinstagram #lifeandthyme #fashionmagazine #livethelittlethings #thehappynow #highfashion #postitfortheaesthetic #brides (at Charleston, South Carolina)

[kellysauer]

so recently, i fell in love with my own work. for years, “it wasn’t this” and “it wasn’t that,” and “they did it better or different,” or “i meant it to be this, not that...” but it seems i have finally grown beyond my comparisons into an understanding of what i do and how i do it, and i find myself in a place where i can hold myself accountable for my work because i know when and why it has fallen short of my *own* vision. . . somehow as my confidence has grown, my work has become a point of connection with others who love what i love. it’s crazy and real now for me to have conversations with people who love my work and be as giddy about it as they are: “what, you love it too? let’s be best friends!” something has shifted and i am finding the work is enough, whether i receive the attention and accolades (i mean instagram likes 😂) i thought i needed to love (okay, sell 😳) my work. i’m not asking for approval anymore; i am just being me, in the world, this way. . . i get to love what i do now purely because i get to do it. 2018 is forcing me to step back and create for myself instead of my client types, but when i create, it is more fulfilling than it has ever been. . . if you’re living with discouragement because of comparison, look just at *your* work for a while. remember how you felt when you took that picture. why did you notice it, click the shutter, to choose those colors, that light? what do you love about others’ work? how does that help you say what *you* want to say? surround yourself with inspiration instead of competition, and be honest about what you really want - even if it’s not what you thought you wanted all along. there’s life in this. i’m starting to find it. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing . #fineart #inspire #theartofslowliving #contemporaryart #seekthesimplicity #verilymoment #aquietstyle #thatauthenticfeeling #feelfreefeed #momentsofmine #artgallery #modernart #littlestoriesofmylife #inspiremyinstagram #lifeandthyme #painting #inspiration #fineartphotography #livethelittlethings #thehappynow #postitfortheaesthetic #photos #pursuepretty #slowliving #abstractart #photograph #success #morningslikethese (at Charleston, South Carolina)

[kellysauer]

you’d do anything to bring them life - that’s how you know you’re a mother. these ones are mine, three little people who keep me alive while i’m keeping them alive, who teach me how to be brave, how to let go, how to hold on, how to be loved. getting to know them, helping them become the people they are meant to be - i know this is one of the most amazing things i will ever do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing #peterandpiperco @pipandsqiggyandflip . #childhoodunplugged #letthembelittle #motherhood #candidchildhood #momlife #uniteinmotherhood #momswithcameras #theartofslowliving #mothersday #seekthesimplicity #portraitphotography #motherday #mothersdaygift #mothersday2018 #momtogs #littleandbrave #motherhoodthroughinstagram #clickinmoms #motherhoodrising #motherdaughterlove #verilymoment #portraits #mommylove #lovemom #letthekids #motherlove #portraiture (at Clovis, California)

[kellysauer]

today i need to write a paragraph about my brand. this paragraph may take me all day. a whole day for one hundred words that will make me face myself and bare my soul to try to communicate my intense desire to take pictures and to be paid for it - and to love what i do while i am doing it. it needs to include this and it really should say that, and i need to say these five words and make this appeal so that someone will think i am worth paying... . . UGH. someone please tell me that i don’t have to try to manipulate people with my words anymore? i want my approach to the world and to my clients to be characterized by simplicity, sincerity, and kindness; i am having a hard time finding a good way to say that i am just me and i want to make a place for you to be you and i just want to take your picture while you’re living your real life, if you’re willing to share that with me. . . let’s just sit in the sun for a while, chat about things that matter, forget about time a little bit and enjoy each other’s company. let’s travel together, tell a love story, drink tea and taste wines and say real things and look into the light and wonder. let’s make a place for us here that we can love and that you will love to remember. maybe let’s just try it and see what happens... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing . #branding #marketing #socialmedia #brand #business #theartofslowliving #writing #seekthesimplicity #portraitphotography #bride #writer #entrepreneur #writersofinstagram #poetry #verilymoment #portraits #poem #success #poetsofinstagram #portraiture #poetrycommunity #aquietstyle #thatauthenticfeeling #portraitpage #portraitmood #poet #write #writers

[kellysauer]

this week saw a hard goodbye to some dreams that had been holding me back from doing what is really in my heart to do. it wasn’t a pretty parting. it came with a side of inadequacy and some very real defeat. . . i am one of those people who learn by doing, and i sometimes get really hurt by my failures and the rejection of others, because - for better or for worse - i already have so much skin in the game. i have to be honest - it’s humiliating to keep putting myself out there to learn as i offer my strength and my growth to others who will never feel it the way i do when they’re just trying to get what they want from me. . . i guess that’s probably a bit real for this space where everyone seems to be selling something and trying to keep a good face on it, but i figure somebody has to start making room for growth and for pain that deepens life and beauty to something indefinably exquisite. . . i don’t have a six-figure income success story or a workshop to show you how to get there, or a perfect portfolio or even a strong body. i have a willing heart, some serious talent that i want to develop, and a stubborn, stubborn “go” that just keeps coming in spite of failure, disappointment, invisibility, and rejection. . . i don’t know my place in the world, but i know that somehow this raw, spilled-out life i am choosing is more real and more full and more wonderful than any perfect setup and success story i can imagine because *i* get to be in it, without trying to be someone else. i think i am brave. i think i am a bit foolish. but i also know i am strong and i know that i am not suppressing my strength to try and live someone else’s story. i’m going to be okay with the mess. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . #bykellēsauer #storyofbeing . #seekthesimplicity #thatauthenticfeeling #shadow #theartofslowliving #stillife #shadows #portraitphotography #stilllifephotography #stillography #whimsy #light #retrolux #verilymoment #portraits #livethelittlethings #makeportraits #portraiture #thehappynow #stilllifephotos #aquietstyle #portraitpage #portraitmood #pursuepretty #feelfreefeed #lifeandthyme #momentsofmine #littlebitsof_life #makeitblissful ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀