There is a process that needs to happen when you move to another country.
At first, everything is exciting. The streets are different. The light is different. Even the grocery store feels like an adventure. You are looking at everything with fresh eyes, thinking, I really did this.
And then, somewhere between figuring out the bins and trying to understand why everything works slightly differently than you expect, the other thought arrives:
What the actual EFFF have I done?
Getting settled has been a little bumpy. Culture shock is a real thing, even when you have wanted the change, planned for it, dreamed about it and taken yourself halfway across the planet to make it happen.
There are days when I am wildly excited about this new life. And there are other days when I miss my friends. I miss my family. I miss the people who know me without explanation. I miss being in a place where I knew how things worked and, perhaps most of all, where I knew my place.
But then something happens. The new life starts to come into focus. A little more each day.
I notice something beautiful on a walk. I have a conversation with someone new. I find a place I want to return to. I begin to recognize the streets. The landscape starts to feel less foreign. And suddenly there is this feeling of possibility again. I mean, it is amazing and beautiful here!
But now there's hope.
Forward motion.
The sense that maybe I am exactly where I am supposed to be, even if I don't quite know what that looks like yet.
Starting my photography business again here has been another lesson in beginning.
Back in Vancouver, Washington, I had what I half jokingly called mini-celebrity status. People knew me. They knew my work. I had built relationships over many years. I could walk into a room and there was a good chance someone would say, "Oh! You're Darina!"
Here? I am a nobody. And really, that's kinda funny.
It is also daunting.
Building a photography business is not just about making beautiful photographs. It is about becoming known. Building trust. Meeting people. Finding your community. Letting people discover you and your work. And all of that takes time.
So while I am rebuilding that part of my life, I have been working on something else.
Before I left, I filmed a course for photographers. I finished it while I was still in the middle of packing boxes and saying goodbye, and then I handed it over to my very trusty beta testers.
They went through everything.
They gave me feedback. I tweaked.
I changed things. I polished it.
And now, finally, it is finished.
I know not everyone reading this is a photographer, and that's perfectly fine. But I know there are some of you here who are.
If you are a photographer who has ever thought, There has to be more to this than just chasing the next client, I made something for you. I spent quite some time creating a course about finding your deeper purpose, creating meaningful, impactful photographic work and turning that into something people actually want to be part of. It has been tested, tweaked and lovingly battered by my beta testers. And now it is ready.
Come have a look dear photographers > HERE
Meanwhile, I am here in Scotland, finding my feet.
A little homesick.
A little exhilarated.
A little terrified.
And very, very curious about what happens next.
Perhaps that is the best part of beginning again.
