2012 in review

In the rollercoaster year of 2012, I worked at four newspapers in three provinces, graduated from Loyalist, retired my 16 year old minivan (RIP Grape), packed and unpacked too many times to count, and got my first permanent job as a jack-of-all-trades multimedia journalist at a small-town weekly. I've tried to keep my photography up to par and continue to improve, while juggling the occasional video, writing 10-12 articles a week, and trying to throw my name out there as a freelancer. One shoot for the Toronto Star in, I don't really feel like a successful freelancer, but hope more may come with time and with coercive badgering on my part.

In working for a weekly, I miss the quick turnarounds and mentoring aspect of working with other photographers. Seeing the opportunities others have been given to work in the field can be disheartening in an unproductive "woe is me" way. I know this isn't my permanent position and I'm trying to work my way up, as best as I know how. 

Here's approximately one photo per month of 2012:

CALGARY, Alta. (06/01/12) - Sam Hester stands in one of the dramatically painted rooms in her house on 23 Ave in Calgary on January 6, 2012. Hester is a cartoonist and painter passionate about her neighbourhood. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Calgary Herald.

KINGSTON, Ont. (13/02/12) - Vicki Keith, champion marathon swimmer and multiple world record holder, is seen at the YMCA in Kingston on Monday, February 13, 2012. Keith was the first person to swim across all five Great Lakes, as well as multiple other bodies of water. Photo by Rachel Psutka.

BELLEVILLE, Ont. (03/03/12) - Corbin Davies, 9, of Belleville takes to the air while ballet instructor Kristina McIntosh and fellow hopeful Emilie Anderson, 10, of Cobourg watch during the Quinte Ballet School of Canada's professional school auditions on March 3. Photo by Rachel Psutka.

WATERLOO, Ont. (19/04/12) - Wilfrid Laurier University student Emily Kennedy celebrates the end of exams by making a mid-air trek between two trees, also known as slacklining, at Waterloo Park on Thursday, April 19. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Waterloo Region Record.

GUELPH, Ont. (28/05/12) - Jackie Unsworth takes in a hot afternoon with her first ice cream of the season Monday along the Speed River in Guelph. Temperatures soared to 33 C by the afternoon with a humidex making it feel more like 38 C. The heat will continue into Tuesday along with thunderstorms, which will cool the area down by Wednesday to temperatures in the teens and low 20s. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Guelph Mercury.

GUELPH, Ont. (14/06/12) - Around 30 people, including a handful of children, gather for a tour of the dam on Guelph Lake as part of the Two Rivers Festival in Guelph on Thursday, June 14. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Guelph Mercury. 

GUELPH, Ont. (01/07/12) - New Canadian citizen Harish Vasudevasarma (left) watches as his fellow new Canadian John Ford is greeted by his 21 month old son Charlie at Guelph's Canadian citizenship ceremony on July 1. Vasudevasarma, a native of India, and Ford, a native of England, were amongst the 41 new Canadians welcomed at the ceremony. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Guelph Mercury.

GUELPH, Ont. (29/08/12) - Clelia Porzio-Gouveia, 7, practices her silks skills with the help of Jessica Martin of Centre of Gravity circus summer camp in Guelph on Wednesday, August 29. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Guelph Mercury.

This summer, I spent several mornings and long, hot and dusty days in the fields with four young farmers documenting their life on the farm and their dedication to organic growing methods. See more on my website.

ELORA, Ont. (18/06/12) - Yehuda Nestel, owner of Plowshare Farm near Elora, takes a break after lunch at the century-old farmhouse in June 2012. Photo by Rachel Psutka, Guelph Mercury.

KINGSTON, Ont. (11/09/12) - A heron stands along the shore of Lake Ontario in Kingston, Ont. on Sept. 11, 2012. Photo by Rachel Psutka. 

ANTIGONISH, N.S. (04/10/12) - Ella MacDonnell (left) and Lauryn Burke take part in a Terry Fox run with Children’s Place Day Care at Antigonish’s Columbus Field Thursday, Oct. 4. Photo by Rachel Psutka, The Casket.

ANTIGONISH, N.S. (14/11/12) - Former prime minister Brian Mulroney jokes with Central Nova MP Peter MacKay, alumni and students after a speech at StFX Wednesday, Nov. 14. Photo by Rachel Psutka, The Casket. 

St. ANDREWS, N.S. (13/12/12) - Grade 2 students Brayden Michaud (left) and James Deon are rocking as cool Santas during the St. Andrews Consolidated School Christmas concert Thursday, Dec. 13. Photo by Rachel Psutka, The Casket.

Starting this fall, I began a longer-term documentary project with a local man whose life was drastically changed by a car accident five years ago. Working with Darrell has been insightful and a highlight of my weeks, and I'm far from done. More to come here in 2013.

ANTIGONISH CO., N.S. (13/12/12) - Darrell Lake leans over in his power wheelchair to greet one of his dogs, Polo, in his trailer on his acreage outside St. Andrews on Dec. 13. Despite a life-altering car accident five years ago, Lake manages to maintain an active lifestyle, restoring and adapting vehicles to his needs, breeding Bernese mountain dogs and socializing with friends and family in and around his Antigonish County home. Photo by Rachel Psutka.