Mai Studio

My humble studio

If you read my last blog, you might recall I mentioned that I would share some details about my studio. Currently, my other half and I live in our first home in the picturesque Town of Sundre, located about an hour northwest of Calgary, Alberta along Highway 22/27, also commonly known as the Cowboy Trail. I love that this rural community offers us the best of both worlds: we are close to rivers, forests and mountains yet not too far from the amenities of the city.

But to get back on this week’s topic, my studio. It makes me smile whenever I call it my studio, when in reality it is part of our unfinished basement. At first, I was only taking up about a quarter of the space, and now, I’m almost using the entire basement, if I include our computer area, which also serves as my picture processing and printing station. It may not be the best photo studio in the world, but hey everybody has to start somewhere, right? I am very grateful to even have this modest yet accommodating space to begin with.

Down here you will find bare walls and ceilings without drywall, a cement floor, three sizeable windows that let plenty of light pour in, my props, backdrop, a dresser with drawers full of baby wraps and accessories, computers, printer, camera, lens and lights, as well as a furnace, washing machine and drier. The space is being used as a storage so there are several boxes. My studio is being used as a fitness room too, so I have a treadmill in here as well as some dumbbells and exercise steps. Additionally, you will see my sewing table, while we also store our snowboards and backpacking gear.

My baby section
Computer and printing area

It’s refreshingly cool down here, which is definitely pleasant during the summer heat waves. But it can get rather chilly during winter’s deep freezes, which is why I have a portable heater as well as a back-up, especially during a session with a newborn.

At this point, I am happy with what I have, but still aspire for growth. I always know that no matter where I will be in the future, I will always look back to our humble basement where it all started.

Sewing, backpacking and snowboarding gear storage plus exercise room

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