Each year when the clock strikes 12:00 on New Year's Eve I don't feel different. This year, it did. This is the first New Year that I have felt an overwhelming sense of having a "fresh start". This year feels like it's going to be a good year. This is not to say that 2011 was a bad one, it was far from. I just feel for me, both personally and professionally that this year will be even better!
Last year was the start to my long awaited photography career. I launched my website in August shortly before I shot my first wedding! What an amazing experience that was. Two huge milestones I only dreamed of reaching happening simultaneously.
It was a huge blessing to have my first wedding be of a friend of mine. It put me at ease and allowed me to be a part of my friends wedding in a way I wouldn't have been otherwise. I got to spend the entire day with her watching her magical day unfold second by second. I will hold her wedding in my memory for the rest of my life!
I have learnt so much in the last year about myself and my art. Learning to pick myself up after a disappointing shoot and letting go of the negative self-opinions that are always so eager to take over. I have had to learn to tell myself that I am just beginning. I'm not a seasoned pro of 10+ years with tons of experience under her belt. I'm a newbie. I say it loud, I say it proud. Everyone, in every field, has had to start somewhere. We all have to make mistakes and learn from them. This last year has taught me that. I can't give up when things don't go my way, or the way I expected them to. I have to keep trying and keep practicing because with each shutter release I can only improve. I will never pick up my camera and say, "I don't want to do this anymore!" Because the moment I pick up my camera, all the doubt and insecurities I feel fade away. There in that moment, with my camera in my hand, I feel my creativity flow and my eyes awakened to new things.
So, as 2012 is slowly unfolding I am seeing God's faithfulness in my life. I have booked my first wedding of the year in March for another dear friend! I could never have dreamed that I would have booked another wedding so soon! This is by far the biggest blessing of the year so far, and it's only January!!! I look forward to seeing where my career is going to go from here. Where God is going to lead me personally and in my walk with Him. There is so much promise in a fresh start. I look forward to every single moment of it!