2022 is tomorrow! And you may or may not have followed through on your new year’s resolutions this year, but a new year means that it’s time to reflect on all that you’ve achieved in the past year and make a new set of goals for the upcoming year. Now, whether you want to eat healthier or want to start booking high-end brides, or add family portraits to your list of services in 2022, what you put in that list of resolutions is completely up to you. As a photographer, one of the things that remain constant throughout your career is learning, and whether that learning means acquiring new skills or taking it slow and making time for doing things that you love, the new year could be a great time to manifest all of that. And if you can’t think of any resolution ideas to add to your list, this blog mentions some activities that can be beneficial for you and your business for years to come.
New Year’s Resolutions To Add To Your 2022 Plan
1. Network, Network, Network
Whether you exclusively shoot portraits or are more focused on engagements and weddings, networking is one of the keys to running your business successfully. Networking with other vendors, going to events where you can find potential clients, attending photographer-related networking events are some of the ways you can connect and meet with potential clients as well as vendors who could also boost your business. If you are more introverted and the thought of networking just sends you running in the other direction, perhaps you could consider this new year’s resolution as a challenge. Also, who says you have to attend allll the events? Just attend a few networking events and conferences (including WPPI in February), and once you start getting comfortable with the flow of things, go pro!
2. Experiment With New Gear + Photography Techniques
Have you been eyeing new lighting equipment or a new camera throughout the year but never got around to actually trying it out? Well then, here’s another new year’s resolution for you. You don’t necessarily have to buy new gear; you could just rent whatever you have been looking for and see whether it works for you. And if it works and actually helps you shoot better and give your clients a better experience, then, if practical, go ahead and make that investment for yourself and your business.
Additionally, you may already have a specific photography technique or style that you have honed over the years and market to your potential clients, but experimenting with new styles and techniques could also be helpful when it comes to evolving as a creative professional. Do you research or talk to your photographer friends and find some time to try out something that is different from what you usually do? If you weren’t motivated or committed enough to do this before, perhaps considering it a new year’s resolution might do the trick.
Suggested Read: Wedding Photography Styles: ShootDotEdit’s Favorites
3. Learn Something New
Investing in education – of any kind – is never money or time wasted. Learning something new doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to learn something that boosts your business or adds to your skill set as a wedding or portrait photographer. If you have the will and time to learn something that helps in your personal development, then we highly recommend going for that too. But if you want to learn how to market your business better or how to design stunning albums for your clients – that’s a great new year’s resolution to add to your list too. Whether you go with a business skill or decide to learn a new language, try to focus on what you will enjoy the most. That way, you might just end up taking it into the next year.
Suggested Read: Why Photographers Need To Discover Sue Bryce Education – Vendor Spotlight Interview With Nikki Closser, Host Of The Portrait System Podcast
4. Lessen Your Workload
We understand that this might be making it to your new year’s resolutions list for the past several years, but this time, we are here to tell you that this might actually be easier said than done. We are not telling you to stop taking bookings or say no to potential clients, but simply follow the motto ‘work smarter, not harder’. One way to do this is by creating a list of tasks that require your attention and can’t be done by anyone else. Then, from the essential tasks that are left, consider outsourcing the ones that take too much of your time, or you just don’t like doing. For example, blogging, photo editing, and bookkeeping are some of the tasks that you could consider outsourcing to an expert.
Related Read: Top 5 Things Successful Wedding Photographers Outsource
5. Take Care Of Yourself
This might seem a little obvious, but in the middle of managing a photography business and ensuring that your clients get the best experience, taking care of yourself might not always make it to your TDLs. Therefore, this is one of those new year’s resolutions that deserve to be on your list every year. Taking care of yourself can mean different things to different photographers. So whether it’s unwinding with a skincare routine every night or taking out 1 hour each day to exercise, or going to therapy – in 2022, try to make sure that you do a little something for yourself each day. This way, you avoid burning out, and you also nurture yourself. If you really want to give your clients an unforgettable experience, you need to be in top form. So, protecting your mental and physical health is non-negotiable.
Suggested Read: Wedding Photography Burnout: Signs, Prevention, & Recovery
Take Baby Steps For Success
We understand that not everyone can keep up with (or even list out) new year’s resolutions. And some of you might even hate the idea of coming up with resolutions for the new year. But that’s alright; we all have our own ways to accomplish goals. For those of you who already have a list of new year’s resolutions but find it challenging to stick with them, we would strongly recommend focusing on doing things that you enjoy or at least finding ways to enjoy the things you want to do next year. Whether you are doing something for your photography business or something that helps in your personal growth, the trick to sticking with it is to enjoy the journey of simply focusing on the end result instead. You might get to where you want to be in a week or month, or year’s time, but if you take a deep dive into it just for the sake of doing it, we can’t guarantee that you’d be sticking with that resolution for long.
Further Read: Managing Client Expectations: Wedding Photography Tips
At ShootDotEdit, we are committed to helping you grow as a wedding photographer. To help you dedicate more time to achieving your business and creative goals, we lessen your post-production workload with our professional photo editing services. To learn more, check out our pricing plans.