2011 Year in Review
2011 was a very good year, and I feel incredibly blessed as I reflect back at the last 365 days. I am grateful to have photographed 12 weddings, developed amazing relationships with friends, spent quality time with family. I met an incredible woman, became a full-time photographer, sold my house in Denver and moved to Minneapolis, and developed as a person and creative professional.
I’m an open person and love to share my knowledge and enthusiasm for life, as illustrated 174 blog posts this year! To all my blog readers, thank you for your loyal readership! And for those who who comment, thank you for making my heart happy! I share in this blog post a recount of a few favorite 2011 happenings, divided into 6 categories:
1. Appreciate Friends & Family.
Spending quality time with friends and family ranked as my number #1 goal for this year. I was amazed to look back such awesome experiences this year shared with friends and family (too many to list here).
Meeting new friends via Couch Surfing
Mark’s Change of Command Ceremony
Easter on my birthday with my folks
Epic engagement proposal weekend with family
A meet-the-parents’ car weekend in Carmel, CA and we hosted a meet in Lake George, NY with family.
Enjoying Lake Harriet and my new home
Thanksgiving near Fargo, ND with a combined meet-the-parents weekend.
My Photo Guys Bachelor Party (unpublished)
A Holiday Fun-Booth with new friends
Spending time with my new family in Fort Collins
2. Enjoying the Simple Things in Life.
Life really is good and should be enjoyed! Taking time to smell the flowers in life I have found yields some of the greatest rewards and happiness. Just by SLOWING DOWN, I’ve found inspiration in sharing my enthusiasm about life by writing blog posts and personal work. I love savoring the new sights and sounds of landscapes and have been am blessed to have been able to explore so much of this planet this year!
Do what you love, and do it often
If you can’t beat them, shoot for free!
Invisible ghost trains in Denver
A Perfect Pairing (kids and wine)
Going Fishing on Kodiak Island, AK
Savoring downtime in the first snow of MN
Tomte dolls bring home the holiday spirit
New Year’s Eve Fireworks in Vail, CO
3. Getting Engaged.
When you know, you know. Read all about it here (Please, don’t judge). I share my thoughts on planning a wedding as a wedding photographer here.
4. Choosing a Positive Attitude when facing Adversity.
“We are already perfect and only have to believe it to demonstrate it. That, and I love knowing I’m always in the right place at the right time for the right reason. I’ve learned to be patient to not have to know what that reason is.”
My buddy, Cameron, mentioned these words to me about 13 months ago while hiking and it made a big impression on me. I wrote the wisdom on a yellow sticky note, taped inside my Colgate datebook/planner (detailed in this post). I must have read and re-read the phrase about 200 times during 2011. And I think it made a big difference: knowing that we can choose our attitude on ANYTHING.
Selling a Home and Moving Away
My WPPI print getting ‘lost’ by UPS
Nikon Shutter issue “Error, CHA…”
Of all the things in life we can control, our attitude is the most important!
5. Checking off Goals.
Yipee!!! I was able to check off over 22 goals from my 101 in 1001 goals! Among them:
Decorate my studio space with my work, branded to my style.
Complete an online promo video showcasing me and my shooting style.
Help others by posting a on photography forum once per week for 3 months.
Pay-off my car.
Customize my car to my liking.
Shoot a wedding on another continent.
Shoot a bridal session in Alaska.
Get published in a nationwide magazine (non-bridal).
Photograph wildlife on Kodiak Island, Alaska.
Complete my cactus portrait project.
Work with an SEO expert to optimize my WordPress blogsite.
Hang an original Jeff Newsom print on my wall.
Shake hands with National Geographic Photographer Joe McNally and David Hobby.
Create a Chrysler 300 Letter Car calendar
Update my the headers on my blogsite.
Update my portfolio images on my website at least once a year
Redesign my website for improved functionality and share to others what they can do.
Complete my Toastmaster’s Competent Communicator manual.
Get published in my alma mater alumni magazine, The Colgate Scene.
Create awesome kern-photo client schwag.
Create an Ask The Expert Category with 5 articles completed (stay tuned next week for the 6th installment focused on marketing).
6. Never Stop Learning & Growing.
One of my greatest accomplishments this year was setting out to share as much as I could on my blog with the photography world. My end result, 33 blog posts of Photo Tips & Tutorials. CLICK HERE TO SEE THEM ALL >>
As Mark Twain said, ‘Never let school interfere with your education.’ As such, I strongly value the importance of continued education in my business and professional photography. I figure I’ve spent probably $6,000 in attending two large workshops held at destinations, two small local workshops, and a conference in New Orleans. Pile on top of that books, magazines, blog posts… and the learning never stops.
I’m proud of accolades from 2011 including:
with follow-up articles:
In sum, past performance does NOT predict future outcome. When the new year starts, the clock resets and it is up to us to push forward the hands.
Cheers to a Happy 2012!!
R. J.
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