Gratitude lifts our eyes off the things we lacks so we might see the blessings we posses.

Max Lucado

We do a lot of reflection this time of year. To say it was a challenging year would be an understatement. I saw photographers do porch projects and offer zoom instructions to help people photograph their own families. They were innovative and adaptive to the situation. I was fortunate to be able to wait things out and stick to the outdoors with my clients. But I took all of it in and over thought it all.

This year I added mini sessions close to home. I was able to upgrade my equipment to a new system. I was able to volunteer my time in different ways to different projects. All of which had a learning curve. So much new training was happening. And I’ve done must more networking than in the years past. Headshots were by far a huge part of the year. Though you don’t see those blogged. They were happening every other week. It is fun to see the new images pop up as profile photos and linked in photos.

My advise for those of you starting out. I would join as many photo forums you can and saturate yourself in all the tutorials and blogs. Post your photos for critiques. Shoot all the genres you can. Give back when you can. Some jobs are really priceless and everything you do doesn’t need to pay you monetarily. Handwrite your notes to clients and don’t neglect tangible products. Though we live in the internet and downloadable era most people appreciate prints, books, and gifts of all kinds. In the end it’s not about the photos only. It’s about the experience as well. So put equal effort into both areas. I have so much more to say, but you’ll have to come back for more.

My friends are back for another family session. They are absolutely the cutest and fun to play with. I enjoy every second with them.

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