For Photographers | 10 Blogging Ideas for the End-of-the-Year

Most of us as photographers don’t have many weddings in December or January, so we find ourselves looking for different blog posts to keep our blog running during our “slow season” aka off-season. December is a great time to prep and prepare blog posts for the end of the year and early part of the following year. I always do a handful of end-of-the-year posts in December and early January. I currently have four on the docket to post and am working on more this week! Some of these ideas I am sharing are ones I haven’t done myself, but love the idea and plan on doing myself this year!

Throughout the year, when I edit a wedding, I save pictures in various folders on my hard drive for the sole purpose of my end-of-the-year posts. If I see a picture that I think would fit well in my end of the year posts, I will save that picture in a specific folder and have it to come back to later. Now that it’s December and the end of the year, as I finish up my end-of-the-year posts, I don’t have to go back through every single wedding I shot throughout the year to find those pictures that I’m looking for for the blog posts!

Come up with fun and creative blog post names! I have a handful that are very clever (if I do say so myself). Have fun with it and get creative!

Here are a few ideas of some great end-of-the-year blog posts:

1) Blingin’ In the New Year– This is my annual post on the different ring shots I’ve taken pictures of throughout the year. I take ring shots at engagement sessions and weddings, so I have a lot of “bling” to bling in the New Year with. This is one of my favorite posts I do every year.

Definitely one of my favorite ring shots of the year of Alicia’s engagement ring!
2) Behind the Scenes of the Year– Ben and I did a poor job of doing this in 2015. I have made it a goal for 2016 for us to capture more of these at each of our weddings. We capture a picture once or maybe twice every couple of weddings, so this year, I can probably count a total of 5-7 behind the scenes shots we have. I think they are so much fun and great to look at, but I didn’t do a good job of it. Katelyn James has an awesome BTS post every year.

Despite getting only a handful, I LOVE this one of Ben capturing me taking pictures of this ring shot!

3) Top 15 of 2015- I started this post in 2012. Back then I did 12 moments and have added a new one each year for the next year. You don’t have to do a top 15 of 2015, but can choose 10 or 12 or whatever you want. These aren’t just pictures you have taken, but moments of the year that you loved and had a good time with. You can check out my top 14 of 2014 to see what I did last year. (If you’re new in following me, I rebranded this year, so you’ll see my old business name on my pictures!)

This would be a “favorite locations” post with going to a handful for Savannah and Eric’s wedding. Look for it in my top 15 of my 2015 post coming next week!
4) Sweet Shots of the Year- This could be a blog post on any sweet treats you took pictures of. This would primarily be wedding cakes, but this could also be those super cute macaroons you took pictures of or those personalized cookies with the bride and groom’s names on them.
Tip: If you did 30 weddings this year, you’ll probably do one cake picture from each wedding with a handful of other “sweets.” If you did 5 weddings for the year, you might want to show lots of different angles of the five different cakes at the weddings to make the post look longer.

I might have eaten one or two of these delicious cookies at Lauren and Ned’s wedding!
5) Dress Your Best– This post is different dress shots of the year. Include the different angles of the dresses you took throughout the year. If you took a dress to two or three different spots and have 10-15 pictures of the dress shot, make a fun collage of it!
Tip: Make sure you share all of your brides dresses. If you leave someone out, they will notice and their feelings will be hurt. This goes for any of the sweets or ring posts as well!

I loved this room we did Alicia’s getting ready pictures in! This dress shot is one of my favorite of the year!

6) Off Season Shenanigans- Share what you’re doing in the off-season to grow your business and craft. Take pictures of what you’re doing so you can blog about it! If you’re taking an online course, take screen shots of it or pictures of yourself/computer working. Take pictures at any workshops or conferences you’re going to! This could be a handful of different blog posts!
Tip: Make an announcement when you sign up for the workshop or class or conference. Share your excitement and what you hope to learn. THEN do a follow-up and recap!

I’m going to The Event in Washington DC NEXT WEEK! I’ll be blogging this week about my excitement and what I hope to get out of it. Then a week or two after The Event, I’ll pull together my notes and pictures and do a post about it!
7) 2015 Life Highlights- This blog post is a personal one with different trips and personal highlights of the year. Share pictures of friends you’ve hung out with, workshops or conferences you went to (sharing pictures with the friends you met and took pictures with there), pictures of your family, any big announcements or changes for you that year, and so much more!
Tip: If you blogged throughout the year, link those blog posts back to each of the pictures you have added. This goes for any and all of the end of year posts you can do!

Our family trip to Boston in October!
8) First Look Favorites- If you are like me, I love it when my clients do First Looks. Most of my clients choose to do a First Look, and if you are the same, this would be an awesome post. This post is all pictures of the bride and grooms reactions to seeing each other for the First Time. This does not include the couple pictures you take of them right after, but just the immediate I’m-seeing-you-for-the-first-time-shot.

I just LOVE this First Look shot Ben captured of Blake and Derrick’s wedding!
9) Personal Holiday Posts- This is not a recap from the year, but a perfect time to share fun pictures of your decorations for the holidays. You can take pictures of your family and kids and share your favorite holiday traditions. You can do a good two or three posts throughout the holiday season to share anything about Christmas/Hanukkah/etc.

My cute little boy and one of the blog posts I shared this Christmas season!
10) Favorite Shots of the Year- This post, while similar to the Top 15 of 2015, is different because it is your favorite shots throughout the year and not so much memories of the year. You can make collages of each wedding you shot, pick a favorite one or two from each wedding, pretty much however you would like to! This is such a fun post as you get to share some of your favorite pictures you took from the year.
Tip: This post in particular is a key one in saving pictures during the year to use for the post. It takes hours of sorting and searching for the pictures, but if you save them throughout the year like I said at the beginning, this saves you so much time!
Bonus: You could even split this up into favorite weddings and favorite engagement shots of the year and make TWO blog posts out of it!

A fun and simple collage to show of Betsy and Brandon’s wedding!

There you have it! Now you have no reason to have a dead blog in the months of December and January when you’re most likely not taking a ton of pictures or getting much traffic on the blog. Feel free to share below some other ideas you have or have done in the past to blog about at the end of the year! Best of luck and happy blogging!