It’s really something to be able to scroll back over the years of shooting and look at a full collection of my work. There are moments that worked among ideas that didn’t. There are serendipitous moments, moments when the light is just right, when all the colors fall into place, when the angle clicks better than I thought it would. There are images that look just like I hoped they would.

Looking through past shoots, I saw test shots that became favorites because it was a moment caught in-between. There are impossible shots that somehow made it out, not only alive, but completely perfect. There are “let’s just try this and see what happens” moments. There are shoots where I showed up someplace sight unseen and walked straight in to a photographer’s paradise.

All those tiny decisions, all those moments of pure luck, years of learning what my favorite light is, how to micro-adjust, it all becomes second nature, and then you step back and realize just how much is happening underneath it all.

And none of it happens alone. Every image here also exists because someone trusted me enough to allow me to point a camera at them. They said “yes” when I asked “Could we try this?”, they let me adjust their hair, straighten their jewelry. They went along with the process.

And they were all so inspiring. Most people I photograph are building something of their own. They’re business owners, creatives, women chasing a passion, a version of a life they’re trying to pull into focus, and there’s a wonderful energy there. We laugh, we pause to walk, we settle into the vibe, and then somewhere among all of that, our photos start to take shape.

Here are some of my favorites. There are many more, but I remember the moment each one of these was taken, the moment the shutter clicked and I glanced at the back of my camera and thought, “Oh, I love this one!”

Denise Karis is an Arizona brand photographer who enjoys cooking, theater, and a good time travel movie. IG @denisekaris