Best of 2024 - A Year in Images
Welcome to my 8th annual round-up of my favourite images! If you’re new to these blog posts, this is where I show my favourite images from the last calendar year and write my own statistical summary and whatever else I feel like mentioning! As you can already see it’s very subjective but I do it as a way to reflect (which is always a good thing in my opinion) as well as mark another year in business so I can look back and remember what the year looked and felt like.
2024 marked the year that photography officially felt like a job. That may sound like a bad thing, but I don’t mean it that way. When I started photography as a full-time gig in 2017 straight out of university (I photographed a wedding the day after I graduated), photography consumed all my thoughts. There was no work-life balance and it was an emotional roller coaster—my emotions hinged on whether I was getting inquiries and bookings. I would have a period every year where there would be a lull in bookings and I would doubt myself. I was always thinking about how I could improve my business, take better pictures, and work with awesome people who wanted to get married in my ideal places. I wouldn’t say I had significant burnout like people talk about, but I do think that 2020 with the pandemic and a rise in small weddings was a good reality check. It forced me to transition to what I was already trying to do—specialize in elopements. It was the best decision I’ve made in my business. Even though I sometimes miss the visual variety that comes with weddings, my work-life balance is a lot better. So what do I mean when I say this feels like a job now? It means that I have mental boundaries about when I answer emails and schedule elopements, and I’m able to have hobbies and see friends on weekends in the summer. The 2018 me couldn’t have imagined that! My thoughts aren’t constantly consumed by work, and I don’t worry about when there is a lull in inquiries because I know they will pick up again like they do every year. I still love what I do and I’m so grateful to meet so many wonderful people and guide them through the planning process; I just also love my life outside of work!
Overall this last year has been pretty stable and even though it’s boring to report, it’s been wonderful to experience. Gardening/landscaping in our yard really became a highlight this year. Even though gardening is a slow and constant project, it’s really rewarding to see things come to life. I did kill some plants but, “live and learn” as they say.
At the end of October, we brought home our new black cat Watson who is such a sweetie but also a menace. I love him to bits! I showed my true millennial self and have already bought way too many toys, 3 bird feeders so he can watch them through the window, and I am constantly overanalyzing how he’s doing. I’m already thinking we may need another cat so he can have a friend.
If you didn’t know already, I’m a pretty big Swiftie, and I had the unique experience of going to see her twice this year. I didn’t think I was someone who was that big into concerts, but luck with Taylor Swift tickets was really on my side. The first time was in Germany when some good friends had an extra ticket. At first, it was a bit of a joke “wouldn’t that be crazy if I went to Germany to see Taylor Swift” but as I pondered on it further, I thought, “why not?” And thus started an adventure I’ll never forget. I even made a custom denim jacket for the concert which I’m quite proud of. The only problem was, going to the concert just made me want to go again—specifically here at home in Vancouver for her last stop. Despite intense efforts, I wasn’t able to get tickets through the last-minute ticket drops, and I refused to pay resale value and reward the scalpers. However, my friend (Ivah) and I got extremely lucky and while checking out the big light-up signs in downtown Vancouver, we were in the right place at the right time to take part in a contest to win tickets through Rogers. We had to answer 3 trivia questions and if we got them all right, we won 2 tickets. We were very nervous and the questions were not easy, but we managed to get them all correct! It was so special to see her in our hometown!
Some other things of note:
I chopped my hair off and it is now the shortest it’s ever been since I was a little kid. No life crisis here, just decided I was done having the same long hair that I’ve had for basically two decades.
My family and I entered the gingerbread competition at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Vancouver. We obviously didn’t win anything but it was fun to be a part of a creative community event. We spent 7-8 evenings planning, baking, putting together, and decorating our gingerbread houses. We were really happy with how they turned out as we had never done gingerbread houses from scratch before.
We had more friends/family get married in one year than ever before (6 total) and only one was local so it was a contributing factor to making this one of the biggest travel years to date for Mitchel & I.
This year I travelled to Florida, Costa Rica, Winnipeg, Seattle/Portland, Cortes Island, Tofino, Mexico, Victoria, Switzerland, Banff, Germany, Fort St. John, Port Hardy, the Oregon coast, Tennessee, and southern California. To be honest, it was a little overwhelming, but what I lost in sleep, I gained in amazing memories.
So onto my tradition of the statistics of the year! Overall I:
photographed 33 elopements & weddings, 3 separate day receptions/dinners, and 15 small sessions
took 28 flights, 1 seaplane, & 10 helicopter rides
was chased by approximately 3 sea wolves (yes, you read that correctly)
took over 110,000 photos and edited & delivered exactly 22,568 edited photos
did my first overnight backpacking elopement
survived getting a flat tire on the way to an elopement in the mountains. I was able to change it on my own with a little help from my dad on FaceTime
photographed my first elopement in Switzerland & fell in love with the country!
Of course, what makes it all so fulfilling is the awesome people who invite me to spend a day with them celebrating their commitment to each other. Often I’m the only person there to witness these moments and I don’t take that fact lightly! You all are the reason I do this, so thank you thank you thank you! This post is to celebrate you, as (I apologize) I don’t post/brag about you all enough. Ok enough talking; time for photos of beautiful scenery as well as both meaningful and silly moments!
