2021 Wrap-Up

I suppose it’s only natural to reflect on a year at its close. While I’m not one to make new year’s resolutions, I think it’s a good idea to see where I’ve been, take note of my growth, and make plans for the future.

Things started getting back to normal in the first quarter after a dismal 2020, and I felt comfortable enough with masking protocols to put together a team for a restaurant shoot at Bob-O’s Cheesesteaks. They needed a lot of menu items shot on white with stark shadows which I concentrated on, while Christina Nuzzo of Life Mosaic Photography set her sights on providing beautiful editorial-style images of their food, interiors and some headshots. I really enjoy this teamwork approach, and feel it serves my clients well — we’re able to cover a wide range of photos and get in and out without taking up too much time or space in their restaurants.

I’ve had several commercial projects as well this year and can’t wait to share them, but for various reasons I have to wait a bit before I can do so. But it’s been an absolute pleasure to get back into rental studios with my clients or just continue on with remote shoots as I’ve done for several years.

On a personal note, 2021 pulled the rug out from under us for a time. Over the summer, my husband was diagnosed with a form of leukemia called CLL after some routine bloodwork and follow-up visits with an oncologist. The diagnosis came out of nowhere, so it was pretty sobering, but Gil’s doing well and continues to exhibit no symptoms and thus, needs no treatment. We hope that will continue indefinitely, and it’s entirely possible this will never progress. If you’d like to read more about it, Gil wrote about his experience early on in the weekly newsletter he sends out for his podcast, The Virtual Memories Show. I’m biased, of course, but it’s wonderful a wonderful weekly show and I encourage you to check it out if you enjoy conversations about “books and life, not necessarily in that order.”

For more on my photography activities and the things I found useful this year, read on.

Mentoring

I don’t know if I’ve ever discussed it here, but I’ve worked with a fantastic photography mentor for a few years now who pushes me to produce thoughtful images and take that extra time in post-processing to make something truly special and portfolio-worthy, like this set of images featuring NARS products. This particular series happened when he encouraged me to simply play and expand my parameters for what a product photo shoot could be.

I met Trace Aiken through the now-shuttered Arcanum after passing on several potential mentors who were focused on portraiture or landscape photography, but I knew he was the one when he told me about his career in commercial photography which included a lot of food photography. We’ve had so many amazing weekly discussions in the years since, and I can honestly say it’s been the best investment I’ve ever made in my photography journey!

Project 52

Narrowing it down to 2021, I have to say the best decision I made this year was to join Project 52, a year-long photography course led by Don Giannatti, with weekly commercially-focused assignments that get newbie photographers up and running and help those of us with more experience to broaden our horizons. The push is to get those people who want commercial assignments ready to find new clients, market to them, and be comfortable running a photo shoot. Each assignment is critiqued in a very positive online class setting, complete with suggestions for how an image can be improved.

My main goal was to work on areas that I usually don’t touch on with Trace (like portraits and shooting items that simply never would occur to me, like shoes or children’s book covers) and see what’s new in the world of marketing. Plus, I just missed being part of a group like in the old Arcanum days. It’s been so nice getting to know my fellow photographers and seeing everyone’s creative interpretations of the assignments.

Honestly, some of my favorite images this year were created for assignments in this course or as part of one of Don’s free courses sprinkled throughout the year. Enrollment is open for the 2022 class right now, if you’re interested in checking it out.

Marketing

Like I said above, I really wanted to focus on marketing this year. My efforts have been inconsistent, but I’ve worked hard to generate an ever-growing list of companies that could benefit from my services. I also created two print pieces for mailers that I’m proud of. The first was a magazine targeting the beverage industry; I pulled together some of my favorite cocktail and product images and shot new whiskey images specifically for it and couldn’t be happier with the result!

I also took advantage of a nice sale from Mpix to have some double-sided promo cards printed. I’ve used them for years and know their color is always spot-on; I just needed to print up a few samples on their different stock options to decide on the best one for my purposes, and they delivered exactly what I’d hoped. If you’d like to try Mpix for yourself, you can follow this affiliate link and receive a $10 coupon.

I also got serious about email marketing. I’m not convinced snail mail is the way to go just yet, especially now that the omicron variant is causing such havoc here in the northeast, but everyone still gets emails in the moment for their job.

I prefer to send out targeted emails after researching each potential client rather than using a scattershot approach through a list service. While I like MailChimp for reaching everyone on my opt-in mailing list, I wanted an editor for the targeted emails that would allow me to send through my business gmail account, and researched quite a few drag-and-drop editors looking for the best fit. Each had its benefits and drawbacks, but my favorite by far has been BEE. They offer free and paid tiers along with beautifully-designed templates or the ability to design your own, so everyone can send exactly what they’ve envisioned. If you follow the affiliate link above, you can sign up for a free trial of their paid tier, or you can just go directly to the site to try out their free editor.

Branding

I wrote about this a few months ago, so I’ll keep it short. This year, I finally decided to invest in hiring a branding designer to help me with my logo and color scheme to carry through my website, social media channels and marketing. While not a necessity for running a business (and why I waited so long to take the plunge), it adds that chef’s kiss to a business and makes it look just a tiny bit more professional to the discerning eye.

More Fun Stuff

I was beyond thrilled to win the 2021 IACP award for Best Commercial Food or Beverage Photo for the second year in a row! I created this image for a web design and photo project I took on for Greenwood Lake Roasters. It’s so fulfilling to build something from the ground up, but then to have it recognized in a professional setting is truly special.

2022 and Beyond

I already have two, and potentially three, big projects booked for January 2022! The first two months of every year are generally pretty slow for me, so I’m taking this as a positive sign of growth after the last two pandemic-stunted years.

I’m also exploring other avenues for getting my work in front of potential clients, and will update you as those become reality. Very exciting stuff, though, to be sure!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and wish you the best in the new year!