Matthew Pautz Photography 2016 Best Wedding Photos / Yearly wrap-up
Greenville SC Wedding Photographers | Best Wedding Photos
Ah 2016…The running gag is that this was the worst year in recent memory for the world as a whole, but for me that statement couldn’t be further from the truth. 2016 was a year of personal and professional growth, new challenges, new ideas, and new couples. I wouldn’t want it to be any different.
It is no secret that I love what I do. Photography takes me places I would never be able to see and introduces me to wonderful people I would never have met otherwise. But being able to photograph a couple’s wedding day from start to finish, telling the entire story with photography while experiencing all these new things is a privilege I am honored to have. Wedding photography is a tough business. To succeed, you have to be far more than a competent photographer. Running a business from the ground up has it’s own distinct challenges, and doing so in one of the most crowded and difficult industries to break into presents an entirely new set of challenges. Not to mention the need to constantly learn, improve, and experiment with new ideas and techniques to remain relevant; the huge expenses involved with photography equipment; and the difficulty in finding a balance between affordable pricing and being able to earn a living wage. For these reasons, a staggering 85% of photography businesses fail in the first 3 years…and it is easy to see why.
Ironically, these challenges are what excite me about wedding photography. I love a good challenge – they drive us to become better people and teach us about who we really are. I believe we should have a goal to overcome every challenge we face. Is wedding photography a crowded, competitive industry full of photographers who are so similar that it makes picking one nearly impossible? Then my goal is to become so good at what I do and make my photos so noticeably different from the rest, that there will no longer even be a question. 85% of photography businesses fail in the first 3 years? My goal was to learn why, and become one of the 15% that doesn’t. Although I’ve been photographing weddings as far back as 6 years, 2016 was year 3 of my official, tax-paying, full-time business. That is one reason why this year was so special to me.
The other reason why 2016 was so special to me is because of you: The couples I have worked with, their families, and the brides-to-be scouting for information. I met so many amazing people this year, and getting to know them and their stories was an absolute honor. I have said many times that I am blessed with the best couples around, and that was not me just saying sweet things to make a happy blog. I have worked with couples from all walks of life, with wildly different backgrounds, and with varying interests and goals. But they all have one thing in common: They are happy, fun-loving, maybe a bit artistic, and most importantly…totally in love and ready to begin their lives together in the best way possible. This makes my job easy, and it is a dream come true to be able to work with people like this on a daily basis.
So here’s to 2016 – you were a great year of firsts, a year full of new experiences, and a year full of amazing couples. I am looking forward to even more of the same in 2017.
Please enjoy some of my favorites this year below:
I hope you have enjoyed this small sampling of my 2016 favorites! I am looking forward to another amazing year.