Best Weddings of 2014 | Favorite Photos of the year | Chicago Wedding Photographer | Jill Tiongco Photography

Best of 2014 | Chicago Wedding Photos – Favorite Wedding Moments of the Year

December 31, 2014

Every year, it seems as though Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years sneak up on us as soon as summer ends. All of a sudden, instead of heading to the beach, street fests, summer weddings, and lake houses… we’re bundling up in our fluffy scarves and winter hats while reminiscing about what new years resolutions we did or did not reach for the year. Did we workout more? Did we eat healthier? Did we make more time for loved ones? Did I book enough weddings?

Looking back on my goals for the past year, I’ve actually achieved the majority of them, with the exception of a few minor ones that kept getting pushed back. So I’ll chalk that up as a success 🙂 But more importantly, this year was truly one I’ll never forget. It was my first complete year running my business full-time. I learned more about myself and what I want my business to stand for this year than I have in the entire past 3 years of being a photographer. I learned about self motivation – forcing myself to work on those days that I really just wanted to relax… and I also learned about the flexibility of working for yourself – not forcing myself to work on those days that I really just needed to relax and getting the work done another day.

Like every year, there were good and bad moments. Ones I never want to forget, and ones that make me cringe every time I remember them. There were blurry photos, missed moments, and over/underexposed shots. But I think the biggest thing I’ve learned this year is that it’s okay to not be the perfect photographer. I can sure as heck try to be, but I try knowing that if I fail at being perfect, then I’m still putting my heart and soul into what I do and producing the best quality photos that I possibly can. That’s what I did this year, and that’s what I want to continuing doing for all of those couples that trust me to capture their wedding days.

This year I was blessed to work with the most amazing people. The longer I do this, the more I notice that my couples trust, respect, and value my work and who I am as a photographer – which ultimately propels me to do my best for them. The relationships I have with my past and current couples have been the cornerstone of my business, and for that I am forever grateful. The moments I have captured over the past year – the smiles, the tears, the dance moves (both good and bad), the laughter, the kisses, and the hugs – all of them are so important to me. I would be lying if I said I didn’t get a little nostalgic looking through these photos/writing this post – but that doesn’t mean I’m a sap (or maybe it doesn’t – but whatever!) … to me, it just means I absolutely, whole-heartedly LOVE what I do and I realize how blessed I am to be here.

Have a happy, safe, and memorable New Year, friends – here’s to looking back at my favorite moments of 2014 – and looking forward to creating new memories in 2015 🙂

(above) see more from Liz + Kyle’s Wedding here.