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1. You need a fancy camera to take good photos.

Um, FALSE! Most cell phones these days have amazing photo quality, right in your pocket. As long as you know what to do, you can use your cell phone to take amazing photos. Haven't you seen the Apple BILLBOARDS (yes, billboards!) that feature iPhone photos? If Apple can use it for their large-scale marketing, you can use it for your business!

2. There's no point in having a fancy camera if you don't know how to use it.

Just as your cell phone's camera is an amazing tool for its size, having a "fancy camera" can also have its perks. While I don't recommend going out and buying the most expensive one on the market, it can be helpful to have a fancy camera, even if you don't know all the features. Overall, it can yield better results if used properly. And by properly, I don't even necessarily mean on manual mode. There's actually a lot you can do with only a few features. I don't know how to use all the modes on my camera, but I gotta say that upgrading from my old camera definitely improved my photo quality. So, don't knock it- you may be able to hack it to take better photos!

3. You can't take good photos indoors or at night.

Yep, totally false! My house has less-than-ideal lighting, even at the best parts of the day. Plus, sometimes I need to snap some pics at night. Although taking pictures during the day is better, you can still get great quality photos at night with the right setup. You'll just need to make a few investments (like these lights) and create a good editing process, and you're good to go!

4. It takes a pro to use Photoshop.

While Photoshop is an amazing product with so so soooo many features, you can still get a lot out of it as an amateur. It has a relatively low price point ($10/month) and there's always more to learn on it. Don't get overwhelmed though- you can learn the very basics of the program so that you can use it to your advantage on a daily basis, and use those special extra features only when you need them. After all, it's great to have the option to use them, even if you don't.

5. Taking your own photos takes way too much time.

If you're creating a new setup every single time you're taking a photo- using different lighting, angles, cameras, locations, etc. then yes. Taking your own photos can be VERY time consuming, especially when you factor in editing. BUT if you take the time to create a process that works for you, taking photos will be insanely easy. Taking photos will become second nature, as will the editing process. Creating a routine that works for you will take all the guess work out, saving you time AND hassle. Be sure to check out this post (LINK) for more information about that!

6. You can't take good photos because you don't have enough room.

If you constantly compare yourself to huge brands or businesses that have been successful for years and have an enormous photo studio to work with, then yea- it'll take forever to get to their level. However, there are plenty of successful businesses, bloggers, and Etsy shops that take great photos from inside their home without a huge professional studio setup. There are tons of small-space options that you can use until you have budget or space to upgraded. For example, did you know that I take my photos in a small area the size of an ikea desk? And yet, I am able to take great photos there! I have sloped ceilings, a fairly narrow room, and 1,000 tripping hazards but I made it work. And I guarantee that if you took the time to develop a system, you would too!

Do you feel a bit more empowered to try taking your own photos for your shop, blog, or business? I hope so! There's so much possibility when you learn to take your own photos.

If you're looking to improve your photos further, I've created a FREE photography e-course to help you do just that! Be sure to sign up by clicking the photo below.

Exactly three weeks ago, I turned 29 years old. That’s one year away from 30! Despite the fact that I feel like I accomplished a lot of the things I’ve wanted to do so far (mostly through stubbornness and perseverance) I feel like I could have done more in my life. One thing I’ve never been good at is making goals for myself. I have lots of ideas but never really plan it out so that anything actually happens. That means a lot of wishing, and not so much achieving. Since we’re throwing a baby into the mix this year, and technically that makes me a real adult now, I figured it was time for some goal setting and accountability!

Back in 2016, I created a list of 27 wishes for my 27th birthday. I went back and checked out how many I achieved, but it wasn’t great! My goals weren't quantifiable, so it's hard to determine what was "done" and what was not.

I made a list of things I hope to achieve this year, separated out by category. I’ll update this as the year goes on and tasks get completed. And, hopefully by this time next year I’ll have 30 brand spankin’ new goals.

Home

De clutter the whole house (and actually keep it that way)
Finish fully decorating at least 3 rooms (initial thoughts- nursery, kitchen, attic)
Make the most of what we have- diy instead of buy
Make the bed every day
Make the craft room/attic a place I actually want to work in

Grow the blog into a lifestyle resource (DONE)
Launch an e-course by June 30 (DONE- but it launched in August!)
Launch a (successful) shop (I shut mine down since it wasn’t producing- sad but it’s ok! Bigger and better things ahead)
Make over $25k income with the blog (HAH. I wish! Hoping 2019 will be my year!)
Donate to more causes I believe in
Get published in a magazine
Attend Alt Summit

Family

Be the best mom I can be (DONE- a work in progress!)
Spend more time with my family without a phone or screen
Take a monthly drive to a new place
Take our first official family vacation (DONE- while I was pregnant we went to Colorado, Bermuda, and the Hamptons!)

Life

Go on more adventures
Finish what I start (DONE- goal setting has become a priority and really helps)
Do crafts or paint “just because” at least once a month
Make more of an effort on personal fitness (2x week)

Finances

Pay off our credit cards (DONE-ish. Mine are paid off, still woking on the joint cc!)
Spend less, save more- at least $2k this year (DONE but then I had to pay my cc so it’s gone now! Seeing as how I’m currently unemployed, seems unlikely it’ll go back up)
Create a budget and stick to it

Self

Spend more time on my appearance (DONE- I’ve been straightening my hair and it helps!)
Make an effort to dress better (at least 3 days/week) (HAH- with being pregnant and then having a baby, this was a bit silly :P)
Practice mindfulness and yoga (at least once a week) (DONE-ISH. I don’t do yoga but I’m thankful every day.
Remember to take a break and not be a workaholic (DONE! Pregnancy + a baby helped)
Stop procrastinating (DONE! Working so hard on this too)
Don’t let fear stand in my way & step outside my comfort zone (Work in Progress)

Some of these might be hard to achieve but I’m hoping that if I work hard at it, I can at least come close to achieving these goals. I’m also hoping that all these goals are kinda cumulative. That working out will make me take the time to dress well. That dressing well will give me confidence to achieve my financial goals. That achieving my financial goals will lead to working on my home and family goals. So on and so forth :)

What’s on your goals list for this year? How do you actually achieve these things in your life? What’s the best way to plan? I need some help! Let me know in the comments below.

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