June is a nice name for a girl.
But what is it like for photography? I have just come off a month of trying to find out. Every day in June, I got up out of bed in the dark whilst most lucky and some would say, 'very lazy people', didn’t arise until the sun was warming the seat at the local cafe, where smashed avo was being ordered and lattes were being brought to the lips of the desperate. I would awake and long to be ordering a two shot latte from my barista girls. The sound of tearing paper as the milk was warmed with skill. No, that was not my reality. I was on a quest, a noble quest to create photographic brilliance and I wasn’t to be swayed by such trivial things as a warm frothy latte.
The month started well and on day one I was greeted by a beautiful fog that was stretching out from the coast to the sea. This was going to be a piece of cake, I thought...... Day 2 and 3 and the rest of the week was going swimmingly....... I had this in the bag.......
Then around the start of week three, there was a glitch in the matrix. I was struggling. Doubt was creeping in, I wasn’t sleeping well and my wife made me a cup of tea with soya milk. I was wondering if I could actually finish this challenge, I was over it, I wanted to chuck it all in and eat avo toast and sip lattes like everyone else in Dunsborough. Why had God forsaken me?!
With a week to go I was getting feral, my personal hygiene was becoming more personal. I had bags under my eyes and, to be blunt, I started to look like Brad Pitt on a bad day. My wife didn’t recognise me anymore. All she saw was Brad Pitt on a bad day.
 Something had to give, my photos were rubbish, my creativity was at an all time low. And then it happened, a rainbow appeared over Sugarloaf Rock and I knew everything was going to be fine.
 So, what has this June challenge taught me? Nothing really, my wife made me do it…. Actually that isn’t true. I was having a whine to my daughter about how I want to retire and just make photos and music and avoid everything else. She quickly reminded me that is what I’m doing, so stop complaining. She’s off the Christmas list too, along with my wife.
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