I took a few years off from photography, as I tend to do in life from time-to-time. Almost a year ago, I found myself inspired to pick up the camera again, and this time I dove back in full force.

I've been taking photos since I was a kid. My parents got me a Polaroid when I got my tonsils out, and before/after that, I always loved using their old Nikon SLR. When I turned 15, I was gifted a Pentax K1000 for Christmas, and that thing is still in my possession to this day. I've taken photo classes, photos for zines and publications, but mostly just dabbled for fun, without really learning the how and why of photography.

A photo taken on my Pentax K-1000 back in the '90s of Tim Armstrong playing with Rancid in the basement of the Powerhouse, Portland, OR

This time, I decided I wanted to back up and start over as though I was new to this. Sometimes one has to do that—wipe out all the bad habits you've learned, and start anew. I enrolled in the Focal Point Photo Class 2025 class and tried to re-learn things from scratch. I made it about halfway through, then I kind of just decided to do my own thing. Sometimes that lingers and I feel like I should finish it, but I honestly have a hard time with the social aspects of it all. Getting feedback feels like it's going to be painful and awful, when in reality it's not. And feeling like I can hit it off with a group of people on a Discord server...well, that's hard for me to do. Introvert curse.

One of the photos taken the weekend I got back into photography last year. Fuji X-T1 at Ocean Shores, WA.

Anyhow, my goals for the last year were pretty simple:

1. Take more photos

2. Get better (and really work on internalizing the technical side, not just operating a camera by feel and happenstance)

3. Take myself more seriously.

I think I did a lot in this last year, and it feels good to look back and see my progress, not just artistically, but in terms of my confidence and self-accountability.

Another photo from Ocean Shores when I got back into photography. Again, on the Fuji X-T1

Here are some things I have accomplished:

1. I started an Instagram Account that was solely focused on photography and post to it regularly

2. I created a Framer account to sell prints online.

3. I got a photo in a local gallery exhibit

4. I sold a print to a stranger via my Framer site

5. I printed and hung up some photos

6. I even made some business cards

7. I shot a wedding with my wife

8. And, yes, the requisite unending gear upgrades and changes

9. I got back into film photography, learning to use our Rolleiflex Automat, and getting my hands on a Nikon FE2.

Overall, I accomplished much more than I had planned to and I don't see myself tiring of it anytime soon. I went from Fuji to Nikon over this last year, too. And Nikon feels like home. It's what my parents had when I was a kid, and it's what I shot in the early 2000s on a D40.

So where does that leave me for the next year? Well, for starters, just because I did all those things over the last year doesn't mean I am happy with my work. I am not sure I ever will be. I mean, there are photos I take that I like for various reasons, but have I achieved my aesthetic goals? Not even close. There is always room to learn, and room to improve. For example, I've been struggling a lot with color grading lately. Like, how much color grading is ok, and at what point is it dishonest? Or does everyone just develop a style and go with it?

This is just one thing I'm still trying to find my way to within the process.

Taken a couple weekends ago at Pacific City, Oregon. Nikon Zf w/ 24-120 lens.

Here is my list of what I want to do over the next year:

1. Keep getting better

2. Keep working to find my “style,” be that refining my color grading, leaning into one genre more, or just becoming more comfortable with my weird randomness.

3. Be comfortable being myself. Stop trying to appease the social media machine, stop caring about likes or follows. This one is easier sometimes than others. Part of it is me shaking my fist at the Instagram gods for making their system so convoluted and impossible to please.

4. Stop buying gear. I mean, yeah, some stuff just comes up out of necessity. But I need to let go of the notion that more gear does not make for better photos. I have enough and it's good quality stuff. I need to work on the gear inside my brain more now.

5. Get out more. I can only take so many photos of the view off our deck, as stunning as it can be. This means getting out on more walks, hikes, exploring different parts of town more, traveling, weekend getaways, etc. And it means bringing a camera with me whenever I can.

6. Sell more prints: this means not just online (which is slow and pretty much non-existent), but also perhaps in person at pop-up events, or trying to get a mini-exhibit in a restaurant or shop.

7. Build a more meaningful following. This means meeting more photographers or people in real life (which admittedly is incredibly difficult and terrifying for me to do). It also means curating my photos on other platforms, such as Glass, Flickr, and Vero. And interacting with people more, offering encouragement and feedback on other folks' photos.

8. Seek more criticism and feedback. Again, something that terrifies me on some level, and something I really need to work on, as it's one of the most important ways to learn more and improve.

9. Keep reminding myself that just because people are not showering me with social media love, does not mean I suck. And even if I do suck, it does not mean I should quit. If something means something to you, then you do it whether other people encourage it or not.

10. Take it easier on myself. These goals are all great, but this is also something I do to relax and connect with the world. I have all the time in the world to get better, and trying to force it, or getting frustrated and feeling like quitting are not productive approaches towards improvement and longevity.

Foggy morning from last winter, taken with Fuji X-M5.

I'm not sure where this next year will take me, but I know I will keep working at it, and hopefully I will keep improving and making progress. When I really think about it, though, just sticking with it will be progress.

What are some things you plan to focus on with your own pursuits this year? Do you set goals or take it as it comes?

I wish you all the progress you hope to make on your own pursuits in the next year. Thanks for reading.