I do not claim to be a professional media keeper, but I have created a system that hasn’t failed me yet and I’m hoping that you guys can take this and use it as a way to preserve your personal memories as well as the photo sessions we do together. While yes, I do save every photo I’ve ever taken, things can fail, businesses can change, I cannot keep galleries online forever, and I want to make sure you have everything safe and stored away! 

So here we go: 

​1.) Delete Photos. Go through your phone, your camera and delete any photos you do not need to save for all time. Duplicates, eyes closed. We all take a million, consolidate them! Be choosy and pick the best ones. 

2.) Take the photos from your phone and camera and load them onto your computer. For some, they may already be there via iCloud. 

3.) On your computer desk start making new folders. Label the folder with the year the photos were taken in parenthesis and then the event. So if I were saving photos that are currently on my phone, my folders would be labeled like this : 

     (24) Christmas 2024 
     (25) Erika’s 40th birthday
     (25) Erika goes to Philly 
     (25) Winter trip to Italy 
     (25) Daddy’s Birthday 
     (25) Orchid show at Botanic Gardens
     (25) St. Patrick’s Day 
     (25) New office before and after 
     (25) April in Italy 

This way, when you arrange your folders they are in chronological order. When you want a certain photo you will just think about what year(ish) it was, and you go to that year.
Now organize all your photos into those folders.

4.) Go on Amazon, or to a store similar to Staples and buy an external hard drive. I personally buy the one in the photo below right off Amazon. You can buy them in many different sizes. I choose 2 terabytes as it is big enough to hold a large amount of data, but not too big. I buy two of them. 

I buy two drives because if one fails and goes bad, I have the other as a backup. I put the same exact photos on two drives.  I don’t buy the largest media size because not all my photos are then in one place. If I’m going to lose photos, I would prefer to lose 6 months of a year vs three years of photos. 

Similarly, when I photograph a wedding, I will use many smaller media cards vs. one big one. That way I don't lose an entire wedding if a card was to fail. 

These drives plug right into your computer. When you receive them you will format them for your specific computer; the directions are in the pamphlet included. You can then simply drag and drop your folders of photos into the drives as they happen! You can make an effort to do it one Sunday every month or make it a habit right after special days and events. You can also buy drives that are wireless and can send right from your devices and then organize within the device itself. 

Put a label on the drive explaining what years the drive cover. Once a drive is full, start all over for a new year. 

​whaaalaa! 

Again, this is my way and many asked me to share, so here I am :) I have also been asked if I would ever consider providing a service organizing people's photos both tangible prints AND digital. I AM considering it and in the process of creating a package to do so :) 

I am headed home today from three weeks away and although my heart is hurting to leave - I am excited to get back to see my puppy, catch up with friends, celebrate my dad’s birthday with my family and give my mama a hug! 

When I arrived here I realized that the lens on my travel camera was broken. It isn’t an overly expensive lens so while yes, annoying, it wasn’t the end of the world. My friend took me to a camera shop where they confirmed it wasn’t worth fixing. After an attempt at Italian Amazon, I decided that life was maybe trying to tell me something….

Put the camera down! So I did. I haven’t touched a camera in 3 weeks. 
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Instead, I finished my print shop, which is now available online. I finished a course in licensing, I organized myself in sooo many ways,  I spent hours thinking about Luved and how I need to approach this upcoming year in an attempt to not end up burnt out by the end of it. I took walks, I saw friends, got to know a group of the cutest southern women traveling through, almost fell off a scooter, my little adopted Nonna taught me some things about cooking, I had many apertivos in the small little market with the locals, I journaled a lot, I finally gained a love for espresso, I worked on my Italian and I started two new personal projects that I’m really excited about. Some days have been busy, others have been quite quiet, and every day has felt full.

Had my camera not been broken, none of this would have happened. I had much different plans to go see and photograph some new places, but life told me no, stay put, and I’m so glad I listened. 

​I posted a reel and some photos on Instagram of my last Sunday morning here - and sooo many people are wondering why I keep coming here to Italy, and many have asked if I'm leaving Chicago. So to make sure everyone knows, no, I am not moving to Italy! 

If circumstances were different, then maybe it would be a different story, but there are things in Chicago I would never permanently move away from. BUT what I have found here in Italy is something I also cannot leave behind. There is a story for me here unfolding and while I keep feeling drawn to that I will keep coming. My plan for now is every two - three months if I can sustain it and make it work with my schedule at home I will be here. In winter I come for longer, and I’m hoping that this year in late summer/early fall I can do one more longer trip. Am I looking for a place here to call home every time I come? Absolutely. I have been looking at places to buy, fix up, adorn with my art from the area and maybe airbnb. That isn’t something that just happens over night, especially when I am not here very long when I come. For now, I found the town where I want to do it and that’s a huge success in my book. I have met enough locals and people who have extended so much love and support that I now have a usual place in “my” little town when I come until I find somewhere of my own. 

Hello from the sky! I am on my way back to Italy for three weeks to work, to play, and to see what life has in store for me next :) I had a hard time leaving for this trip. While I love my little Italian adventures it can be hard to have your heart in two places. I am going on two years now of flying back and forth every little while. Everyone asks how I endure this flight over and over but I absolutely love flying. Put me in any seat and I am happy up here. I should probably be trying to sleep so that I can be on Italy time when I arrive but I’m too excited to tell you that the print shop that I’ve been saying “will be done soon” is ready! Yaaaay!!! 

Paris is the first city we worked on getting ready to help us come up with how the shop will work (by “we” I mean sweet Amelia who figured out how to do it @ameliorateandcreate). My plan was to start with Paris and release a new city or gallery week by week until they’re all posted. In my mind, Paris HAD to be first. 

Whenever I go to a new city with my camera, I don’t stop moving. I wander, I get lost, and I just photograph It as I go. I don’t look for the touristy things that everyone else has photographed before, and I don’t spend a lot of time getting the “perfect” shot. I just live life and stop for a shot if the moment presents itself. While I am famously an overthinker, photography isn’t something I overthink. It’s one of the few things I can confidently do, and I do it my way. But when I got back from Paris I learned something about myself and my relationship with my camera.

I never look at the photos when I go to a new place until I am back home. I then put them into my computer to cull and process as I do all my sessions. I loaded my photos from Paris upon returning home expecting to see these light and airy, chipper, very “Erika” photos and I noticed that they were beautiful but they were a bit moody, somewhat dreary with hints of hope kind of sprinkled within them. They were how I was feeling that whole trip. It was at that point that it hit me that my camera was this tool to show more than just what I was seeing but how I was feeling; if I were to stop and overthink the shot….It would be more performative. Sure, I was in Paris in January on dreary days, but there are ways to make it look otherwise - I do it all the time in portrait sessions. I started to look back on all of my travel photos and it hit me how much storytelling was woven within them. I have always been a journal-er but I unknowingly had visuals to accompany all my entries. 

If you attended my gallery show in June of 2023 - you got a first hand look at how the print shop will work. While every print is named and tells a bit of what the photo is about, once you purchase, the printed photo will arrive with a print out of the story, my story of life at that moment. Most are short little snippets, but meaningful to me. Here is an example of one…

Every print has a story. They aren’t just pretty things I saw, they’re moments I felt, and I’m hoping that you too can feel something in them. Whether it’s a place you’ve always dreamt of going and it can hang as a reminder to keep dreaming, or it’s a place you have been where you left a piece of your heart. Or maybe it’s home. I hope that sharing these can help fill homes, offices, bedrooms and wall space with meaning and moments that share pieces of a larger story.  

I went back to Paris a couple years ago, and I chose not to photograph the actual city again, I rarely do. Instead I wandered with someone special, photographed her twirling in lovely dresses in gorgeous places and those photos WERE the Paris photos you would expect from me. Light, airy, floral, pretty. And by no means are my original images ugly in my opinion, I actually think the dreariness gives them a unique beauty. I am always so taken back when I look through them. It’s like I can feel what I was feeling then. I am so grateful for those moments that led me to this moment...sitting on a plane over the ocean, turning down the microwaved bbque chicken :) 

So.. Paris is ready and actually…. so is every other gallery!  I couldn’t only release one after MONTHS of saying it’s almost ready, and so many of you have been so excited. 

So.... Welcome to the LUVly Little Print Shop. My little passion project. The link is below :) 


http://www.luvedphotography.com/print-shop.html

The first few weeks will be a test run for how the site is working. I will be watching over it and tweaking it while eating too much pasta. After that the work will begin to start finding different fairs to sell at, shops to display at and we will go from there. I hope to continue having a love for wandering new places to keep it fresh, and I don’t know… maybe another gallery show? Or better yet - a Pop Up?! I’ll keep ya posted ;) 

I remember when trying to make it to five years in business was my goal…here I am sitting at my kitchen table with FIFTEEN years to reflect on. wow. 

I’ve said it plenty of times before, but photography was never in my plan. I have a Master’s degree in education, and I planned on spending life teaching. Clearly, life had other plans. 

​Fifteen years ago was not when I started taking photos - it was when I started doing it as a “business”. It was a very, very small business I did here and there while I was subbing, trying to find a permanent teaching job. A wedding here and there, a gig some weekends. I did love to travel, and always brought my camera and that’s pretty much the extent to what I thought my photography would be; a fun hobby when I traveled. But slowly word of mouth got out and more and more people were calling me to take their photos. It was starting to get busy and I thought wait... could I make this a business? I was in Europe traveling, just wandering, taking photos and dreaming about what I wanted my business to look like, to feel like. I knew it was a far fetched dream… making your passion your career. My friend at one point looked at me said "you can’t make enough doing just this". I remember thinking “watch me”. 

Little by little word kept spreading. And little by little I would find locations and started meeting people more and more. I would post it, it would get shared and soon enough It was turning into something. I needed a formal name. At this point it was mostly men in the industry and they usually used their name as their business name. One thing I KNEW was that I didn’t want it to be 'Photography by Erika', or anything remotely close to that. I don’t like a lot of attention so naming my business after myself just wasn't my style, and I wanted it to be something that could last, something here to stay. One day I was writing a letter to someone (remember this was 15 years ago) and I signed it as I always had. I would draw a heart and then put “luv, ed” -- "ed" being my initials.
Luved Photography....perfect! 
​

Soon I was asking friends to be models, my niece was posing any chance I could get and I was getting a portfolio together. I advertised at craft fairs to begin and the response was amazing. To this day, some of the people I met at those fairs I still take photos of and keep in touch with. They are my true originals and have been there to watch me grow and have a very very special place in my heart. They trusted me before I was trustworthy (looking at you, Gina!) 
​

As things got even more busy, I still felt like I had something to prove. I had to show that I was legit, that this was an actual business that wasn’t going anywhere, I had no plans to let it falter. And then one day I drove past this very raw little storefront. This was it. I could picture it. THIS was going to be my place. It was small, manageable, quaint. Little by little I was going to make it my own. 

And I did.... I loved that little studio, and for the time I had it, it was perfect. It was such an exciting time! I had moved to a new part of town where I owned a business, I was getting married, everything was falling into place. Unfortunately, life threw me a curve ball. My marriage ended, I had some pretty tough medical issues, the building was sold and it was time to move on. Then covid hit.

My medical issues continued, everything was shut down …… but NOBODY forgot about Luved Photography. It survived. I survived. And since I have been even more booked and busy than that dream of having a business I talked about way back when. 

Fifteen years is a long time to do what you love. Luved Photography and I have almost grown up together. I am proud of how far it has come and also how far I have. Thank you for spreading my little business name so I can do what I love. There have been so many nights spent in tears… but in tears because I didn’t know how I was going to keep up with the demand. What an incredible problem to have! It feels like a huge circle of friends that I get to hang out with day by day. And what I'm most proud of, that someone reminded me a few weeks back, I did it my way.
     
​ Cheers to 15 years. I LUV you all! 

I wanted to be writing from a new spot in Italy, but alas, I made a rookie mistake and booked this trip during Ferragosto, a national holiday which meant public transport was not running at full speed so it was almost impossible to get to. I’m still a little hesitant to rent a car here since a piece of my tire cracked off in Amalfi and my niece and I had to be driven last minute to the airport by a lemon farmer whose Fiat was hanging on for dear life (traveling with me never has a dull moment). So I stayed in my usual area, jumping between airbnbs that are both amazingly decorated and have amazing terraces…two things very important to me. The location is a bit out of the way but I can navigate that and you meet more people when you aren’t near tourists (pro tip). BUT I still wanted to see something new so I went on a day trip to a little island that is known for it’s pastels - Procida. 

Have you ever seen a more “Erika” place?! Although you feel like you're on fire here from heat, I hiked to the lookout where I could stand and stare for hours! When you’re wandering alone everyone asks you to take their photo - so I basically did an hours worth of mini sessions before going try the famous Insulate di Limoni. Which was basically lemons in a bowl with olive oil, mint, onion, chili flakes and salt and pepper. I really tried... but I couldn’t stomach it…I told the waitress how full I was and then went and found some french fries. Which are oddly good here?! 
​

I risked being stuck on the island because there was only ONE ferry back due to the holiday, but a risk I was willing to take. The worst thing that could happen is I was stuck on an Italian island for a night. Worse things have definitely happened to me (refer back to lemon farmer story), but I made the ferry back to Sorrento and made it home after a taxi driver literally told me “no! traffic!”.  After a lot of delayed trains, walking out of my way and the biggest blisters you’ve ever seen I wandered in to finally glance at the photographs from my new “travel” camera, photos both from the island and Sorrento. 

This is my tenth time in Italy. Not every trip has been as great as this one as traveling alone comes with its ups and downs, but this might be one of my favorites so far. From meeting new people on an airplane and getting in trouble for talking too much, to being invited to random places many don't know of yet, to hearing people on the street who now remember me saying “CiaoEDIKA! You are back!” So to remember this time in my life of unknowing and confusion yet being completely convicted that I’m doing the right thing I wanted something to remember it by; a piece of jewelry, some sort of trinket.. I don’t know. I went shopping and nothing stood out, I thought of getting another tattoo, but when mentioning it SB told me “don’t do stupid things” - Italians are so honest! …. and what I was going to get was a little stupid. So I put it aside and decided that I’ll know it when I see it. 

I had the most gorgeous view the last few days of the sea and Mt.Vesuvius, and the apartment next to mine had the cutest little terrace that belonged to this absolutely stunning Italian lady. At night she would yell “EDIKAAAA” and we would chat about everything from how Madonna was in town for her birthday, to how gross hot dogs are, to how she chose to live a life of freedom, and how happy she is. My little Italian, her little English. We made it happen. But on my last day  I was feeling a little bummed to be leaving that town, and I knew I would be alone and homeless most of the day until my next airbnb allowed me to check in. As I was packing up I heard “EDIKAAA, I have a surprise for you!” I ran to the terrace and there was my new little Italian friend. Her hair was perfectly placed, her makeup done beautifully and her sweet smile ready to make sure I wouldn’t be alone. 
​

She brought me up to her private terrace which was INCREDIBLE!!  I immediately took out my camera and was completely speechless. We ate little chocolate cakes, took photos of each other (her dad was a photographer) and I showed her my instagram so she could see what I do for work. After some time on the terrace she took me around town to buy some new make up and “coco” and then we went to the mini food market to meet someone new.

I’ve purchased coke at this market many times, and had small talk with the owner, so when I walked in it was like we had already known each other but now I was on a new level of knowing… like Rose Prosecco out of mini plastic cups at 9:45am knowing. I photographed the shop, we had a lot of laughs, they showed me a book of photos of their town because they know I’m a photographer and as we left the shop “CIAO EDIKA” could be heard for blocks. 

I said my goodbyes, we made plans for my next trip and in her best English she wished me well. A few hours later, I noticed she joined instagram :)

​I was then homeless for a couple short hours and as I sat there just thinking about how my morning went from something I was thinking was going to be lonely and boring to one of the most interesting and fun mornings I've had in quite awhile, I considered how there is no material thing that could commemorate this. Material things seem to mean less and less to me these days and choosing to invest in whatever I’m doing here has been the most incredible gift I could have ever gifted myself. I don’t need a piece of jewelry or to mark my body; the people I’ve met, the experiences I’ve had are all stored in my heart, and when I start to forget, I always have my photographs. 
​

Oddly enough the next day I was waiting to get on the train to go to my first Italian lunch at my friend’s family home and I was in a little market just looking at little souvenirs. Someone stopped me to ask me where I’m from as they often do, always guessing Irish (nope!). He asked if I would be back and why I was there and I took the time to talk. We shook hands and I started to go on my way. But then he called me back - “Hey Chicago!” I looked back and he ran to me and told me he had a little gift for me. “For you” He said, "I hope you know you are a limited edition.” I looked down at what he gave me….I finally got my little trinket… and then an orange juice, because it’s just amazing here! 
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I have been asked a handful of times in the past few weeks how the adoption process is going for me so I thought I would post an update…or better yet…maybe it’s time for that section on my website I’ve said I’ll do (for years) where you can go if you want an update. Call in Amelia, my new fairy godmother who is helping me with all things website and here we are! 


Everything in my life seems to be in a huge point of transition right now. Most days I’m handling it, others I’m excited, and some I’m just really in awe of the curve ball life loves to keep throwing at me. Overall, I’m figuring it out, I’m figuring me out, and it’s been a pretty wonderful experience! 
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​About a year ago now I actually said no to an adoption placement. I had went through the entire process, waited about two years, and when the time came for a placement it just didn’t feel right. There are a lot of reasons, some personal to the situation of the family placing the baby that gave me concerns; but the timing, the pressure of the work load I had at the time…it didn’t feel right, nor fair to the child. The call came as my plane touched down in the states from a special trip to Italy, and I made the call to say I was going to have to pass it up minutes before I was due in a newborn session. It was a pretty confusing, devastating couple of weeks and it became clear to me that to have anything I really want in life would require me to change my lifestyle and my work load. It was a hard thing to realize, and changing my speed has been a hard thing to work on. A year later, I’m still working on it. 
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Since that happened, busy season came and went, and while in the thick of it, I kept thinking how would I have done this, 75 photo shoots and 3 weddings in one month with a baby? 

The holidays came and I thought how did I pass that up; how fun would this season be with a baby?!

January came with incredible trials for my family and I faced the harsh reality that my plan for child care and my main source of support in doing this as a single woman, with her own high volume business, is no longer realistic. 

In April I was back in Italy, and there was a moment (on a scooter along the coast, of course) that I finally felt an incredible sense of peace about it and a strong sense of gratitude. 

​Day by day for the past twelve or so years, I have calibrated myself to feel like what I see everyday is what I need to strive for. Newborn babies, families, weddings…it became engrained in me that it’s what I should want, and we all know that as we age, the pressure to have it all sooner rather than later gets more intense. 
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Since that happened though, I have traveled more, separated myself, and met some amazing people that help me remove that pressure I put on myself and it has all led to this really great little adventure that I am loving. In addition, I will need a completely new plan on how I would realistically be able to adopt, (given things that have recently happened) so for the time being I’ve put a hold on moving forward. Maybe I decide to start the process again in a few months, maybe a few years, maybe never. I don’t know. And I’m ok with my no plan, plan. 

​For now, being “alone” and working on a new balance is the best place for me. I have ignited my love for traveling again, I am confident asking for a table for one, and I am enjoying just seeing where things go with no expectations, no pressures. 

​So while LuvEd Photography is still my main love, I’m choosing to step back ever so slightly in the search for what is meant for me outside my work. I will still do weddings, but just a few. I will still do family and baby sessions, but maybe not 8 a day! And I am booking my trips and investing time in a place and culture I absolutely adore. I am also working on a new print shop on my website, hopefully to be finished early Fall. It will sell prints that I have photographed from my travels spanning the past 18 years and travels I will continue to do. It’s my work that I have rarely shared, and not only will it be available in the print shop, but we will be working on licensing to hotels, businesses, offices, etc. I’m really excited to dig all of that out, which in turn digs a part of me out I have been shoving to the side. 

​I am also back behind the emails, and being there for YOU. 

While I have always held this little LuvEd family I built close to my heart, this year I have really embraced how so many of you are now friends I’ve gathered along the way and I am infinitely grateful for all your love...which is why I thought this update was needed! When I had fears about medical aspects of the adoption, I reached out to clients, who were there for me in a split second. With every step that I inch closer to embracing “me” you guys send me constant notes saying how much you love this or that for me. And with every scary day navigating my mother’s illness you guys have checked on me, and even more kindly, on her. 

​The goal here is to stay consistent and write an update every month, updating you on my random little journey .

Next month, I’ll be writing from a little village in Italy I have dreamed of photographing.
At least I hope! I still need to buy the plane ticket when I find some time.
​I’m still working on that whole bit where I put myself first...
and I have a mound of editing to get to! 

Talk then! ;)
luv, ed
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