Kaelyn, an Angus young person, has written this blog about becoming a photographer.
3 years ago, I took up a hobby during lockdown to keep me busy and occupied little did I know it would take me as far as this…
Hi, my name is Kaelyn and this is my story of how photography has now become a career to me. When Covid-19 became rife in the UK, schools were shut down, with no idea of when we would be returning. This had a massive impact on me and my mental health as the year 2020 was the year I started my exams which never went ahead.
Due to being locked in to stay safe I had to find a way to keep myself occupied so I started picking up loads of new hobbies, a lot of when I lost interest in very fast. Then my dad told me “Why don’t you take up photography” I thought this would be a great idea, so I started off using my dad’s camera. I found this hobby very fun and creative, so I continued to take pictures right up until we all got back to some sort of normality with schools opening. Then as I got back to school, my school started a new class in art – Photography. This excited me so much as it meant I’d be able to learn more about it. When I started the class I then realized to myself that I should take my photography further. So I started an Instagram page to show off my photography and next thing I know I’m being featured in local pages, then also being asked from Visit Angus to be an Angus Tour Ambassador. So obviously I took the opportunity to do so.
Once I did the Angus Tour, I was then asked by a local group DD8 Music from Kirriemuir if I would be interested in doing photography for Bonfest 2022. Me, thinking this was only a little festival, said yes without thinking of doing any research about it first. Little did I know I would be at this massive music festival with people from all over the world. I have never ever been so excited in my whole life at that moment. After doing bonfest and people seeing my images published online, I then had other people asking me to cover concerts and gigs, as well as sporting events. Then I was told from teaching staff why don’t you apply for photography at college. This was a hard decision to take as it meant leaving school earlier and missing S6 but I just told myself you know what let’s just go for it! So I applied to college and here I am now – studying at college doing something I absolutely love!
I also had the opportunity to join Angus Youth Media Team last year which has helped me build loads of confidence in myself with my photography journey. When I joined I was given the role of doing the photography as well as the cinematography and I couldn’t thank the team enough for the continuous support!
All of this happened because I wanted a hobby to keep me occupied during a tough time in 2020 and wow, what can I say, apart from its one thing I will never ever regret!!! This shows people that if you put your heart into it, you will go so far in life. Never ever give up. I have days where I might take photos and think they are absolutely terrible, which makes me feel really down, but I was told by somebody “If you’re down the only way is up”. That is something I will always tell myself.
