Today while I was looking through all these images, I had a thought… This year I spent a good bit of blogging time teaching photographers how to improve their craft, and teaching couples how to create great weddings!!! I’ve realized though that I have not been honoring the mission statement of my business through the way that I’ve run things! Of course most of you don’t know my mission statement, but to put it in the simplest form:

Daniel Jackson Studios exists to create a space where people can love themselves and love each other MORE because they worked with me.

It’s that simple! Of course I practice my artistic skill as well so that I can accomplish this goal in the most beautiful way possible, but all in all, my mission is to IMPROVE relationships. So… I’m still toying with this thought, but I think I want to take my blog in a SLIGHTLY different direction during 2017. Where before I would have talked about “5 Ways to Choose a Wedding Coordinator,” I think now my titles will say something like, “Turning Best Friends Into Bridesmaids.” In fact… I think I’m going to write that one soon… A blog about fun ways to announce you’re engagement to your bridesmaids… Hm… Who knows!? It’s a work in progress! But I’m excited to see where I end up!

The point of all that? Well, this year I got to work with some FANTASTIC couples that were downright in LOVE with each other. And they are inspiring me today in a way I didn’t realize DURING their sessions. They’re inspiring me to focus more on figuring out what makes couples grow stronger. And in the process, how can I change THE WAY I RUN SESSIONS to help them love each other more?!?!?! But again, these are just thoughts for me to ponder! Please enjoy looking through DJS’s 2016 Sweetest Sweethearts! If you have any thoughts on ANY of the things I said above, I would love to hear them!

=D  My first ever twenty degree sweetheart session.  MC & Peter were troopers though!  We lasted a whole fifteen minutes!

My favorite silhouette to date!

Michael and Tori are by FAR in my top five couples to watch.  Even though they’d dated for EIGHT YEARS, they were still camera shy about being cuddly together.  It was adorable!!!

And how could I write about my favorite sweethearts without throwing in Taylor and Andrew!?  If these two don’t get married, I don’t know what I will do with myself.

AND Taylor and Andrew again…  =P  My modeling team is fantastic!!!  By the time they actually get engaged I’ll probably have used them like five separate times!

And the last session of 2017.  =D  I started the year with a 20 degree session, and it was only right to end it that way.

Thank you once again my 2016 sweethearts!  Thank you for the cuddling for inspiring me to think differently about what makes a fabulous couple… wonderful!  As time goes on, I know some of us will drift apart, but know that you have changed my perception as much I’ve hopefully shaped yours.