My name is Jenna Luoto and I am a photographer.
And wife. And mother. And friend. And most importantly, servant of Christ.
You see friends, what I've learned is that to fully be true to who I am, I cannot separate any of these from one another. At this point in my life I simply must admit that I cannot do it all.
In 2008 I started this journey of photography, having my path paved every step by the Lord. Photography was always something I enjoyed but never a career path I imagined for myself. I was blessed by my husband and family with my first DSLR camera in early 2008. From then, this journey has unfolded in front of me. Friends of friends seeing photos I had taken, asking me to capture their special moment....and it spiraled from there. I cannot express how blessed I feel knowing how God has orchestrated every step of this journey for me. What an incredible feeling it has been to know I was living in God's will for my life! It has been so rewarding to be able to capture special moments in people's lives and to see the joy my clients have felt to have those images.
And yet, as much as my heart yearns for this, my path has hit a few road blocks. As blessed as I know I am by the journey I've been on so far, my calling over all things is to be a mother, a wife, a servant of the Lord, and a friend. If at any point those things are not being nurtured, it is my job to reevaluate my plate. Is what Im doing really blessing my life and my family and bringing glory to the Lord?
Recently, I've had to answer that with a "no," sadly.
Recently in my life, I have begun to feel stripped of joy, of contentment, overly stressed, and uncertain in my identity. Having a job (such as photography) that puts your vulnerable creativity into each piece of work presented to the world leaves you open to determining your success from people of this world. The TRUTH is, the only opinion that should matter is Christ Jesus. The only worth I need to base myself on is the worth I have in Christ. Without full confidence in who we are in Christ, this world will begin to define us....which will always lead to heartache, lack of confidence, and exhaustion. With great sadness, I will be honest in saying that I have unknowingly allowed the enemy through such slow and deceitful ways to bring me to this place. The enemy knows my weaknesses and has used them, through photography and other aspects of life, to bring me to a place I do not want to be. It has begun to affect relationships in my life and who I have become. What I need in my life is to fully draw into the Lord and return to the place where HE fills every part of me. To a place where HE is all I need and all I seek. I know that this will be a journey and will require sacrifices along the way. For me, right now, my photography is one of the things I need to strip away.
Again, I want to say that I am so beyond grateful for each one of you. Whether you are a client, a Facebook 'liker', or simply someone who stumbled upon this blog post and has actually read all the way through so far! This has been a wonderful journey and it is all been possible because of those who have chosen to encourage and support me in it. Please don't get me wrong, I have loved every chance I have had to photograph precious milestones in so many people's lives. It has nothing to do with that. This is a personal journey in my life.
So, I will state directly that Dolce Photography will be on pause for a while as I take a sort of sabbatical in my life. PLEASE NOTE: Those clients who I already have booked and those who are already in correspondence, DO NOT FEAR! I would never not honor that and will give you my very best effort and work! I will finish out the next couple months with the clients who are already booked, but at this point will not be taking on any further sessions until I feel the Lord calls me back (if He does).
Past clients with inquiries or clients looking for recommendations can still contact me through my website www.dolcefoto.com. I will keep my Facebook page active, but will not be accessing it much, except to update fans with any news I feel they would benefit from.
Until.......
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"Many are the plans of the heart, but the Lord's purpose prevails." Proverbs 19:21
"And do not be wishing you were somewhere else or with someone else. Where you are right now is Gods place for you. Live and love and obey and believe right there." 1 Cor. 7:17
"Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10
"But because I have done what is right, I will see you. When I awake, I will be fully satisfied, for I will see you face to face." Psalm17:15
