It’s finally 2017! This New Year is a big deal for me because this is finally the year that I graduate from college. Although I’ve seen so many friends go through graduating and moving on to new jobs and places, it’s still sinking in that that will be me in a few short months. 2017 will be all about figuring out how to navigate the “real world,” starting my first official full time job, moving to D.C. and of course, still learning and growing as a person and photographer.
I had a monotonous summer and then a crazy fall semester. I was handling 18 credits, interviewing, trying to find a job, while still on my dance team. However, what really threw me for a loop was how hard the semester was emotionally. I started to doubt things I hadn’t in years, I didn’t feel like I was doing well enough in multiple areas of my life and carried around the feeling that something was off and that I was doing the completely wrong thing.
Through my toughest time, one of the things I missed most was photography. Photography has always given me something to continue growing doing and helped me see the importance of finding the beauty in life and cherishing it. In 2017 I hope to continue to do both of these things as well as grow to become a better and stronger person. Here are some things I’m looking to accomplish this year for both in terms of photography & personally:
- Go full frame!
I’ve been shooting with the same camera for over 5 years now and I have been saving up for quite some time to finally buy a full frame Nikon camera. I know that this will be a game changer for me due to the increased quality that comes with full frame sensors as well as their ability to handle low light situations - Reach out and second shoot more
I spend HOURS reading photography blogs but most of the best way to learn is to get out there and learn on your feet! I was lucky enough to have two photographs have me second shoot along with them at weddings this past year (including a wedding during the fall semester)! I hope to continue to second shoot, gain more experience, and witness and capture more beautiful moments & wedding days! - Update & personalize my website
I bought this little corner of the Internet a while ago and started out using the basic template. This year I’ve seen so many other photographers go through website re-designs and it always keeps me striving to make my corner of the web a little bit more personalized. I’ve spent quite some time working on this over my Winter Break back home from UVA, but I have so many ideas of how I can continue to do so - Graduate, move out, start a job & explore (that was a lot)
It’s been a long four years and I can’t believe that soon all the crazy late nights will become worth it! I’m equally excited and scared out of my mind to graduate, move to a new apartment near DC, start working and start a new chapter of life. It never felt like I would make it this far, but now it’s actually happening! Along with this, I’m making it a goal to explore DC! I’ve lived half an hour from the place for the majority of my life but have never discovered all that the city has to offer - Embrace change & live better
As a person who has a tough time dealing with change, as exciting as it is, the bullet above gives me a bit of a hard time. My goal for 2017 is to simply embrace the change, not worry so much and get stuck in my head and instead, take action to make my life what I want it to become! This is of course easier said than done, but definitely worth working towards!
This year has taught me that all good things come in time. No one is an overnight success & great things take time, hard work, and persistence to build. I hope to take more action this year to continue to build & grow and I can’t wait to see where that will take me. Here’s to making 2017 a better year! If you’re still reading this, thanks for sticking through it & help me remain accountable to these goals!
