A Travel, Photography and Points Blog
As 2017 comes to an end, I think about what I achieved, what didn’t quite work out and what I’m looking forward to for 2018. The year has gone by very quickly. There were plenty of significant work events and a number of personal changes to my life. All in all, 2017 has been an interesting one. I’ve spent the last few weeks reflecting on my year and coming up with some goals for 2018. But before we get into that, lets see how 2017 went based on what I set out to do.
I had the pleasure of joining a lovely bunch of girls for an afternoon of gourmet food and drinks to celebrate a dear friend’s upcoming wedding. The bridesmaids did an amazing job of setting up the indoor picnic area and organised a beautiful grazing table. It made taking photos that much easier! The afternoon was classy, relaxing and low key. It’s not often that I would get onto editing photos from a shoot so quickly, but I was excited to go through the photos and share the day with everyone who attended.
It’s that time again when the calendar rolls over to the new year. Welcome 2017. After being inspired by Chris Guillebeau’s annual review process, I started my own goal settling/year planning a few years ago. 2016 has been my most intentional year to date. This year I’ll be sharing some of my results from my 2016 annual review and also my plans for 2017 in the area of photography and travel here on the blog.
2016 has certainly flown by, on a photographic, personal and professional level, it has been a good year with many challenges, highs and definitely much to be grateful for. I have lived more intentionally and really tried to balance the my five value areas: Health, Relationships, Passion, Contribution and Growth. On the world stage it has been a very eventful year. While sometimes it feels like there is a lot of negativity around the around, there are also plenty of people who are out there doing good positive work. We can’t control the many varied events which occur in life, what you can control is yourself and your own response to the events around you.
I’m excited to announce that Fujifilm Australia has featured me as the final X-Thusiast photographer of 2016. I was surprised and excited when the social media team contacted me, asking if I was interested to be the December X-Thusiast.
Fujifilm Australia started the X-Thusiast program with the goal of showcasing the work and stories of amateur photographers using the X-series cameras. Photographers can submit up to six photos each month to the X-Thusiast gallery. Once a month, Fujifilm Australia will select a budding photographer as the featured photographer. The gallery is great to give you inspiration and discover budding x-series photographers. It is also a great way for your work to be discovered. I love the x-series community and how Fujifilm fosters the community.
It’s a humbling and exciting feeling to be noticed in this noisy world we live in, where there are thousands of talented photographers. The interview questions made me stop and reflect on my photography and my journey as a photographer. It made me realise how far I’ve come over the years. It also reaffirmed my belief that you should never stop learning as a photographer. I hope you will glean a nugget or two from my reflections.
Some final thoughts. If you are new to photography and and want to hone your skills, having a place to share your work is really important. That is one of the reasons why website and blog. Don’t be afraid to have your voice and work known, after all photos are meant to be shared, seen and enjoyed.
Thanks for stopping by today.
J.
Shopping and minimalism. You’re probably thinking, these two concepts must be polar opposite. Being a minimalist must mean not shopping for new things ever. I’ve never been one to subscribe to the notion of retail therapy. If I have to classify myself, I’m someone who is an intentional shopper. I not someone who finds joy in the act of shopping or window shopping. Generally speaking, I only shop if I have something I’m looking to buy and it’ll often be for a purpose.