2022 - REVIEW
I’m often asked about my work and the tick behind the business. I usually answer with some metaphor like a stand-up roller coaster or a never-ending episodic screenplay with all the comedy and dilemma. My career moves like a stream, up, down, forward and backward, lateral and through. With every passing year, I take the time to recount the motion of the water and put pen to paper. This process can be time-consuming, but it’s also cathartic and acts as a mental flush to prepare myself for the oncoming battle next year.
My business and personal life have always been intertwined and gnarled up like an extension cord you don’t use laying in your garage. With meticulous nuance, it can be eventually unraveled with each pull, twist, or push. I spend year after year working on that hypothetical cord to create boundaries, manage time, and build a strong foundation to properly balance my professional life and personal life.
2021 was the best fiscal year my business had ever had. I went into 2022 headstrong and intensely wired. We immediately moved into January with a big project in Palm Beach for the airport, then we traveled to Los Angeles for Celaya Tequila. I took that kickstart as a sign of another big year. While we buckled up for the ride, my team and I doubled down on marketing with a new website, refreshed portfolio, an SEO audit, two massive promotional pushes, countless email campaigns, and dozens of portfolio reviews.
We received more inquiries this year than any previous year from a larger variety of agencies and brands. With every new RFP (Request For Proposal), I knew extra marketing effort was worth it. But unfortunately, we just couldn’t push many of these inquiries past the finish line. In this industry, we consider a denied bid just a part of the business, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t sting. With every sting, I did my best to listen, learn and grow, which I believed has created a heavy hope for 2023, that it could be our year of accession into a higher echelon of clientele.
While I felt my business made only lateral movement and did not make a significant surge, there was growth and extraordinary personal victories. I took a big step in solidifying my financial stability by hiring a bookkeeping company, working with my financial planner, and creating a retirement infrastructure. In February, I proposed to my girlfriend Colleen Clines under an acacia tree near Lake Ndutu, Tanzania, Africa. Then, just 8 months later, we sealed the deal and tied the knot on her family farm. We celebrated our love by jumping from island to island in Greece for 12 days.
This past year will always be a standout in my mental highlight reel, not for the success in business but for the overall success in life and I couldn’t be more happy and hopeful flowing into 2023.
I launched a new website and audited my SEO.
I developed and shipped a promotional sketchbook and poster.
In partnership with the Waterboys and Worldserve International, we successfully wrapped another trip to Tanzania, Africa and Kenya, Africa in support of the mission of clean water in East Africa.
I hosted three webinars "Breaking Into Commercial Photography", "Pricing Commercial Photography" and “Marketing Commercial Photography” and consulted over 50 photographers.
In partnership with Nadus Films and New Life International, we successfully wrapped a trip to Kathmandu, Nepal in support of the mission of clean water in Asia.
I hired a bookkeeper and copywriter.
I married the love of my life.
My crew and I captured over 100,000 photographs and countless hours of motion in 3 different countries for clients such as Baird, Celaya Tequila, How Leaders Lead, New Life International, Chris Long Foundation, Kentucky Tourism, Lake Charles Tourism, and Palm Beach Tourism.
Behind the brand is a collection of people whom I owe a debt of gratitude for 2022: Colleen Clines, Mom, Dad, Missy Lynn, Jeff Lynn, Maggie Clines, Tommy Clines, Brittany Myers, Dave Cobb, Elizabeth Clines, Tom Clines, Jonathon Chi, Adam Mescan, Zach Browning, Rachel Waters, Ryan Grant, Craig Oppenheimer, Jordan Hartley, Eric Christensen, Thomas Ingersoll, Megan Fleming, Stacy Swiderski, Honore Brown, Marianne Lee, Lindsay Thompson, Nicole Poulin, Laura Wontor, Liz Wolf, Ashley Vaught, Colby Walls, Jeremy Richie, Gary Miller, Allison Dimick, Coury Deeb, Tyler Deeb, Ryan Galanaugh, Andrew Robinson, Stephen Phillipi, Louis Tinsley, Hunter Zieske, Fabiane Lash, Miranda McDonald, Lambsey Reeves, Tyler Anderson, Courtney Anderson, Mike Brady, Chris Jackson, Nichole Jackson, Tyler Zoller, David Bongiorno, Neal Alfano, Margaret Horlander, Cynthia Kendrick, Jordan Wollman, Dan Waymack, Kama Johnson, Cody Scott and Sol Perry.