The Bridge from Family Historian to Artist
I have long been involved in a battle between the creative photographer and the family historian. Where this is most present is in my culling. As I evaluate how good an image is, I have to also decide if the moment I've captured, however untechnical it may be, is good...
I’m on Substack!
I have a newsletter on Substack that is more focused on creative well being vs just photography.. If you’d like to read or subscribe, you can see my latest post. Wendi’s Substack Wendi’s Substack
Exploring Other Art Forms
It's interesting thinking about the ways in which I explore my own creativity. As a child, I was a dancer and thought that would be my career. I never made my way to New York and I find myself searching for other mediums to express myself. B.P. (before photography),...
A Lifestyle Session with the Machuca Family
I first met Jennifer at a blogging meet up group approximately 6-8 years ago. She was very welcoming and I was socially anxious so she made me feel at ease. Through the years, we have kept in touch via instagram and I feel lucky to have such an intelligent and...
Add Creativity with Lensbaby
Sometimes, we need a little something to break us out of a rut. The fall is especially busy and leaves little room for creativity. As I mentioned in this post, I try to schedule time for myself to be creative because it is such an important part of my mental health....
A Trampoline Series
In December of 2019, the kids got a trampoline for Christmas. Thank goodness because we all know what happened in 2020. The trampoline saved our lives that year. All of the kids in the neighborhood would come to our house and play for hours on the trampoline. Through...
Abandoning a 365 Project
365 Project For those who don't know, a 365 project is when you take a picture each day for 365 days. Many many photographers do this each year, especially within the family photography community. As moms, we want to capture the lives of our children as they age and...
Creativity and the Enneagram
The Enneagram. If you're someone who enjoys the enneagram and is already actively learning about it, you may be excited about this series. If you are someone who has heard about it ad nauseam from us enneagram fanatics, you're probably thinking "here we go again"....
Influences of Vivian Maier
This is the first post in a series I plan on doing where I highlight some of my favorite photographers. I picked an obvious choice among women photographers today, so obvious, in fact, that I almost didn't choose her. Vivian Maier was a street photographer who's work...
The Practice of Creativity
It's the second week of the month which means I'm talking about creativity! The number one thing people say to me they hear that I am a photographer is "Oh I wish I could do that, I'm not creative". I used to believe that about myself too. I thought there were either...
Learn How to Edit
I have taken a bit of break which I realize isn't really that different from the norm. Coming up with a new blog post each week felt a little over whelming so I decided to Lazy Genius my posts and create somewhat of a schedule. Each week will be a category so you can...
The Dangers of Striving – The Plight of the Enneagram 7
One of the characteristics of an Enneagram 7 is that we are always on the search for joy. It's through this joy that we are seen as the "fun number"; think The Weasley Brothers in Harry Potter who were always pranking everyone. I relate so much to this and realize...
Learning to Trust our own Inner Voice
I enjoy reading Tarot cards. It's something I started doing about 4 years ago and it has helped me along my spiritual journey. I most often read for myself but this past week, a couple of people reached out to me about helping them with some difficult decisions in...
Self Care and a Mindset Shift
I think I have written/spoken about this piece of my life ad nauseum and I am here to do it again. There have been a couple of key shifts in my life over the past couple of decades but the most instrumental one, besides me getting sober in 2000, was 2018. My kids were...
Following The Whims of Inspiration
It hit me this week, the gravity of the past 2 years. I wonder when someone goes through a traumatic event, do they know the weight of what's happening? As I was driving home from book club on Sunday, I felt an unfamiliar sense of freedom. I was able to be in a room...
Building a Community of Creative Friends
What I have learned about actively practicing creativity is that it requires support. I previously thought people just created things and it was brilliant, but having a creative practice is work. It's work because it requires effort. It requires effort in scheduling,...
A Week of Spontaneous Self Portraits
This is a week where things caught up on me quickly. All of the sudden, it's Sunday evening and I still need to write both this blog post AND my newsletter. I have the topic picked out but I haven't put ideas to paper, so to speak. The thing is, I want to be...
The Art of Giving Ourselves Permission
Social media gets a bad rap, but it has given me the gift of a broad community throughout the world. I have met many women photographers, and moms, and I feel lucky to have grown some of those friendships beyond the apps. In our conversations, I have noticed a common...
The Thing About Abundance
In the new age community, abundance is a common theme. Many are looking to increase their wealth and so they tap into these new age modalities to increase abundance. More often than not, this refers to money, but it can also include other things like time, patience,...
2021 Year in Review
Holy Shit. What. A. Year. 2021 has been a transformational year. I have explored the depths of who I am as a mother, an artist, a wife, and a person on this earth. I have deeply explored belief systems and confronted the shadows of dogma in many forms. And from that,...
What Holds Me Back from Creating
I admire those who seemingly create with no issues, as though their confidence flows like water. New work comes from them with such beauty and uniqueness, it feels less like a practice and more like second nature for them. I especially admire those whose work stands...
Shooting Through – A Documentary Technique That Goes Beyond
In documentary photography, much of what you do is set yourself up compositionally, and then take a bunch of pictures as the action unfolds. It takes a lot of patience and trust as you have to see the scene before it happens. You may have to move around a bit until...
The Evolution of an Entrepreneur
I use the term "entrepreneur" loosely as I am still finding my way, but for the purpose of this blog post, it fits best. I quite my job in 2014 to stay at home with my daughter. It took me a new baby and a solid 3 years to accept the fact that I was no longer...
How the Enneagram Can Help Your Creative Growth
You've probably heard of the Enneagram. It's all the rage these days, in spite of the fact that it's been around for quite some time. It's become increasingly popular over the past 10-20 years, especially in Christian circles, probably because of writers like Richard...
Growing as an Artist
2020 was a shit show. How did we make it? I think the first part of the year, I was hunkering down, digging into the uncomfortable, and just praying that nobody got sick, or worse. The second half of the year, our mental health began to take a toll and we had to start...
365 Project, March, Weeks 1-2
One of the things I've been thinking about recently has been how I present myself in the photography world. I get a bit of imposter syndrome as I begin to take on an "identity". When I first made Click Pro, I struggled with putting myself in the "Click Pro Master"...
365 Project – February, Week 4
Art is so interesting because when I spend time savoring it, it affects me in the same way my self improvement books do. I most recently finished a fiction book called The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. Over the past month, I have processed so many themes in that book...
Project 365 – February, Week 3
One of my hesitations for tackling a 365 project this year is the same issue I have ever year, my ability to commit and stay disciplined is weak. And just as I expected, I have missed a few days this year. As always, I am continuing to take pictures and I am calling...
Our Development As An Artist
Over the past year, I have been focused on becoming more creative. I took an amazing class from Angela Douglas Ramsey that helped me understand how to develop my ideas in photography. In the beginning of the pandemic, I picked up watercolor painting, a medium I've...
Curating a Sense of Home
One of the things I've been thinking about recently is how we utilize things to create a feeling, a sense of nostalgia. I was reading in this month's Magnolia Journal, and I noticed how Joanna talks about the feelings of Autumn. She mentions creating a list of things...
Trampoline Diaries 2020
In mid march, when South Carolina shut everything down, I was afraid. Of course, I was afraid of Covid 19 because I had no idea what it was and how it would affect us, but I'm not talking about that fear. I was afraid of how I was going to entertain the kids without...
I Made Click Pro!!
In the past, you may have seen me talk/write about Clickinmoms. After Ellie was born, I bought a dslr in the hopes of capturing her as she got older. I loved having professional photography done, but couldn't afford to do it more than once or twice a year. Because of...
A Family Trip to Myrtle Beach
My parents have a timeshare in Myrtle Beach so we get to go there pretty frequently. I've written about it before and I am grateful to my parents for letting us come back year after year. We've come to love this little spot and I always get some of the best pictures...
Color Palettes – An Obsession
The title is dramatic, I know. But I do love color. I love it in my home, in my clothing, and in my photography. As I get older, I find myself drawn to more classic, earthy tones because they feel timeless. In my youth, I loved anything loud. Color has a way of...
2020 Journal Entry – June 14th
It's been a while since I've written, overwhelmed by the focus on every day life, and knocked down by the radical change we are experiencing as a collective. As Covid 19 continues to grow and affect our lives, so has a new, or actually not so new, pandemic has...
Quarantine Journal May 15th
For the first time in my life, I am grateful for living in a small town with lots of space. In spite of the stay at home order, we have been able to play outside. We've been able to ride our bikes through the neighborhood and stretch our legs in beautiful weather. I...
Quarantine Day 45 or something like that
I have decided I want to use this blog as a journal to write thoughts about the daily lives of a family in quarantine. I don't know if anyone will read this, or if it is me processing thoughts, but I have this pretty website that I want to use, so might as well,...
A Day in the Life – Quarantine Style
The blast blog post I wrote was just as the world was changing to this new paradigm. Since then, I have been trying to figure out this new life as a teacher, professional chef, maid, and to somehow find time for myself. I am not complaining because I have...
Lessons from Click Way Atlanta, GA 2020
This past week, I returned from a trip to the Click Away Conference in Atlanta, GA. This is the second time I've attended Click Away and it did not disappoint. I wrote about my trip to Amelia Island in 2018 which was the last time I attended. Clickinmoms is an...
Happy Holidays!
I really wanted to get in a couple more posts for 2019, but these last few weeks have been overwhelming. I've been trying to get Christmas shopping done, keep the house clean, and finish last minute errands before we head out of town. And because I talk about...
DeClutter To Create Your Own Sacred Space
I am not the first person who has ever written a blog post about decluttering your home. Many of us understand that massive consumerism is a major environmental issue. Maybe that is why minimalism is such a trendy topic right now. I think it's all a great thing...
Myrtle Beach 2019
In July, we took a trip with my parents to Myrtle Beach, SC. Myrtle Beach invokes a nostalgia in me, and probably many other South Carolinians. The reality of what it is today is so different than it was growing up, but it still brings back memories of sunburns, sand...
100 Days of Summer – June
As we come to an end of the very first month of summer, I am reminded that summer is a time of rest, not only for my kids, but also for me. This is where I get out of my "blogger, working mom" groove and settle into my "I have the kids all the freaking time and I'm...
Urban Florals, Anna, Senior Session Greenville, SC
I first met Beth in 2012 during yoga teacher training. Beth was such a warm and comforting person, and we hit it off immediately. She was so easy to talk to and I felt like I had known her for years. Fast forward a couple of years and she became my mom role model. She...
Dream
Dream
April 30, 2019 Greenville Photographer Wendi Matt
4/30/19 Dance pictures and a trip to the airport to pick up Gigi. These pictures are more documentary in nature and I hope to share more of them in the future.
Candid Family Session in Greenville, SC
What do I want to say about the Johnson family? Lauren is my photo buddy and I am so grateful that she has been apart of my photography journey, if only for a short while. We met through Clickin Moms and when she reached out to me to tell me she was moving to...
Resurrection – Photographer Wendi Matt
Over the past few years, I've wanted to do a photo series focusing on the beauty of women. What began as an idea to celebrate the characteristics of the divine feminine has become something more dedicated to the beauty of the lives we live. As I began to share my own...
Project 365 – Day 4, 5, 6, and 7
I HAVE been taking daily pictures but forgot to post them so here they are. Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday My gratitude for the past few days has basically just been the ability to breathe and take a moment. There have been glimpses...
Project 365 – Day 4
Today I am grateful for: Spontaneous date nights with my husband my in laws who help provide spontaneous date nights with my husband
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