Lessons, learnings and reflections
Blinked and it’s 2026
2025 was my busiest year to date, and yet it was also one of the most grounded. For the first time, every project I worked on felt like a HELL YES. Nothing felt forced, and everything aligned with the work I want to be doing and the way I want to be working.
Looking back, these are the lessons and reflections I’m carrying forward:
A Year of clear yeses
I stopped making decisions from a place of scarcity. Instead of saying yes out of habit or fear, I trusted my instincts and chose work that felt intentional and aligned. I communicated more clearly, leaned into my experience, and allowed the right projects to take shape. The work felt stronger, the collaborations deeper, and the business more grounded as a result.
Stepping fully into my role
I’ve spent the last decade carving out a space for myself creating content for high-end fitness and wellness brands, and in 2025 I leaned fully into that experience. I stopped second-guessing what I bring to the table and allowed my knowledge, instincts, and creative perspective to lead.
Aesthetic alignment creates better work
Across almost every project, there was a shared visual understanding from the start. Clients came to me knowing the kind of work I make, which allowed for stronger collaboration, clearer decision-making, and more intentional outcomes.
Big-picture planning
One of the biggest lessons from my travel and retreat work was learning to plan beyond individual sessions. These projects pushed me to think long-term: how content fits together, how stories unfold over time, and how visuals are used across different platforms and seasons. That shift toward big-picture planning has changed how I approach projects now, from the first conversation through to delivery.
The projects that pushed me the most were the most rewarding
Projects this year introduced new disciplines and offerings within luxury fitness and wellness, each with its own culture, energy, and visual language. While some formats were new to me, my approach wasn’t. I applied the same strategic lens I bring to every project: understanding the brand, shaping a clear visual direction, and creating work that feels elevated and aligned with its positioning.
Collaboration is where I do my best work
Studio sessions stood out as some of the most meaningful moments of the year. I love being brought into teams, working closely with clients, and contributing to along term view of their businesses. Feeling trusted, collaboratively directing, and building work together is where I thrive creatively.
The most powerful imagery lives in the in-between moments
High-end doesn’t have to mean overly polished. Real people in real classes. Glances, pauses, breath, laughs, connection. Those in-between moments became the images that lasted.
Creativity isn’t linear
Routines shift, habits change, and growth often happens quietly, over time. Much of this year’s progress didn’t come from big breakthroughs on set, but from consistency, reflection, and time spent working things through behind the scenes. Creativity doesn’t move in a straight line, and learning to give my process space to evolve has changed how I approach my work.
This work is, and always will be, about people
Conversations on set, shared meals, travel days, early mornings, consultation calls, calming nerves...
Being welcomed into communities built around movement, care, and growth continues to be the most meaningful part of what I do 🫶✨
The Shape of the Year
Looking at the breakdown of projects across 2025, what stands out most isn’t just the volume, but the balance. The year was shaped by a mix of long-term brand work, studio partnerships, individual sessions, retreats, and other events, with no single category existing in isolation.
The majority of the work sat within ongoing brand and studio relationships, which reflects a clear shift toward continuity and trust-led projects. Alongside that, individual sessions and retreat work added space for more personal, immersive storytelling.
More than anything, this breakdown confirms that the way I want to work is already taking shape. Work designed to live beyond a single moment and support brands over time.
What clients came to me for this year
This year, the way clients worked with me shifted. More than ever, I was brought in for direction, planning, vision, and execution, not just to document what was happening, but to help shape how their brand shows up in the world.
Clients were looking for clarity and leadership. They wanted someone to guide the process, offer perspective, and translate ideas into work that felt elevated. They needed imagery that could live across platforms, tell a consistent story, and support their business well beyond a single session.
*A note on what clients were really asking for
What stood out most this year was the consistent request for imagery that felt real, inclusive, candid, and authentic. In a year where AI-generated visuals are everywhere, clients wanted honest representation, real people, and moments that couldn’t be manufactured.
That demand for humanity in the work felt like a super important win.
Looking forward
Looking forward, I’m focused on depth over volume. Long-term partnerships. Projects that require creative leadership, strategic thinking, and a clear point of view. Work that’s designed to last beyond a single moment. I’m thinking more intentionally about scale, how stories unfold over time, and how content lives across platforms.
I’m looking forward to what comes next...
