Reflecting On 2015

As 2015 comes to a close and we embark on a new year full of ups, down, changes, growth and so much more I wanted to take a look back on this year to talk about what I’ve learned and how far I’ve come along on this journey of finding myself creatively.

Whenever I do my end of year wrap up I see how much I myself, and my business, have grown.  I know it’s cliche to reflect and realize how far you’ve come, but if you’re not growing you’re stagnant.  And no business can thrive when stagnant.

I feel like this year has truly been a game changer for me.  I’ve opened myself up to new experiences like contacting photographers I admire (and actually becoming friends with them) to doing my first photography meetup.  Networking (in it’s true sense) is not my thing, but these interactions were more personal.  It was about making real, genuine connections with other people in my field rather than seeing what I could get out of them and vice versa.  I want to continue this into 2016 and beyond.  Learning from others in my field as well as helping them gives me a sense of accomplishment.  I like feeling like I’m contributing something worthwhile and I love having that sense of purpose.

I’ve also found my photography niche.  A lot of us when we get into this business tend to shoot whatever comes our way.  To keep it real, we’re just thrilled you’ll hire us to do anything so we take on things we may not even be interested in.  Taking on jobs like event or sports photography allowed me to test the waters in those areas and I learned I prefer not to do them.  This year is the last year I will be doing either of those genres of photography.  I prefer portraiture.  I love getting to know my clients on an intimate level.  Working with them for weeks to ensure their session is a success.  Bringing their vision to life.  Creating memories that they will treasure forever.  That’s what I’m passionate about.  And passion breeds success.

I’ve also found my photography style.  Boy was this a hard one!  There are so many styles of photography that I love (light + airy, dark + moody – polar opposites, I know), but for me clean, simple and colorful photography is what I truly adore.  After a few years of testing the waters with different shooting styles (if you’ve followed me for a while I’m sure you noticed I LOVED to shoot from a crooked angle) and using non-traditional edits on my photos I’ve finally stuck to a theme.  Having my shooting and editing style constantly change wasn’t helping me or my clients.  My style is consistent and now when clients book me they know exactly what to expect.

2015 was the year I had my first photo go viral.  It’s was a beautiful maternity session featuring one of my sorority sisters and her daughter.  I was surprised at the amount of love it received online.  I thought it was a beautiful photo, but having thousands of other people tell you so is a bit surreal.  Having something go viral has it’s pros (everyone sees your work…yay!) and cons (people decide to stamp it with their own logo and remove yours…boo!), but it was a special moment in time for me (and my client as well).  I also decided this year to begin focusing on elopement and intimate wedding photography.  I look forward to shooting more of those in the coming years and can’t wait to showcase those sessions.

I’m sure 2016 will have it’s own learning curves for me and my business and I fully embrace them, as I’ve done every year in the past.  Like the old saying goes “It’s about the journey, not the destination” and this journey of mine just keeps getting better and better.