Hello again!
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What I love the most is to take an idea, imagine a concept and create something beautiful! I'm a social introvert who loves people, but loves quiet time to think and ponder. I love meeting new people and seeing what makes them tick. I'm a sucker for life stories and seeing the beauty through the good and the hard times.
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I'm Sam DeLeon
I'm a freelance photographer and digital designer who loves to create.
“Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.”
― Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection
How I got started...
Don't you just love Brene Brown's quote? I do...now! A decade ago, my answer wouldn't have been so enthusiastic. It's been a journey to authenticity for me. Before this journey, I thought you had to be THE best to stand out from the others. But I realized, that's a rat race that leads to comparison and exhaustion. I learned that what you really need to stand out from the competition is being YOUR best and be as authentic as you can be. When people want to work with you, it's because they want you. So here's my story of how I got into what I do and why I do it...
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A major turning season in my life is when I was laid off from a place I worked at for almost a decade and my husband's new job relocated us to an area unknown with two little kids and two dogs. What I quickly realized is I had wrapped so much of my identity in what I did and who I was proving myself to.
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After that identity crisis and needing a MAJOR creative outlet, I picked up my husband's standard DSLR and
started learning more about it (thank you Pinterest and YouTube!). I took pictures of practically everything! And when I was shooting, I always envisioned (and still do) a magazine layout or advertisement or some sort of design with my pictures in mind. I WAS HOOKED! I started photographing families. In the past, I dabbled with some creative digital design and I started putting the two together. I knew I wanted to help others with my gifts to help with their personal and business projects.
My heart for working with others is to help bring their own vision to life. What I learned is people generally want to hire the person who provides the service. There are so many talented and amazing people, however, their designs and photographs don't quite capture that story and uniqueness about their business.
When people ask me what I do, I often say, I decorate the cake - you buy the ingredients, you bake the cake, and together we decorate it!
Family
I'm was born a SoCal girl who fell in love with my high school sweetheart, a Southern boy from Arkansas (#gohogs). We have three beautiful kiddos and call the Sacramento region our home. Our favorite show is AFV (America's Funniest Videos). We love traveling in the RV and exploring different areas.
My best friend