Top Nine?!

I'm sure all you lovers of instagram are familiar with topnine - an app that generates your most popular photos into a collage. 

While I'm not a lover of instagram (I have been VERY VOCAL about it), I decided to give the app a try to see what my popular photos are.  The results were surprising: 

They are ALL environmental portraits!!  What the heck? For the past year, I've noticed my work has been changing/evolving, but I didn't realize it changed this much!  Now I realize that these are the MOST POPULAR ones based on likes, but overall, looking at my body of work on IG, I'm not shooting much lifestyle anymore. While I love a great emotive portrait, I crave my storytelling photos - they are the ones we'll look back on as a family one day and say..... remember when you used to do that??

The good thing about this realization, is that it is giving me the kick in the ass I need to focus more on shooting lifestyle and documentary photography. Over the week, I've been really trying to shoot intentional storytelling/lifestyle images - to get back into the swing of things (and to document the stories I've been missing out on).  I'm happy to report that it's been a HUGE success.  I feel like I got my mojo back!

To be truthful, I was considering shelving my 365 project for next year.  Not that it's a ton of work, but I was in such a horrible rut (see my las blog post here), that I wasn't certain I could commit to another year. 

While I've missed days here and there in all my 365's, this year was the first that I missed WEEKS.  I had zero desire to pick up my camera. 

I eventually came to the realization that I was in this rut because I wasn't taking as many of the photos that I actually love.  Yes, I like my environmental portraits - they make the Aunts and Grandmothers VERY happy - but the lifestyle photos, with all the messiness and imperfection are the ones that matter to me - and I think will matter much more to Olivia in the long run. 

While I HATE goal planning and making resolutions that I'll never keep for the new year, I want 2018 to focus more on telling the story of us.  I've already signed up for a Lifestyle workshop in 2018 (with one of my favorites Colie James Photography) and decided to give Project Life another go. 

I might be putting a lot on my plate for next year, but fingers crossed I can manage. 

Wish me luck!!!