A Year in Frame: My 2025 Recap

I’m recapping my year in wedding photography and reflecting on what 2025 really looked and felt like for me. It was a busy year filled with weddings, social events, networking, creative challenges, and some big personal milestones, including getting married. I talk about the shifts I noticed in the wedding industry, from smaller guest counts and true to life editing to a stronger preference for candid, editorial moments. I also share lessons I learned about pivoting on wedding days, saying no more often, being more intentional with my work, and redefining what success actually means to me. This episode is less about growth for the sake of growth and more about alignment, sustainability, and serving couples in a way that feels genuine.

Key takeaways:

• Couples are valuing candid, natural moments over posed photos more than ever.
• Smaller, intimate weddings allow couples to focus on aesthetics and guest experience.
• Flexibility and the ability to pivot on wedding days is an essential skill.
• True-to-life editing and preserving authentic colors and skin tones keeps images timeless.
• Success is about serving couples intentionally, setting boundaries, and aligning work with your passion.

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Transcript

Hello and happy holidays from The Wedding Frame. I’m actually recording this the day after Christmas, and it’ll be airing very soon. If you see me on YouTube, I’m wearing a red top, I’ve got my gold chrome nails, a red lip, so I’m very in the festive mood right now. And I’m just happy to have a little break. I’m actually dog sitting because my sister and my brother and their families are on a little family vacation. I was supposed to be there with my kids, but we decided it was too much. The kids wanted to relax too. My daughter had finals week. She’s a freshman in high school, and I think she’s just happy to relax.

I just came back from my honeymoon a couple of months ago in Puerto Rico, and then next month I’m going to a conference called Kindred, and that’s going to be in Punta Mita, Mexico. So yes, it’s a week of relaxation. I don’t have any shoots or events until mid January, so that’s a nice break. Basically, I wanted to do a 2025 recap. That’s what I’m going to be talking about today. I made myself a list of things that I thought would be good to talk about to recap this past year, so let’s get started.

How I would describe 2025 in one word and why. It was a pretty busy year for me, so I guess the word would be busy. Not necessarily with weddings. I had a lot of events too. I shoot a lot of social events like birthdays and baby showers. I don’t do portraits anymore, but I feel like events and weddings are very similar. A wedding day is just a longer day and more complicated and involved. Events are still a lot of candid, documentary photography, which is my favorite type, and I’ve just had a lot more inquiries and bookings for events this year.

Aftershoot, the AI program I use for editing, sent me a snapshot of the past year with some numbers. The total amount of albums culled for me in 2025 was 367 albums. That was incredulous to me because I think that basically means I was booked 367 times, which has to be wrong. Maybe there were some duplicate albums in there. The total edited photos were 67,000. Maybe I did some re edits through the program, but that’s when I realized how busy I was, and I didn’t really feel it. I think it was all very spread out throughout the year, which is so ideal for me. Especially with weddings, I never want to book them back to back. Preferably just one to two weddings a month. My ideal number of weddings a year is ten to twelve. Events are so easy. I’m usually there for three hours, four hours max, and since it’s just me, I’m able to cull and edit everything so fast.

What felt noticeably different about this year compared to past seasons was that it was definitely slower for weddings. I’ve heard the same thing from a lot of other photographers and people in the wedding industry. It seems like things are slower, so I’m really thankful that I had events to supplement my income. Another thing that felt different was having fewer large guest count weddings. People are really leaning into intimate weddings with their closest friends and family, and that’s allowing them to spend more on aesthetics and guest experience. I feel like aesthetics became more important this year, with more creativity in seating charts and overall guest experience.

My most memorable wedding of 2025 was definitely the one I shot last weekend, which was my last wedding of the year. It was for the wedding planner of my own wedding and someone I’ve worked with since 2017. We got married a couple of months apart, and it was so fun to be in our bridal era together. It was incredibly special to shoot her wedding. She even did a thank you speech to her vendors and mentioned that I had told her, even before she was engaged, that I would be shooting her wedding. She remembered that, and that meant so much to me. We started working together because her nephew found me on The Knot in 2017 and booked me for his wedding. She planned it, and we’ve worked together ever since. Seeing her walk down the aisle and finding her happily ever after made me so happy to be there and capture it all. There was no pressure at all. They were all about the candids, which I loved, and I worked with an amazing videographer, Kim Alvarado. We worked really well together.

The kinds of moments couples seemed to value most in 2025 were candid moments. I’m so here for it. I do like posing and editorial style too, but there’s something about natural moments that just hit differently. I love putting on my 135mm, stepping back, and capturing things as they unfold. Couples are posting those moments more than smiling at the camera photos. Another thing couples are loving is editorial reception imagery, like second looks, champagne towers, cake cutting, and direct flash. It creates a whole different vibe, and couples really love that look.

My favorite wedding trend of 2025 was draping. It elevates ballrooms so beautifully and works really well for portraits. I’ve also seen it used outdoors for ceremonies, and I love how it looks. I really hope that trend sticks around. The skill that mattered more than ever on wedding days was pivoting. Timelines change, hair and makeup run late, and it’s so important to stay calm, smile, and reassure everyone that it’s all going to be okay.

One thing people outside the industry really misunderstand right now is the cost of weddings. Inflation, tariffs, and rising overhead costs affect everyone. We’re not just raising prices for no reason, and I really think there needs to be more education around that. The most common conversation I had with couples this year was about feeling awkward in front of the camera. Almost everyone says that. I focus on making them feel comfortable, showing them the back of the camera, and helping them relax so they can feel confident.

The biggest shift I noticed in timelines was more first looks, not just between the couple, but also with parents and bridal parties. I always prioritize the wedding experience over turning the day into a photo shoot. Another favorite trend of mine was true to life editing. Keeping colors as they were, honoring skin tones, and letting dark rooms look dark feels timeless and honest.

Something I intentionally stopped doing this year was shooting without intention. I slowed down, paid attention to everything in the frame, and became more aware of every detail. I also leaned more into networking. I’m part of Curate and Society Prive, and networking pushed me out of my comfort zone. Even though I’m more introverted than people think, I surprised myself by how sociable I was and how much I enjoyed it.

A wedding that pushed me creatively was one where the bride was very stressed because of family dynamics. I had to pivot and be quieter than usual, and in the end she was very happy with the photos. Big picture, 2025 felt like a year of recalibration rather than growth for the sake of growth. I redefined what success means to me, and it’s no longer about numbers or publications, but about serving couples well.

I also learned the value of saying no. Saying no to projects that didn’t align, unpaid work, and protecting time for my family allowed me to say yes to better opportunities. I’m really hoping to book more weddings in 2026. Weddings are my true passion, and I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon.

Getting married this year was a huge highlight. I’m so grateful for how supportive Alvaro is. Having supportive people around you makes all the difference. This is episode ten of The Wedding Frame, and I’m having so much fun with this podcast. I started it because I thought it could be helpful after almost ten years in the industry. I do offer mentorships as well, so feel free to reach out if that’s something you’re interested in.

Thank you for sticking with me, and I hope you’ve had a wonderful holiday season. I’ll see you in the next year.