When I look back at last year, one thing I notice is that it was a little bit different than some of the years past. Prior years I found myself consumed by my business and what was going on solely in that area of my life. Something changed last year though and I found my world growing bigger and bigger! More time spent focusing on my life outside of the business gave me a bit of a mental break from the vacuum that working for yourself can be sometimes. Doing that made me a stronger business owner and a better person. And it’s made me more well rounded, that’s for sure 🙂 One thing that’s especially helped has been focusing on the relationships outside of the wedding and photography industries…my industry friends are wonderful, but my “outside world” friends are a breath of fresh air that give me perspective when I find myself wrapped up in the small world that is the wedding industry!

Last year I became really close to my friend Shell, who I met through our gym. She and I are different in just as many ways as we are alike, and often she challenges what I think about things, but that’s one of the things I love about her! I love that she’s the kind of person who follows her own compass and doesn’t let others deter her from that. Shell and I became good friends fairly quickly, so I was so sad when she and her boyfriend, Chuck, moved last Fall to adventure across country!

Before they left, we went and took some photos near the water so that she and her boyfriend would have something to remember their time here. I loved photographing them and their dogs! It’s always so much fun to share my photography with friends…especially those who don’t get to see me in my “element” on a regular basis.

Enjoy a few of my favorites!