I wanted to do this end of the year recap because I did one on my business page but wanted to do one on here since it was more of a personal blog. I want to share what went on this year and what you can expect from me in 2026 so let’s get into this end of the yar recap.
This year has been one hell of a ride. I had busy spots this year but overall not as busy as I would have liked. If I can be honest, I made more money with my other business (it’s a t-shirt company) than I did with photography. I think it’s because I was really lazy on my end with being intentional about growing my lucrative hobby in a way that put me in positions to take it up a notch. I didn’t go out as much and network, and I relied on the people I already knew. Which was great, they kept me in business, but I wanted to do more. I failed at marketing my own business and getting out there, so that was my fault, and I take ownership of that.
I made good money this year though and I had over 200 photoshoot sessions so that was a good thing! My busy seasons are usually around March to May. Graduations, Mother’s Day and folks wanting new shoots for their brand kept me busy. Seniors usually come in last min to get their photos done for invitations and things that go on with them, so those months were busy. It slowed down until the holidays, and then from October to December, I was booked. I noticed that those are my sweet spots, and so during downtime, I need to be doing more.
I updated my website, added new photos in my portfolio and went harder on my newsletter. My newsletter for me was the biggest change I went from my old newsletter name of Talk Tuesday to Hello, Kita, giving people a peek into who I am as a person. While my newsletter didn’t grow as much, I will say that my open rate of 80% is good enough for me.
So what can we expect for 2026?
More photography-related content and making some of my life moments into photo journals. I am trying to come up with a name for that series; either ‘Pursuit of Moments’ or ‘Where I Point My Camera’ are the two names I’m playing with. With those series, anytime I go somewhere or to an event, I will share a few photos that I loved from that event and share a small write-up of it. So for example if I go to the High Art Museum to see the new exhibit, I will want to share that through the eyes of my camera and tell you all about it. More of that in 2026.
More blog posts of photography-related things, I want to lean more into becoming a photography influencer. You know you have your fashion influencers and your foodies. I want to be known for my photos and the pictures I take. I hope to work with some brands in 2026 and focus on telling the stories via pictures.
Social media I want to be less on there. As you know my instagram is private. You can always join me on there but I want to focus more on groups within Facebook and be more intentional about getting out and meeting people in person for 2026. I say at least 3 events a month. I think that is doable for my introverted ways.
Overall, this year has been a good year and I’m also starting my Project 365. I will only share those photos on my private Instagram because my kids will be on there, and with A,I I want to be careful of showcasing them a lot, but I can’t wait to see what 2026 has in store for me.
Thank you to all my clients, old and new without you I would never be able to heal and tell your stories. Taking pictures helps me to heal and I thank you so much for that. Cheers to a great new year.
