Happy New Year!

Regular readers to my blog may have noticed I’ve been a bit quiet in the last few months, so sorry for that. I have been regularly updating this blog for the last two years without stop, so I kinda figured I deserved a little break during the winter. Am I forgiven?

Hopefully so, because I have a load of great stuff planned for 2013!

New Year is always a great time for someone who’s as analytical and inward thinking as me. I always spend way too much time thinking about the past year, what was awesome, what didn’t go so well, and what things I have to look forward to and which areas I need to make the biggest changes.

Setting good photography goals is easy, just remember to make them genuine, realistic and useful. Set yourself goals that matter. Not wishy washy ones that don’t challenge you, and not hugely ambitious ones you know you will give up on by Easter.

So this is what I’ve got, these are my “big five” goals for 2013.

More Personal Work

My absolute single biggest regret of 2012 was that I just didn’t shoot, share or invest in a lot of personal work. By that I mean, I just didn’t pay much attention to good times with family, day trips, memories, or even small or long term personal photography projects. All I shot last year was concentrated on weddings and stock photography. In 2013, I plan todo more wedding and portrait work, but balance this out with more personal photos that I can enjoy and experiment with.

More Sharing And Printing

Looking through all the photos I took last year, I probably only shared via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc, maybe 1 photo for every 100 I shot. I put so much effort in with coming up with ideas, spending ages shooting and editing photos, to then just leave them on my computer where no one can see them. I’ve really got to stop doing it. In 2013, my big aim is to share as many of my photos as I can, with as many people as I can. This also includes actually getting some images printed, framed and on the wall at home where I can see them.

More Training

I have spent the last two years or so learning everything I can about photography, lighting, marketing, setting up a business etc. So far I am entirely self-taught, thanks to a few books, the Internet and a lot of free time. But I think I have pretty much come up against the wall of what I can teach myself about photography. I think this year is about time I can make big leaps with my knowledge by getting some practical and unique advice and experience from other photographers. I will be looking to book myself on a few training courses and workshops, hosted by experienced photographers I admire. This should hopefully give me access to new information and ideas, and really take my skills as a photographer to the next level.

More Stuff To Play With

The next year is going to be a very exciting and probably expensive time for new camera gear. Over the last 12 - 18 months I’ve slowly but surely built up my range of equipment to match my shooting style and intended work. So of course in 2013, I do have some camera gear related goals.

First off I will looking to pick up the soon to be announced Canon 35mm f1.4 II, which will probably be used for 75% or more of what I shoot, so I don’t mind a bit of investment on that one lens, even if it going to be pretty pricy. Secondly, I am very interested in picking up a smaller, lighter companion camera to my DSLR, something with great image quality that I can use for travel photography and my more personal work. It will probably be either the Fuji X100 or Olympus OMD-E5 successor, but I will keep my eyes open to anything else thats released during the year as well.

More Risks

I took a fair few risks in 2012. Including shooting my first ever wedding, with just two prime lenses and missing half a finger (long story). And that risk really paid off. I shot the wedding, the clients loved the images and I had the most amazing time of my life with a camera in my hand. And I was lucky enough todo it again a month later, second shooting with the fantastic Aaron Storry. Awesome opportunities only arise when you start taking risks, so my 2013 is going to be full of them.

So these are my big areas for improvement and development for the coming year.

What are your big plans and ideas for 2013? What do you need todo *NOW* to make this year even better than the last?