So it's been a few months, eh? Hi new and old DA friends alike!

I actually sort of lied in my last journal, though I didn't know it was a lie until later. I dropped a class during the summer and actually spent a lot more time being lazy and slacking off. But now I'm back in the fall quarter with BFA meetings and deadlines for prints/portfolios, and SUPER busy for real this time. But I'm also a lot more motivated and productive with my work.

I'm on a plant kick lately in my shooting and this may have led to a new hobby/obsession of mine... Venus Flytraps! I had mentioned to a friend that I wanted to shoot some carnivorous plants, and he surprised me with a Venus Flytrap! Now I'm all into them and want to collect different cultivars, grow them from seeds, etc. I'll have to wait until about March though, they're about to enter a dormant period for the winter (see my geek knowledge already?).

What else. My Twitter account got hacked or something. So if you were following me, could you do so again here? -> [link] Thanks! Feel free to friend me on Facebook and such as well, if you ever want to be subjected to photos taken with..... my phone!

I'm on an indefinite hiatus from modeling. Maybe I'll pick up it again in the future, maybe not. I'm just too busy with everything else at the moment, and while it was fun, it was never as fulfilling as photography.

I'll feature a ton of artworks in my next journal. Gotta go through 1000+ deviations first!

Adios!

Hi there, DA'ers. School pretty much owns my soul in recent months, which is why I haven't been as active here. I'll be attending full time in the summer as well. No, I don't love school that much but I do want this BFA degree done with and out of the way.

This week I'll be doing a whole lot of nothing + vegging out since it's the only real summer vacation I have. Sunday is my birthday, I'll be 21. Hopefully it'll be full of good, legal fun but not too much since I start school the following Monday.

So yep. Take care y'all! Enjoy the features!

Some of my photos from Indonesia are printed and on display at Solano College:[link] They're in the new photography building 1800A. Check them out if you're in the area, as well as gorgeous work from my travel mates. At the end of May, they will be moved to the Benicia Library: [link] and the Nest in Napa:[link]

The next December group trip will be to Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. *drooool* What's a broke, travel-obsessed artist to do?

Now at my current school, I am now in the BFA (Bachelor of Fine Art) Photography program. Pretty damn exciting, and I have a new bar to reach concerning the quality of my work AND my ability to produce regular new work outside of class assignments. The next BFA meeting will concern choosing new work to submit to the juried student art show at the end of this month. Gulp. I haven't entered a juried show since high school.

Nerve wracking as it is, this is the perfect wake up call to pull out of my funk and really push myself. There's no better time to eat, sleep, and breathe photography.

PS: I love the new Critique feature on DA. I'm about to go crazy with this.

Jill Auville (*pahness) featured Barrier in her latest journal entry. It's got me all fan girly because she's one of my favorite artists on this site. Her page is definitely worth checking out. And while her work can come off as creepy and her page isn't bubbly and chatty, she responds to every comment and is a really nice person. She also has some wickedly awesome tattoos, hurrah!

Another artist ~powerdrill created a really neat painting referenced from my Grip modeling photo. His work:, my photo: It's the first traditional work based on one of my poses and I'm really flattered. He has many other gorgeous figure paintings in his gallery of both female and male nudes, which are under appreciated in my opinion. Check his stuff out!

In a few months, a few of my Indonesia photos will be up in a group exhibition in Napa and Bencia. They'll be up at Solano Community College at the end of this month. I'll have exact dates when I get them. I still need to have them printed, matted and framed, ah! Need to quit slacking!

Santa Barbara/L.A. June 10-14 (tentative)