Hey friends! I hope you’ve all been doing well so far this week. Can you believe we’re already almost 1/3 of the way through 2026? I feel like people always said to me growing up that “time goes faster the older you get,” and at first I really didn’t think that much into it. Now I’m starting to realize that it really does seem that way sometimes!
Today, I really just wanted to have a chat with all of you – to take a moment to catch up with you all and slow things down for a moment. As always, grab your favorite coffee or tea, a cozy blanket, and your go-to spot on the couch. Let’s talk about it all!
January 2026
So much of the first month of this year was focused on my rebrand and re-building my socials to better reflect my new style preferences. Believe it or not, I just finish paying off the last of everything that was involved in that process this month. I truly put every bit of free time, energy, and intention that I had into this project (and even sometimes worked on it at my full-time job). I’m so proud of how everything came out and I really couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who helped me bring everything together! Earlier this month I went back to refresh my website and update my packages, and it was such a fun and rewarding process. I also had a collab session at The Ginger Birdie with another local Photographer to help keep the creative juices flowing through the cold and slow season.
In my personal life, my Husband – Daniel – and I spent the entirety of January still recouping from our wedding in September. We had a few snow storms come through that month as well, so we had plenty of time inside to do a ton of re-organizing and decluttering. There’s still a mound of stuff to go through before we can (hopefully) move into our own place, but it’s nice knowing we’ve at least made a dent (not that you can tell lol).
February 2026
February brought a ton of fun things – from our yearly family vacation and spa day in the mountains, to fun product photography practice, to a Styled Shoot out of Concord, North Carolina. I don’t think I’ll ever get over that Styled Shoot, though. It was my first one I’ve ever attended and I was so incredibly nervous to be around so many talented people in the industry. I was quite literally shaking from waddling around the room (down low to stay out of people’s shots) and holding my camera up for all of that time, plus keeping my eye on the models and brainstorming posing ideas that would be worth it for everyone. I truly had the best time though, and was so amazed at how much positive feedback I received from everyone online. I felt so proud of just about every single photo I took throughout that day.
As for our family vacation – we spent a long weekend in the mountains of NC to spend some quality time together before my Mom and Step-Dad’s move to Sweden. We had so much fun exploring the area – and even getting the chance to take snowboarding lessons at a resort there. I honestly don’t think it’s a sport/activity for me (as someone who has a fear of going fast and getting hurt ahaha), but I really did have such a great time. Every last one of us were sore from head to toe the next day and that was pretty funny as well.
March 2026
March is still considered slow season for me, so I used it as my time to get to work on putting everything together for my upcoming Styled Shoot in May – Love Letters in the Spring. It’s surprised me how much this event has evolved since the start of planning. So many amazing Vendors have reached out to me to offer their services and to take part in bringing my vision for everything together. I’m not joking when I say that, as a business owner, I’ve looked up to some of these people since the very start of my account and journey in Photography. I really couldn’t be more excited to see everything come to life. I also got to Associate Shoot a senior session at Dewberry Farms for the first time, and I think I’m finally really starting to feel more and more comfortable shooting in direct sunlight.
Anyways, aside from planning everything to do with that, I was able to take Daniel to a concert he’s been wanting to see since our Honeymoon trip last year. We went to a Rock Music Festival called Louder than Life with several of our friends (new & old), and he got sick during one of the sets of a band that was there. We ended up missing most of their show and he’s been talking about it ever since. Well, thanks to Klarna (and a decent payment plan history), I was able to secure us some tickets in a really good spot where we had a full, un-interrupted view of the stage. It was an amazing concert and an even better time getting to watch him have so much fun.
April 2026
This month marked one year since I officially decided to niche down into Photography (almost 2 years overall, if the timeline seems confusing lol). It honestly came so quickly that I really didn’t realize what milestone I had hit until it was too late to plan anything for it.
Actually… what do you think? Should I do a 1 year anniversary shoot to commemorate where Ruhe Liebe (K.COLLECTIVE) Photography started?
Anyways, aside from not paying attention to my own business’ birthday – I’ve been hard at work trying to put together the finishing touches for my Styled Shoot. I’ve been having such a mental battle in my head of exactly how much decorating I want to do, or if I want the focus to mainly be on the models. I’d definitely love to hear what some of you think about that? Do you think decorations and such are really necessary??
Closing Thoughts
I told myself coming into 2026 that I would use this as my year of acting with intention and going for what truly excites me within this industry. I’ve always found so much joy and creative inspiration in planning events and trips for my friends and family, and thus brought along Ruhe Liebe.Concepts – my own page for my own Styled Shoots. (‘: I would be so grateful if you’d give my page a look here!
I truly hope you all are having the best week so far. I’ve had so much fun reminiscing on the last several months and looking back at all of the quiet work I’ve done behind-the-scenes to improve and expand my business and client experience. It’s been such a joy being a part of this little community, and I’m so happy you’re here with me.
Talk soon!
Katelynn | Ruhe Liebe Photography
