...My Vision
"Life for me ain't been no crystal stair"
- Langston Hughes
Would you believe me if I told you that a year ago I had no interest in photography, blogging or YouTube? I spent five years at an HBCU in Atlanta, GA majoring in Biology. The work came somewhat easy to me and I enjoyed the science, but something else was missing. I did not know what it was, but it was starting to affect me. I stopped going to class, but if I did make it, my mind would wander throughout the lecture. I failed physics solely because I did not study any information. Even though I knew I could do the work, I started to feel uncomfortable in class. During the spring semester, I had my girlfriend who lived in Detroit move in with me. Weeks later my apartment was broken into on April 1st(April fools Day). What a joke, right? One of the main things stolen was my money order for rent. Things became rocky between me and my girlfriend. I struggled balancing making her happy and getting my life in order. School was really the last thing on my mind. Just as things start to look promising, I lose one of my jobs due to a work related injury. I was fired on the spot and didn't receive any worker's comp. My boss screwed me over. I was eventually was evicted, lost my girlfriend, and didn't complete my last semester of school. I felt like my life was collapsing.
Being evicted, failing classes, losing my girlfriend, and not having any money forced me to move back to Nashville, where I could get back on my feet. Fast forward a few months, I started dating a new girl who is now my girlfriend. She is a lifestyle and fashion blogger. I had known her about six years prior to us dating and was always curious about her blogging career. What is it? How does it work? How can you make money from it? Many of the questions I had were answered, and I immediately became interested. One thing both of us have in common is that we love to travel and explore different environments. Put two and two together and you get a travel blogger. All I needed to know was that I could make money doing something I love forever. Photography started to catch my eye when my girlfriend started having me take her shots for her blog and the 'gram. Once I started that it was hard to stop. At the time, I was shooting with an iPhone6 wondering why my shots were not looking like the professionals. I did not know a lot about cameras, lenses, or editing software, but I knew how I wanted my shots to look and committed myself to finding out how to get there.
I am proud of where I am. I spend hours everyday trying to create new ideas on how I can elevate my brand to the next level. My favorite vloggers have inspired me so much that I can't wait to quit my job and travel the world full time. As I showcase my travel experiences through blogs, vlogs, and photos I hope to encourage more African Americans to do the same. One thing I notice on YouTube as I watch vlogs is that I don't see too many African Americans traveling and vlogging to the extent of some top YouTubers.
I hate to see people unhappy but when I do, I try to help get them in a better mood. Life shouldn't be sad. It should be full of blissful and happy experiences. It CAN be stressful, but that is completely up to you. I'm only 25 years old and I have had enough stress for two lifetimes lol. Anyway, I really could write all day but there will be more to write in other blog posts. Now, let's travel the world and see what hidden secrets LIFE has to offer us!
