Every year when writing out my goals for the next year, I ask myself three things about each goal:

1. How does this line up with my brand?

2. How will this improve my life?

3. How can this help others?

As I was building my business, the first two came into play most prominently because I was still learning how to structure my company. Not until last year did I completely lean into the storytelling focus that now epitomizes my brand, and even now I’m still working on ingraining work-life balance principles.

But, after everything I learned last year (read more here), I realized that it’s the “helping others” part that I want to focus on most in the coming year(s). This is the first year that my goals will look quite different than they did in the past; traditionally mine have read something like: “more weddings”, “more family photoshoots”, etc. Not that there was anything wrong with that approach, I did need to augment my bookings for my business to be sustainable. However, its the experiences I’m creating through those photoshoots that I want to focus on most.

So, after a good bit of thought and even more journaling, here is what I’ll be focusing on this year:

More Adventures

I know, I said I wasn’t going to write “more” goals anymore, but this one’s an exception. I’m defining “adventure” very loosely here, qualifying any experience which is either out of my comfort zone or out of my typical routine. This past year I leaned into embracing the uncomfortable in order to experience growth, and I plan to do that even more so this year. That can manifest in three ways:

1. Travel. Obviously, travel is the most obvious avenue for adventures. For me, the importance of travel lies just as much in testing my capabilities as it does in learning about new places, so my hope for 2019 is that I’ll get to do more of both. Traveling has been the best thing possible for my business because it’s taught me the importance of slowing down and paying attention to the most minute of details which can best capture the nuances of a story. More than that, it’s shown me the necessity of learning about other people’s stories in order to be a kind, nurturing and positive global citizen. So, this year I’m hoping to using my continue using my traveling escapades for my own personal growth as well as to inspire others to explore a world beyond their doorstep.

   Without a doubt, the best thing I got out of last year’s travels was the beginning of my series of portrait sessions within my Girls Love Travel group. Though I am quite personable, I can be shy around strangers, so meeting up with people I barely know to make portraits that attempt to get to the heart of each person has been an incredible experience, as well as creative exercise. There’s more in the works here that I can’t share yet, but this is probably the most excited I’ve ever been for a project (and that’s saying something!)

2. Adventure Photoshoots. I don’t want to keep all the adventures for myself! One of my very favorite photoshoots last year was Arlyn and Alex’s adventure bridal & couple’s session where Emmaleigh Argonauta of Just Bloom Together, Oscar of Molina Vision Media and our newly-married couple hiked up to the Blue Ridge Parkway in their wedding attire. The photos were gorgeous, but it was the experience of getting to put their finery on again, spend an afternoon together in such a gorgeous setting, and take a break from busy life to simply love on each other that made the photoshoot so special.

   I want to offer this kind of epic experience for all of my photo collections. Proposals, engagements, weddings, elopements, maternity, kids, family, anniversary, and branding sessions all have that potential for experience-based photoshoots. Whether it really is hiking up a mountain or simply spending a quiet family day at home where I capture the little adventures that happen in daily life, my aim is to tailor each photoshoot so that you not only have beautiful photos and fun time making them, but you also get closer to each other or learn something about yourself in the experience. This means I’ll be putting extra care into the planning process so that we create sessions that will be meaningful as well as enjoyable - discussing favorite dates and where you went, going through your favorite family activities and how they could best tell your story, discussing your brand’s mission and what location best conveys it.

3. Vacation Photography. Take everything I said above about traveling and about adventure photoshoots, and combine it. Whether you’re taking a vacation to Asheville to celebrate your anniversary or spending your family vacation in another country, I would love to be able to capture those experiences for you. If you are going on a trip or vacation, especially one with family or close friends, you want to remember the fun you had, the beauty of the places you visited, and the memories you made. But to capture all of that visually, you have to spend a great deal of your vacation behind the lens rather than enjoying your time with loved ones. This is where having a vacation photographer can really come in handy. I’m working on building packages which also make use of my travel planning skills, so stay tuned!

Expand my Film Work

1. I’ve printed my own black and white photos in the darkroom for a decade, though I haven’t been able to devote much time to it lately. This year, I want to finally learn how to develop color prints too so that I can be completely self-sufficient in my developing & printing process.

2. Namely, the above is important because my next goal is to reproduce and sell my film travel photos. I’ve yet to find a venue or selling platform that I’m totally happy with, so the sales process has been slow. But sometime within the year my hope is to have a fully keyworded and searchable database where clients can commission their own original optical prints (those printed straight from the negative) as well as purchase digital copies as with stock photos (in addition to my digital travel photos.)

3. I’ve also spent the last couple of years slowly returning to my roots as a fine art photographer and the only piece I’m missing is exhibiting my work (at least in more traditional non-social media avenues) so putting together an exhibit is next on the list. Whether this be in a local cafe, a museum or a group gallery show, I’m not picky - it’s simply getting back into the swing of being a presenting photographer that I’m interested in.

4. The most exciting piece of all of this? I’m in the process of figuring out the logistics for creating a travel scholarship. Since traveling has been the single most influential piece of my growth, I’d like to be able to give that gift to someone else, particularly someone who may not otherwise have the opportunity to travel. For this reason, a percentage of all travel photo and film print sales will go towards funding this scholarship. More on that as I finish up the details.

Opening a Studio

This is, perhaps, the things I’m most excited and nervous about this year. For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed of having my own brick and mortar space and this is the first year where it’s not only feasible, but necessary.

1. One of the primary purposes for this studio will be to create a comfortable client meeting space. This way we can plan each photoshoot while looking through sample albums and sample wall galleries, keeping the desired storytelling premises in mind from the very beginning.

2. The other main draw of this space will be finally having a place to set up my lighting gear, and thus create more editorial work. I see this most affecting my branding collections as I’ll have much more latitude for headshots, product photos and the styling of both. But I also plan to offer the space for wedding hair & makeup trials (and subsequently bridal sessions) and variety of events with photography included (I’ll expand once I have the space, but boy is the idea fountain flowing here.)

3. Creating experiences through this space doesn’t stop with those first two uses, though. Having my own studio will mean finally being able to teach classes - primarily analog photography classes for students - at maximum ability rather than using school closets. I hope to continue my work with Asheville Middle School’s IRL as well as offer other summertime or after school classes.

4. Finally, having a space means helping more people. Once again - and I feel a broken record - there’s not much I can elaborate on yet. Once I know the potential and limitations of my actual space, I can dream accordingly. For now, I know that whatever I’m able to do with a studio, the focus will be on creating community, and working within the Asheville community to facilitate growth for all involved.

Be Creative Daily

To be honest, of all of my goals this may be the most difficult. I mean, I really do enjoy my work and being a one woman show means it’s often pretty difficult to convince myself to take any sort of time off.

But, since I’ve finally learned that my business and my clients are best served by a well-rested Adrian, and my favorite ways to rest are through actively creating, my aim is to take even a small breather out of every day for artistic movement. Part of this means restructuring my athletic routine - adding in 3-times-weekly yoga sessions, slowly getting back into running training and taking self defense lessons. Otherwise, I want to get back into my language practice, brushing up on my Spanish first, working on French next, and then seeing where best to go from there. Finally, now that I at long last own my own violin, I want (NEED) to get back to playing music, what was once as great a love as photography.

As always, thanks so much to everyone who not only took the time to read this post but to those who push me every day to improve. If you know anyone looking for a photographer, send them my way! ;) Let's make this a great year!