goals

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January 2018 Overview

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January was 31 days... 31 days that felt like 360. While the majority of my new years resolutions slipped away under the pressure of school,life, and any other excuse I can scramble to find, my photography goals (for the most part) were maintained. I shot a lot and after a couple of weeks it was barely an effort to do. Yes the first 14 days of January meant skipping lunch, skipping school (sorry Mom), and many times meant skipping social events, it soon felt natural and just part of the routine.

What I learned.....                                                                                                                                  Not every photo shoot has to be super deep or conceptual but it always helps to plan in advance (some of these shoots were planned in December). Start with an idea of a photo and move forward, its totally okay to branch away from the starting inspiration as the shoot goes on. And NEVER EVER be afraid of trying new things! It's the challenges that offer opportunity for growth.

Throughout the first month of 2018 I had various ups and downs, days where I felt great about my photography and days where I felt awful. This month however was the most productive period of time I've had regarding photography. I have made several new and revised goals I hope to achieve in the upcoming year. But here's what to expect in the upcoming month...

  • MORE BLOG POSTS
  • one large conceptual shoot a month
  • the rebirth and an explanation of my series "War Zone"
  • a pretty big and likely deep shoot as well as an  explanatory blog post coming out early-mid March (MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!!!)
  • videos?

Until then... here are some of my photos from this month

 

2017, a Reflection. 2018, a New Start.

     2017 was a year of overcoming obstacles and paving my way to self discovery. In Decemeber 2016 I set a few goals I wished to accomplish in 2017. Here they are... 

  • get fit 
  • get As 
  • book senior portraits
  • have a fun summer  

Get Fit. Well that sort of happened and then sort of unhappened. Throughout the spring and early summer I was in the best shape of my life. I didn't just look healthy, I felt healthy. Somewhere around August that started to fade away. I'm still a bit confused about whether or not this change was due to lack of exercise, food, hormones, or stress but I would guess it's a bit of everything. The past month I've begun to pick myself back up. 

Get As. Yeah no. I used to be an all honors all A student. Last year kicked my butt. Honestly I just didn't commit myself the way I had previous years. 100% my fault. Oh well, you live and you learn.

Book Senior Portraits. Yessssss. This was by far my biggest success of 2017. Not only did I book senior photos but I basically built an entirely new portfolio and fell in-love with photography all over again. I had never really charged for pictures before and was crazy nervous to just dive in but I did research (A LOT OF RESEARCH) and communicated with my peers and other creators and I got (pardon my French) shit done. Success. 

Have a fun summer. I did a lot this summer. I took senior photos, I worked at my other job, I played soccer in SWEDEN, I visited two of my best friends in Nantucket, but did I have fun? If I take each part individually then the answer would be "yes" but as a whole, no, I didn't have a fun summer. I may sound like a spoiled brat for saying that but I don't feel bad. Well yes... I feel bad but I shouldn't. This summer dug up some seriously emotional obstacles that I'm still trying to overcome and in the end I think I spent my summer focusing on the wrong things and the wrong people. Next summer will be different. 

     I don't think any of these goals were complete failures. I did give myself the skills and knowledge to be healthier, my grades in most of my classes improved from my first semester, I booked senior pictures, and I did make great memories with great people over the summer.  Here are some moments worth sharing... 

So maybe 2017 wasn't a complete disaster; good friends, memories, and lessons came from it. 

Here's to 2018, with almost the same goals but hopefully better results.

  • create a healthy lifestyle
  • read more
  • improve my organization 
  • create memorable moments
  • build my photography artistically 
  • become more aware and independent. 

Overall I wish to focus on myself and how I take care of both my mind and body. I want to push past my mental health issues and create my own happiness, as well as continue to capture these moments with my camera. 

what are your goals?

Welcome

New Year... New Me... New Website? 

Blogging is sooo 2016 but I've always been a couple years behind the trends. My goal for 2018 is to focus on me... me... and only me. Maybe this is selfish but it's also necessary. I tend to take on other people's problems, the world's problems, and I become weighed down by of things which I have no control over. But no more.

Part of working on myself is working on my brain and soul. This means more reading and writing for the brain and more artistic expression for the soul. 2017 has had many good days but it would be naive of me to ignore the frequent bad days, many of which (upon reflection) I have come to realize were avoidable had I just articulated my emotions. While blogging might be cheesy, I wish to use it as a way to connect my photography to my everyday life and furthermore to my brand. 

 *clinks wine glass with fancy butter knife*                                                                                   Here's to 2018... My Year.