ANGELA B. PAN

This is weird. It’s not you. It’s me.

As I’m writing this, it’s 12:32 am. I usually would have been sleeping 2 1/2 hours ago and in all honesty, I was. I fell asleep on the couch watching Love is Blind. But then Andrew woke me so we could go to bed and I have not been able to sleep since.

I’m not sure what has got me thinking so much about it tonight, but it’s something that I’ve been thinking about for a while. I think this is a sign that now is the time to stop daily blogging. It wasn’t something I planned on but it just feels right to do it now.

I’ve been daily blogging on this website for 10 years! And I haven’t missed a single day. Even through emergency surgery, family deaths, and marriage, I made sure to have a new image on my website every single Monday through Friday. It’s bananas reflecting back on it.

One of the craziest images I’ve captured at the National Mall. Taken in February 2016.

It started as something to do for fun in October 2008.  At that time my posts were very sporadic and had no real purpose. Then Andrew and I went on a trip to Yosemite in March of 2010. It was one of the best trips ever. To this day, if you asked me about my favorite national park (besides the national mall of course), I’d say Yosemite. So one day after we returned, I sat in front of my computer and created 5 blog posts from that trip, and I thought to myself, ‘man that was so easy. I could do this all the time.‘

So it was at that moment that I committed to a daily blog Monday through Friday. It started off as a way to prove how serious about photography I was. That I would be willing to take new pictures every single day and share it with the internet. That was fun but after a while, but then I felt like I just kept on capturing the same images over and over again. So it morphed into something where it kept me accountable to take new AND creative pictures. I started thinking of my blog more like a sketchbook where I would keep all my ideas and see the progress of my work. I wanted to challenge myself to come up with new points of view and explore different places of DC. And I did that over the years. Eventually, I felt like I explored so much and felt SO comfortable photographing DC that I wrote a book, Snap DC.

I still can’t believe I wrote a book.

Writing that book changed everything. Not only could I change my title from photographer to photographer SLASH author, but I also fell in love with writing. I’ve expressed it a few times in blog posts and newsletters but it’s a new creative outlet for me. I am able to elaborate more on my experiences and tell a story. It’s funny because I  hated writing while I was in school, but I guess when you’re writing about something you are passionate about, the words just flow out of your fingertips.

So I started writing. My daily blog posts got longer. I also started writing short, easy to digest guides. They were a lot longer than my daily blog images but a more scaled-down version of Snap DC. I found a passion for sharing my knowledge with fellow photographers of location scouting, planning your trips to DC or other destinations, and gear reviews.

Now the daily blog is starting to feel more like busywork.

A few images from 2012’s blog posts.

I’m in a position where I am constantly taking new pictures and I don’t need a blog to help keep me accountable for that. Whether it’s for fun or for a photography job, new images are importing into my computer constantly. Although I have come up with a system for it, sometimes the feeling of having to get a daily blog done is overwhelming.

And I have so much more fun writing more meaningful, thoughtful blog posts, like this.

So that doesn’t mean I’m quitting blogging completely. From now on, I want to create more personal posts like this or travel guides around DC and the other places my camera and I get to visit. I just want the content on my blog to be more resourceful than just me sharing my work.

This is going to be a huge step for me. I actually am a little afraid. My whole workflow is going to change and the way I communicate my art is going to be different. I even caught myself saying that I’ll commit to a blog post a week, but I don’t want to put that rule on myself. You may have noticed that once I tell myself something that it’s hard for me to change my mind. So this is a big change. Maybe in the future, I can commit to something like that, but let’s just see where this “no-rules blog” goes for now.

I’m ready for the next chapter of my blog and photography.

A recent image from Rawlins Park in Foggy Bottom, DC

10 years ago this month, I started this blog. I tried looking back to see if I could find my old blog posts, but it was on a completely different web host then and I’ve lost about a year’s worth of my first blogs. Who knows, there’s probably even more lost between the years but, click here if you want to see the first blog post I can find: August 25, 2010. It’s funny how some things don’t change. LOL.

So keep checking in. I’ll still be posting and I hope you will enjoy the new blogging style. I already have a running list of the blog posts I want to create. But for now, Instagram is the best place to see my new images. Cherry blossoms will be peaking this week and you know I’ll be out shooting! I have a feeling my presence on Facebook and Twitter will change as far as how I share my work and my newsletters will still be going out on the first of the month as usual but who knows where that will go too. There are so many unknowns about this and I’m kind of excited.

Oh snap, does this mean I have to take a new profile picture? New blog, new me?

Although it’s not official “peak” cherry blossom season, there have been sightings all around the city.

So this is my first official cherry blossom image for 2020. I’m really looking forward to capturing more blooms around the city!

With that said, this year will be a little different. I already have some cherry blossom workshops planned at the Tidal Basin, but other than that I won’t be capturing the Tidal Basin Cherry Blossoms. I really wanted to spend this season capturing the flowers all around the city as opposed to that area. It’s going to be a fun challenge and I’m up for it. I’ve already started creating a list!

My camera settings for this image are F5.6 at 1/5000th sec and ISO 320 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide-angle lens.

Almost two weeks ago, I attend my first Creative Morning. If you don’t know about it, I highly suggest signing up for their newsletter to get more information. But it’s basically a monthly networking and speaking event for any type of creative. It was a great time.

The DC chapter seems to have them in a variety of different locations. The one that I went to happened at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. So after the event was done, I took a little bit of time to go around the museum with a few friends. It’s crazy to say but I haven’t been since the media preview from before it opened to the public. I’m glad to have revisited it.

This image is of my friend, Dave. We asked him to go to the middle of the staircase to pose, but once he got to the middle he was trying to communicate with us that the wall actually goes up taller and we wouldn’t be able to see him. It was a funny moment to see him try to explain why he couldn’t go any further when all of us were on the floor pointing to the right from him to go further.

My camera settings for this image are F5.6 at 1/125th sec and ISO 1000 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm wide-angle lens.

On particularly sunny days, just after the sunrises be sure to look at the Lincoln Memorial. I know I’ve mentioned it before, but the way that the sun glows on the memorial is probably one of the best things in DC.

And there aren’t too many people who are out at that time of day either. Usually, you will see a few photographers, some Park Police but even more runners. I’ve never actually run on the National Mall but I see a lot of them sprinting up the stairs of the Lincoln Memorial for a final push. This is one of those runners. After running up the stairs, he put his arms behind his head to get a breath of air. I love how his shadow was perfectly aligned with the Lincoln Memorial wall.

My camera settings for this image are F4 at 1/8000th sec and ISO 800 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm.

Back when the Reach at the Kennedy Center was almost ready for the public, I was honored to be invited to see it for a special social media sneak peek.

But even though our main focus was the Reach, I still took a few minutes out to photograph the Kennedy Center. I don’t get to go often, but when I do, I fall in love with the beautiful lines and architecture all over again. I thought this image was interesting because it’s not every day that you get to see everything that it takes to replace the light bulbs in the ceiling. LOL.

I just love the injection of the orange crane in between the columns and walls at the Kennedy Center. It seems like something so out of ordinary to be there.

My camera settings for this image are F4 at 1/640th sec and ISO 250 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm.