Thanks to the incredible support of my boyfriend, and encouragement from my other friends and people I’ve met, I feel like I’ve really developed myself as an artist this year. Online, my preferences for creating certain retro “looks” with websites, no matter what the template I’m customizing…. and in my photography, even though I try for more “modern” looks…. everything still ends up with a vintage flair. I’ve come to realize that can’t escape my retro inspired style.
I guess my expressions having an old fashioned vibe shouldn’t come as any surprise: My pop culture exposure this year has been limited to reading the Huffington Post, watching Saturday Night Live, and religiously watching MadMen. Not that I object to mainstream stuff, it just doesn’t bring me as much pleasure. I’ve managed to read thru most of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s work (including his short stories and The Pat Hobby Stories series), am starting to read Jessie Grahm Flower (so far, like Anne of Green Gables but less prissy), Hulbert Footner (early 1900s mystery writer), discovered various short stories by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (author of Herland), and extensively read up on movie stars of the 1910s-1930s via The Wikipedia. For the Carondelet Historical Society, I’ve finished photographing their clothing collection and have made a small dent in scanning early ‘teens issues of The Modern Priscilla, between being sidetracked by digitalizing the 1892 Delineator, 1935 Chicago Mail Order Company Catalog, and a 1938 dictionary of fashion. Does this past time of scanning and digitizing pre-1950s ephemera make me odd? I have learned so much about fashion and women’s history!
Added to my passion for history, I’ve started selling vintage clothes. I keep accumulating stuff, thru trade work and thru lucky bargain hunting trips. After the thrill of finding something is over, after the item used or cataloged, I have no trouble parting with it. I have really enjoyed going thru my boyfriend’s drawers and learning about his days as a stagehand (and posting his crew t-shirts for sale)! Although I’ve been on eBay since 2005, but I’m trying my hand with selling vintage clothing on Etsy. Neither is perfect, but Etsy is more affordable to list on and seems a bit more upscale.
Needless to say, in 2012 I’ve shot and taken a lot of pictures. I’ve gotten to know my camera quite well, and to develop an intuitive and practiced knowledge of what settings work best in what situations for what effect (mostly). I don’t hesitate as much as I used to. I went through a few months of being extremely critical of myself and my work, and I honestly still am, though I’m finding that others aren’t nearly as demandingly perfectionistic in the same ways that I am. I believe humility makes me better as an artist, and being perfectionistic makes the art that I create better (or atleast continually improving).
Self portraits. Being influenced so much by the Internet culture and practically growing up connected to “the www”, self portraiture has always been an interest of mine. I have the wonderful domain name, SelfShotMagazine.com, and am resolved to develop that more. Hopefully in 2013 I will stick with my resolution of a daily self portrait. Click over to the site and “like” the FaceBook page to stay updated on my progress. I’m always looking for contributions and help with that. Although I have a “vision” for a self portrait information portal and magazine, I honestly have idea as to what I’m (really) doing with it!
Yay for 2013!
I’m going to start offering event photography, family photography, and general photography services, on KMurrayCreative. Infact, I’m putting all my miscellaneous stuff on KMurrayCreative, since I’m doing less webdesign and trying to present myself as an artist more. (this just gave me a nerdy idea for another website tweak)… This site, this brand, ReverieRevel will stay purely focused on my unique style of retro fashion, boudoir, and glamor photography for women.
Although I love to shoot sexier, edgier, “boudoir” photos of women… I cannot change my ethics on posting those kinds of pictures. If it’s something I would be embarrassed (as the model/client) to show my grandma or have a creepy coworker discover, I don’t post it. I know this limits my “portfolio” of work that I post, but I hope that my clientele respects my discretion. Any sexy pics of this nature that I post are of professional models who already have those kinds of pictures in their portfolios.
Since we’ve taken over the warehouse building next door, and got the studio set up over there, I finally have privacy to shoot during the day without interrupting my boyfriend’s multimedia business. I also have around 500 square feet to store my growing vintage clothing collection in (currently around 500 pieces in all sizes from the 20s-70s and only about 10% are listed online). This presents many new possibilities, and I’m excited!
I’ve spent the past few weeks getting organized, and finally have a system and workflow that seems to be working for me! Now I can actually think and work without getting too distracted by various whims. I also just got a new camera to start off 2013 with, so expect more cool news soon 
My goals for 2013 are to do a better job at marketing my services and reaching out to more potential clients, to get more professional recognition (and thus, necessarily, overcome my innate shyness and preference for communicating online), and to take tons of great pictures that make the gals I shoot think “OMG I look so hot, I am so hot!”.
I hope 2013 brings you lots of LOLs and
Kay
PS: I am not going to resolve to use less and write LOL any less… and OMG can often be good, too
S. Broadway St. Louis, MO, 63111 USA
reverierevel@reverierevel.com • 3145145588
