Your photography is beautiful!
Thank you, it's really fun! I’ve been working on it about three years now. I’m mostly self-taught from videos on YouTube and some books. My first year was just for fun, landscapes and wildlife. My second year, I tried a wedding that was stressful—a lot of pressure on the day, but looking back, it was a lot of fun.
With all of us staying home, do you have any tips to share, especially for those of us obsessively taking pics of our dogs?
I don’t love the term “furbaby,” but that’s what he is—he’s the best! As far as tips, the hardest thing is to just get outside and try. I can take 100 photos and only one or two work out, but that one or two are really sweet. Another tip is to tape a treat to the top of your camera lens. Other than that, I just try to desensitize them to taking pictures and try to capture their goofy selves. There are some moments when you just don’t have your camera, and truly the best camera is the one you have on you.
Things look very quiet and relaxing on your feed. In addition to your photography, you’re also a talented illustrator! Is that a newer practice of yours?
I’m a graphic designer as my full-time position, and I’ve been doing hand lettering for a few years as an interest, but I never promoted it because I thought it wasn’t good enough. A friend of mine said, “You’re never going to think it’s good enough, so just put it out there and see what happens.” Sure enough, I got about 10 jobs from that post! That was a good lesson to put myself out there. If nothing happens, at least you tried, but you might get more than you bargained for.
What have you been doing to keep busy and relieve stress during this time?
It's been a challenge, for me and a lot of people, to figure out how to cope with this strange new Covid world we’re living in. I take CBD every morning, that helps a ton, and evening sometimes too. [See below for Jordan’s Iced Matcha CBD latte recipe.] On top of that, exercise has been so important; even though I hate it sometimes, getting outside for an hour really helps. I’ll still eat what feels like a gallon of ice cream, but cooking healthy meals has also been really helpful.
How has working remotely gone for you? Any tips to stay on task?
For me, waking up at 8:30 a.m. every morning ensures that I’ll be productive. At noon, I have lunch, and at 5:00 p.m. I’m done. Being firm with my schedule has been super important. I set three reminders to get up, no really get up, no seriously get out of bed! Preparing for the day and putting on a little makeup has helped too.
Check out Jordan’s site and Instagram to follow her happenings.
Instagram: @jordan.mileski
Website: jordanmileski.com
Emily Upton
Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Emily has worked in the industries of non-profit, art and wellness. An enthusiastic convert to Southern California, she is still amazed by the near-everyday sunny weather.