Looking Back at 2017!
Holey smokes, where did 2017 go?! This year seems to have gone by in a flash! As this year is quickly winding down, I’m sitting in my home thinking about how truly great this year was. It’s easy to get swept away in the troubles of the world but taking a moment to be thankful for personal accomplishments makes everything else not seen quite as bad! All I can say when looking back at 2017 is thank you for joining me on this wild ride!
- The Inspired Club
The Inspired Club is a project I have kept under wraps for most of this year and boy, am I excited to share this with you! Photography has been such a positive element in my life and I want to inspire others who are building their photography career. It’s not a solo journey, as creatives we thrive when we join together in a community!
- Santorini, Greece Wedding
Santorini was the hot summer vacation spot of 2017 and I was blessed to photograph Justin and Taylors wedding weekend. Since my schedule can be unpredictable Dave and I took this opportunity to take a vacation together and extended out stay to hang out with the locals!
- YouTube Award
Speaking of creating YouTube content… This is for all of you out there, THANK YOU! YouTube awarded me with an award for reaching 100K subscribers. In my wildest dreams I never would have thought this would be possible. Thank you. Thank you! If you happen to be new to the blog, you can find my YouTube channel here!
- Chick-Fila Collab
Early this summer Chick-Fila reached out to me about collaborating on a photo tip project. These were tips posted on Chick-Fila’s Facebook page for parents to capture memorable photos of their children. Ya’ll, even though I’ve been creating YouTube videos for a few years now, it was a little nerve wrecking getting in front of the camera! I’m so glad I did it and worked past that fear!
- Featured In People Magazine
This summer I had the wonderful opportunity to photograph Jillian Murray and Dean Geyer’s stunning Santa Barabra wedding. I was so excited to hear that People Magazine wanted to use my photos to feature their wedding!
- Lilly Reece Lost Her First Tooth
It might sound silly to some but my niece lost her first tooth this week! Living so far away from family can be difficult but I am beyond thankful for Facetime. I got to be apart of the experience even though I am way across the country!
- Josh Flagg and Bobby Boyd’s Wedding
Ya’ll, this wedding was something else! This wedding was out of a dream with everything from aerial artists, dance numbers, and Bobby’s Candyland. This wedding was particularly special because it was the first same sex wedding I had the opportunity to photograph. Their wedding was featured in Grace Ormand, such an honor to be apart of this! For more details about this wedding, click here!
- Drove Road to Hana
When I tell people I drove the road to Hana, jaws drop. I had always heard how beautiful the drive was but didn’t realize quite how scary it would be! At the end of the day, the hairpin turns and lack of guardrails were worth the minor heart attack for the gorgeous views!
- Profoto Event in Sweden
If you’re not familiar with Profoto, they are the photography industry standard for lighting equipment. So when they reached out to me to attend the launch of their new A1 light I was so honored! The other photographers I met on this trip continue to inspire me!
- Ireland
Another destination 2017 took me was Ireland. Oh Lord, what an experience! I started in Cork to photograph a wedding and spent the next week exploring the west coast of Ireland with my second shooter.
As I reflect on 2017 and look forward to 2018, I really want to make next year even greater! A big area I want to work on in 2018 is to create more of a work-life balance. I was blessed to see so much of the world this year and create new contacts but most of it was spent working. Don’t get me wrong I have loved every minute of it! Keeping myself constantly busy with shoots and meetings doesn’t always mean success. Taking in other cultures during my travels this year showed me I need to take time and enjoy the little things and spend time making true relationships in my personal and professional life. It’s hard to maintain relationships when you’re constantly on the go!
Cheers to 2018!
xo, Jana
I just love your new site and have watched all your videos. I think it is easy to get down on yourself when you have a bad shoot or things don;t go as planned and you really have inspired me to follow my dream of photography and to not give up!
Great things you did there way back last year! Great work! More power!