Wow, 2018 was quite the year! Some of the happiest and saddest moments in my life happened this year. I lost my brother, and gained a beautiful niece. I traveled to Iceland, Switzerland, France, England, and Hawaii. I celebrated my two year anniversary with my husband, and almost completely finished my degree! (Just one more class left folks – sooo close!) Chris started a Master’s program in Occupational Therapy, and I landed an amazing job as a product photographer with Nozani. Along with my job and school, I also continued working on growing my business, and have been SO lucky to work with many amazing clients this year!!
Every year I love to share the best images & highlights of 2018. In the past I’ve usually been a bit overwhelmed – after all I probably took thousands of images this year, and it can be hard to organize them and pick my favorites! So this year I’m trying something new, and sharing my favorite image from each month.
January
The year kicked off editing the images from my little sister (and best friend’s) wedding. It made me so happy seeing her happiness, and welcoming Grayson to the family! They were married at the beautiful Payson temple, and we had quite the fun adventure taking their bridals in the cold wintery weather!
January also brought tragedy and sadness. My brother, Dexter, passed away from suicide. I’m so thankful that he was able to come out to my sister’s wedding. This was the last time we were all together as a family before he passed.
I treasure the last memories I have of him, hanging out and getting Five Guys after the wedding. Words can’t express what it’s like to lose someone you love. Sitting down now, I’m so thankful that we have these photos together. It brought home the importance of having family photos and portraits taken.
February through April was a bit of a blur. I created work with a couple of photo shoots every week, between working for Called to Surf and creating images for my photography classes.
I’m so thankful for the amazing models and companies I was able to work with during this time! Maddy, Taylor, Tori, Maddie, Called to Surf – I seriously love you all!
In late May until early July I had the trip of a LIFETIME. I traveled on a study abroad (with one of my best friends, Delaney) to Iceland, Switzerland, France, and England. I fell in love with the windswept desolate landscapes of Iceland, and the lush beautiful countrysides in France and Switzerland. I LOVED adventuring in Paris, the Verdon Gorge, and Interlaken. And, of course, the few days in London were an absolute dream. It was the trip of a lifetime!
While talking about Europe, I have to thank my sweet, supportive husband Chris. He knew this was always a dream of mine, and was so supportive in me going to Europe for 6 weeks without him. It’s funny, an old lady we chatted with once was shocked that I went without him. In contrast to that sentiment, I am so grateful that he is supportive in me chasing my dreams. When you’re married, your entire life changes. It’s wonderful, and makes some things more complicated. But something I feel strongly about is you don’t stop being an individual person, with interests and dreams and potential to grow. I’m grateful he knew how important that was to me, and that he supported me in going! I want him to follow his dreams, just as he wants me to follow mine, and it’s what we’ll want for our children someday, too. He’s really the best husband ever and I am SO grateful for him.
Here are some behind the scenes photos of the trip!
I forgot to mention – a few weeks before we left to Europe, we added a little member to our family – Rudy! He is the most adorable shih tzu chihuahua mix (in general we hate chihuahuas but in Rudy’s genetic pool, it was magic). He’s well trained, cuddly, snuggly, mischevious, and is a part of our little family.
After I came home from Europe, I had the opportunity to work with some amazing brands – such as Maeve’s All Natural, Era 81, and ModLi fashion!
I also did the most fun couple’s photoshoot I think I’ve ever done. Teresa and Sam Wright asked me to take their photos at the Hall of Breakfast for her birthday. It was SO much fun, working with their creativity and imaginations!
In August I started my new job at Nozani, which was amazing. Nozani is an Amazon marketing agency, so I create product and lifestyle images for businesses that come to us for marketing help. It’s a great job, and I love the people I work with! I’m grateful I can spend my time honing my skills and doing what I love.
While I wasn’t working, between August and December I’ve also had the opportunity to work with multiple brands. I created images for New Zealand Honey Co, W. N. Ferreira Kids, Pure Pressure Blankets, Thatcher Finch, and individual portrait sessions.
Then, December came. The busiest – and most wonderful – month of the year! My little sister had her sweet little baby, Chris and I went to Hawaii for some much needed R&R, I did more product photography, and created a holiday themed fashion shoot just for fun. I took most of the images in Hawaii on film, so those will be coming soon!
2018 was really an incredible year. It was full of the most difficult, and some of the best, times of my life. Life continues to move forward, and change. I’m looking forward to what 2019 brings 🙂
What was your favorite part of 2018?
