It’s become cliche to say, and I really don’t want to say it but.. “2020, what a year, amirite??” Now just picture me saying that while doing my best Fozzie Bear impression. It felt like the year that would never end and 2019 may as well have been 1919. As the year came to a close and the nice photography weather went away, I started feeling down on myself and feeling like I hadn’t made much progress in my photographic journey. Then I started drafting this 2020 wrap-up and realized I had actually done quite a bit.
First and foremost, I shot more images in 2020 than I did in 2019. So that’s already a win right there. You can see what I felt are my 10 best images of 2020 here
I acquired one of my bucket-list 35mm cameras; Minolta Maxxum 9. I’m a bit of a Minolta fanboy, not sure if I even mentioned that.
I upgraded my digital camera from a small, APSC sensor to the larger, full-frame, 35mm sensor. I started the year with a Canon Rebel SL1, which was a great little camera, and I certainly hadn’t outgrown it. However, trying to invest in both high-end lenses for digital work with the Canon while also trying to invest in high-end lenses for the Minolta for film work would be incredibly expensive. And stupid. And irresponsible. So I sold it and bought a Sony A900 which uses the same lenses as my Minolta. Also it has a larger sensor than the Canon which will result in better images.
I was accepted into my first juried art exhibition; my first art exhibition since 2009. I didn’t win anything, and the gallery shut down and moved to an online art show, but just getting accepted was a big deal for me.
I sold some prints, which still blows my mind. I’d like to give a huge thank you to all of you who bought prints.
I completed my first paid assignment. I was tasked by a local security company to take some photos for their website and social media, which was a good time and still kind of a work in progress. This will likely get its own blog post sometime in the future. One of the shots you can see in the Top 10 of 2020 Gallery
Plus a couple of other things that are too boring to be worth listing here. So it turns out I did quite a bit. I’d say I progressed this year more than I did in 2019, probably even the most I’ve progressed since I started messing about in photography back in 2006.
Looking towards 2021, I have set several measurable and achievable goals for myself:
Weekly blog posts! Yes, weekly. I have been terrible at keeping up with the posts, mostly due to being constantly tired an unmotivated. But that changes now!
I will shoot in 5 different locations that are outside of my home state of Massachusetts
I will invest less in gear acquisition and more in my photographic education. Fancy gear doesn’t do you any good if your photos are still shit. I THINK (we’ll see how long this lasts) I have all the gear I need to do the work I want to do. So now it’s time to find some classes, improve my skills and maximize the gear I have. I’ll still need film…. And maybe one more lens for new Mamiya… and it’s starting already. No. Bad.
I will start making portraits of people. Right now, I find myself mostly interested in artsy-type portraits or fasion-y portraits; not so much senior portraits or work along those lines. I mean… I’m not going to say no to work… but the work I’ll be seeking out will be along the lines of the former.
I will work towards mastering on camera and off camera flash photography. I dabbled around with it in 2020 and it certainly takes photos to the next level when done right. Keeping in line with goal number 3, I’ll have to DIY some gear to make the most out of the limited off-camera flash equipment that I have.
I will network with other photographers or host some kind of meet-up or photowalk.
I will release a photo book. It’s something that I’ve wanted to do since last year but I didn’t have enough work that I found worth of putting together in book form. Maybe I still don’t, but it’s something to work towards this year.
I will start making YouTube videos. Yes, I can, indeed, hear your judgmental groans.
So that’s that, 2020 in the bag. Thank you to all of you who have supported me and followed me and stuck around through my high irregular blogging schedule. I look forward to creating new work in 2021 and sharing it with you.