As 2014 comes to an end, we wanted to reflect on this past year by sharing a little recap of our year. Reflections are so meaningful to us because our lives seem to be going by so quickly these days! Jay and I have so much to be thankful for and we are thrilled to work with so many lovely people year after year. We’re so grateful to each and everyone in the Idalia Photography family for continuing to support our art. We have so much to be thankful for and this list could easily have been 100 blog posts! Here are this year’s highlights:

One

We had the opportunity to shoot so many beautiful weddings this year! Thanks to our wonderful couples, we were able to spend so much of our time this year doing something we love and we are so fortunate!

Two

Jay and I love engagement sessions because they provide us with the opportunity to get to know our couples before the big day. We loved shooting engagement sessions this year and in such varied locations, too!

Three

My sweet little newborns… I am so grateful to so many loving parents for trusting me to photograph their newborn babies this year. So many sweet little ones documented in their first days of life!

Four

As of last year we owned all the gear we need for our business and no longer had to rent any back-up gear this year (Yipee!) but this year we made a few more purchases so that Jay and I also do not have to share. Because what photographer *really* likes to share?! From matching cameras to matching lenses and flashes, we each have an amazing set of gear! Click here to learn more about “What’s In Our Bag?”

Five

We made a few updates to our website and blog this year to help our visitors get to know us and our work in the easiest way possible. We finally added updated pictures of ourselves to the site, and our blog got a little facelift, too! We have been blogging so much this year, so we wanted to create a space where our readers could easily view our content. My favorite feature of the new blog layout is the Categories menu on the right that will allow you to view just the posts that you’re interested in.

Six

This year we started the Idalia Photography Monthly Newsletter. Ever since Facebook changed its algorithm and the organic reach of small business pages started to decline, we decided that we needed to find a better way to reach all of our clients and fans. We send the newsletter out at the end of each month to review what has happened in the last month at Idalia Photography, and it has been a great way to reach our clients without relying on social media. If you’d like to keep up with latest Idalia Photography news, updates, products, wedding planning tips, real weddings, and more, click here to sign up for the newsletter. The next issue goes out tomorrow so sign up today!

Seven

I love that industry professionals are always getting together to share ideas on photography, business, workflow, lighting, posing, and so much more. This year I attended three of these events and they were definitely a highlight: Justin & Mary Lighting Intensive,  CLIC Conference, Jerry Ghionis How to Wow Tour.

 

Eight

If you know me well, you know that I absolutely love wedding blogs, and I even launched The Learned Bride this year, my very own blog where I showcase weddings and engagements on university campuses and in museums. We follow many wedding blogs ourselves and we were thrilled to have our own couples published in 24 wedding blogs in 2014. Check out our featured work through our Categories menu or just click here: Publications.

Nine

Earlier this year we received the WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Awards™ 2014! Thank you to all the couples who took the time to review our business!

Ten

We got on the other side of the camera this year! Our two year anniversary shoot with French Grey Photography was a wonderful way to not only celebrate our love but also to remember what it feels like to be on the other side of the camera. Plus it gave us the opportunity to update the photos on our website :-)

Thank you for reading our Top 10 of 2014 blog post and thank you to all our clients for a wonderful year!  We are so grateful for all your support and encouragement as our business continues to grow.  We are so excited to see what 2015 has in store for us and look forward to keeping you updated on our blog, social media, and monthly newsletter. We wish you all a Happy New Year’s Eve and be sure to follow us on Instagram, Google+, FB, and Twitter in the new year!

We’d love it if you shared one (or more!) of your highlights of 2014 in the comments below!