101 Goals in 1001 Days Recap

Whew! Can you believe 1001 Days have passed already??  It seems like I just started this 101 Goals in 1001 Days project a few months ago, but based on the number of projects I have checked off the list, more time must have passed!  You can see the original list here.  Or scroll down below the photo for the list in its entirety.  Make sure you click through and see the results of our efforts!

At my one year review mark I had accomplished 35 of my 101 goals.  At the end of the 1001 Days that number has grown to 55.  Looking at the direct number, which is only a bit more than 50%, it might look like I didn’t really make as much progress as I had hoped, but I have to say I am certainly happy with where I ended up!

There are certainly some things on the list that I would still like to do and they will be rolling over to my next list (which will debut on Wednesday), but I found that some of the things on our list lowered in priority so much that they weren’t as worth pursuing as I had thought they might be.  Our business has grown leaps and bounds in the past two and half years and part of that is knowing when to change priorities and make different business decisions.  An example of both of these points are goals #15 and #16, “purchase the 70-200mm f/2.8 and the 24-70mm f/2.8”.  I was not able to purchases either of these lenses (choosing instead to rent them when needed), but I know for sure that I definitely still want the 70-200mm and that lens will be my next big equipment purchase in 2015.  On the other hand, I found that I really don’t love the 24-70mm.  It’s a great lens, but I really love prime lenses (lenses that don’t zoom) and I made the decision to purchase the 85mm f/1.8 and the 105mm f/2.8 instead.  This decision was all about figuring out how I like to shoot and making equipment purchases that enhance that.

Other goals such as Goal #21, “photograph a newborn baby” didn’t happen because we made the decision last year to focus exclusively on weddings.  If a close family member were to have a baby I’d definitely still want to photograph it, but we’re not marketing for anything but weddings anymore, so putting effort into accomplishing this goal just didn’t make sense.

Other goals that we did accomplish that are well worth the celebratory “Check!” are our purchase of a full frame camera, making our own ice cream (and then subsequently getting an ice cream  maker for my birthday so we can keep doing this), participating in our first bridal show in the form of The NotWedding, attending a photography conference, buying a house and buying a car!

All in all, I’m happy with what we accomplished and how far we’ve come.  The next list will be peppered with even bigger goals and plans (think lots of travel!).  Stay tuned!

101 Goals in 1001 Days: Green Blossom Edition
Completion date: Saturday, February 7, 2015

1. Launch blogsite (Check! You’re reading it :))
2. Blog twice a week for a year (52/52 – check! See the recap here)
3. Write inspiration posts for blog (Check! See them here, here, and here)
4. Write FAQ’s for blogsite (Check! See it here)
5. Write a kick-ass ‘About Me’ section for blogsite (Check! See it here)
6. Enter a photo contest (Check!  Read about my first experience here)
7. Contact a local gallery about selling my work
8. Create a business card (Check! See it here and round two here)
9. Create a marketing postcard (Check! See our 2013 efforts here)
10. Consult with a lawyer to create a contract (check!)
11. Sign up for liability insurance (Check!)
12. Open a business bank account (Check! Read about the business process here)
13. Shoot a wedding as a second photographer (check! See the results here)
14. Purchase a full frame camera (Check!)
15. Purchase a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens
16. Purchase a 70-200mm g/2.8 lens
17. Try out a new lighting technique (check!  See the video light post here)
18. Photograph a wedding with my wife (check! See the partnership here)
19. Photograph a same-sex wedding (check! See the first one here)
20. Advertise in a publication geared for same-sex couples (Check! See our Out Front ad here)
21. Photograph a newborn baby
22. Get portraits taken of me (Check! See the photos by Mary Maranz here)
23. Attend a photography class/ workshop (Check! See the results here)
24. Attend a wedding photography class/ workshop (check!  See which one I chose here)
25. Purchase an iMac (Check!)
26. Purchase CS6 or Lightroom (Check!)
27. Join a photography organization (Check! Check out the Betties here)
28. Subscribe to a photography magazine (Check! See which one I chose, here)
29. Subscribe to a wedding magazine
30. Attend a bridal show
31. Host a booth at a bridal show (Check!  We did the NotWedding in 2014)
32. Go to a photography conference (Check!  Read about my WPPI Exploits here and here)
33. Photograph a gymnastics meet (Check! See the three 2013 meets here, here, and here!)
34. Photograph an elite gymnastics meet
35. Photograph a destination wedding
36. Eat a whole lobster
37. Have a wedding featured on Style Me Pretty
38. Buy a car (Check! See the new turbo here)
39. Buy a house (check!)
40. Have our first child
41. Give birth naturally
42. Have maternity photos taken
43. Hike the Grand Canyon
44. Go to Hawaii (check! See the fabulous trip here, here, here, and here)
45. Take my wife on a surprise vacation
46. Print gallery wrap canvases for our nursery
47. Photograph a boudoir shoot
48. Finish scrapbooking our wedding album (Check! See it here)
49. Complete 365 Day photo project (Check! See the recaps for September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May, June, July,August, September, and the final review)
50. Have a 365 Day photo project party
51. Publish an ad in a local bridal magazine
52. Go to the 2015 gymnastics world championships
53. Purchase a monitor calibrator (Check!)
54. Go to an equipment try-out at the Denver Zoo
55. Go to the Denver Museum of Science and Nature (check!  See the Pompeii exhibit here)
56. Visit Mesa Verda (Check!  See the amazing trip here and here)
57. Climb a 14,000 foot mountain
58. Cook every recipe in Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution cookbook (24/131) (See the progress here, here, here, here, and here)
59. Finish transferring my gymnastics VHS tapes to DVD (Check!  A 5 year project is finished here)
60. Take voice lessons
61. Join a yoga and spinning studio (Check! Its a regular gym, but it counts!)
62. Join a volleyball league (check!)
63. Pay off our credit card debt
64. Buy a dresser (Check! See the DIY project here)
65. Complete the Red Rocks fitness challenge
66. Get a massage
67. Have a spa day with my mom
68. Buy a bike with a basket
69. Knit a blanket for our baby
70. Grow my own herbs
71. Print photographs for my wife’s office (Check!  See them on location here.)
72. Attend a concert at Red Rocks (check! See and listen to some music here.)
73. Take a 3-day backpacking trip
74. Host a dinner party complete with stylish table decorations
75. Go on a business planning retreat
76. Create a cozy and inspiring office space (Check!)
77. Evaluate 101 goals and progress throughout the year (check!  1 year review is here)
78. Photograph a stylized photo shoot for fun and experience (Check! See the fun creation here)
79. Visit a natural hot springs
80. Start figure modeling again
81. Learn off camera lighting set-up with wireless remote (Check!)
82. Create a list of photography blogs I follow and check weekly (Check! See it here)
83. Introduce myself to photography bloggers I follow (Check! Read about it here)
84. Find photoshop plug-ins I like (Check! See them here)
85. Define my photographic style (Check! Catch a glimpse here)
86. Photograph a wedding at the Denver Botanic Gardens (Check! See the beauty here)
87. Purchase a pair of Vibrum 5 fingers (check! See the new skeletoes here)
88. Run a 5K race in Vibrum 5 fingers
89. Visit the 4 corners (Check!  See the magical location here)
90. Go on a wine tour
91. Have lunch with a local wedding photographer whose work I admire
92. Make monkey bread
93. Do a photoshoot with headpieces from Dani Hansen’s ‘From Sprout to Out’ collection
94. Go horseback riding
95. Print my own greeting cards as family Christmas gifts (Check! See them here)
96. Go on a 30-mile bike riding adventure
97. Purchase a case of Chenin Blanc from Goosecross Vineyards
98. Go apple picking
99. Make a dessert from a Martha Stewart recipe (Check!  See it here)
100. Go on a 10 mile-run
101. Make my own ice cream (check! yum, yum)