I wanted to wait until I was well shot of 2012 before writing a post about lessons I’ve taken away from the year, hence why this is coming SO far after New Year’s. Last year, I didn’t do any sort of “what worked, what didn’t work?” post because I was too afraid to examine my own shortfalls, but I know it’s a healthy practice so here we go!

1) Portraits vs. landscapes. Holy cow, my ratio of vertical to horizontal images is WAY out of wack! There’s just something about the 50 1.2 that looks SO good when oriented vertically! But then when I’m blogging the images and realize I only have 3 landscape images to choose from? That just serves as an indicator of how difficult it’s going to be to design even album spreads. Not to mention the fact that my couples may be disappointed by the lack of variety. It’s something I’ve been working on, and I definitely saw improvement as the year went on, but I still have a lot of room to grow in 2013.

2) The almighty  Histogram! I actually didn’t know how to read these until I attended J&M’s Walk Through A Wedding. It was something other photographers talked about with such ease that I didn’t want to risk looking like a total n00b by asking, so I just…never asked. But then when Justin finally explained it, it made SO much sense! I learned how to properly recover blacks and whites in my images, instead of WAY oversaturating the blacks until it created these hideous vignettes. It took my editing to a new level, and I can’t believe I waited SO long to learn something so crucial.

3) Switching lenses really does matter. I used to think that I could shoot an entire wedding with my 50 1.2. And while that’s *technically* true, as in, I COULD do it, I would never utter such a statement again. Some people have that one lens that they ALWAYS keep on their camera because it’s their absolute favorite, the one they’re most comfortable with, etc. etc. I did indeed used to use my 50 that way- the only times it came off was for macro shots and during the ceremony. But now, since I’ve been blessed to have a variety of lenses in my camera bag, I’ve learned that shooting with different lenses in different situations is what works for ME. I still have my favorites, but I learned that there’s VALUE in knowing which lens works best for each situation.

4) Becoming really particular about who I work with. Around this time last year, I learned that saying “I think I know someone else who would be the PERFECT fit for you” would actually GROW my business more than taking every couple that came my way. So I got serious about only booking those types of couples with whom I felt I really fit well. It’s not because there’s anything at all wrong with brides & grooms who don’t *click* with me, it’s just that, if you’re going to be paying thousands up thousands of dollars for your wedding photographer, I think you deserve to hold out for someone who fits perfectly with you and your fiance. And I’ve noticed that when I’m REALLY excited about a couple’s wedding? The entire experience is more fulfilling, more inspiring, more enjoyable for me too. And if I’m going to struggle through the pangs of being a small business owner, I want to give each and every one of my couples my absolute best.

5) Refining my second shooter gigs. Up until last January, I was allowing my second shooters to shoot on their own cards and do whatever they wanted with the ensuing images, just as long as they waited for me to blog/publish them first. I did things that way because that’s how they were done with me when I was learning in the beginning, and I wanted to freely give because everything had been freely given to me. It ended cause a lot of complications, though, what with trying to get the images from my seconds (do they leave me with their cards? Send me a hard drive?), and then even MORE complications when it came to blogging images I may not have given to my couples, so I switched methods. These days, I hand my second shooter a set of cards in a Pixel Pocket Rocket carrier, and at the end of the night, they hand it back to me. I make sure to fully inform my seconds from the beginning that they won’t have any images to take home, but because I’m having other establish photographers shoot with me, they don’t generally need the portfolio work anyways. Plus, now we don’t have to worry about sending cards/hard drives/thumb drives back and forth!

6) My branding really does affect the type of audience I attract. Two years ago, when I was first exploring the possibility of having a website, I didn’t think the types of colors and textures I chose for my brand would matter very much. I didn’t take into account that an “inexpensive” blog + website combination wouldn’t attract my ideal clients, not did I think about the types of images and verbiage I was putting onto my blog. Then around this time a year ago, I decided it was time for a change, and I shelled out the big bucks to work with the lovely ladies of Earl & Layne. They took my online presence to a whole new level, and I’ve seen a change in the types of inquiries I’m receiving as a result. Branding is WORTH the investment!

7) Off-camera lighting is NOT as scary as I originally thought. Having ADHD, I’m easily overwhelmed by things I don’t understand, and when I’m overwhelmed, I just never start. Up until this past June, that was my story when it came to off-camera flash (OCF). I had all the tools I needed to use a flash off-camera, but I was so overwhelmed and intimidated that I left the equipment at home on wedding days. Once I attended Walk Through A Wedding, though, and had it throughly explained to me, I kicked myself for not implementing it earlier. Learning to use a flash has saved. my. LIFE this year on numerous occasions. Gary & Clarisse’s reception was in a gorgeous ballroom at the Omni Shoreham, but there was absolutely no natural light coming in and if I didn’t know how to use my lighting set-up, the resulting images would have been flat and lackluster. Seamus & Alex’s wedding took place on a cold, cold December day, and while we were fortunate enough to have well-lit indoor locations prior to the ceremony, I didn’t have the same luck for post-ceremony bridal party shots. So I corralled everyone into an empty room at the Belvedere and, using my off-camera flash, created my favorite bridal party portrait ever.

As for things I need to work on this year, the list is long. There are things I struggled with last year that I have yet to feel like I’ve mastered, so perhaps we’ll do another post on “things I think I’ll probably regret not doing this year”   :).

What about you all? What were some major lessons learned for y’all in 2012?