2012 ... SJP's year in photos!

As we come to the end of the best year I've ever experienced, I thought it was about time to have a look back at some of my favourite photographs from the past twelve months.

2012 has been amazing. I've had more photoshoots than any previous year, including a full quota of 25 weddings and over 50 portrait shoots, as well as countless corporate jobs. It's a year in which I've watched numerous family members and friends walk down the wedding aisle - and I even got married myself! Not to mention a once in a lifetime trip across South Africa, and of course, the big "Brucey bonus" of the Euros, Paralympics and Olympics!

To celebrate, I've chosen one photo to sum up each of the past 12 months. To whittle 2012 down to just 12 pictures has been difficult, especially as I have taken over 100,000 photos throughout the year. There are probably a fair few I have skimmed over or forgotten entirely, and other shots I love that got swamped out in a busy month - but each of these images, to me at least, sums up what Sam Johnson Photography has been all about in 2012...

Enjoy!

January

January is usually a quiet month, as people and businesses sit on their pennies after a hectic Christmas period - but January 2012 bucked the trend. This corporate portrait is of a manager of a local Leicester business.

February

This shot of Olympic Medallist Tom Daley was taken at one of his training sessions during the build up to the games. It was a real honour to watch him along with other members of the diving team as they practised from the 10 metre board at the 'Everyone Active' Plymouth Life Centre. To be stood just metres away on the board as they disappeared below was fascinating to watch and incredibly inspiring.

March

This photo was taken for Tulip as part of a large selection of deli hams designed for Sainsbury's deli counters. Mainly selected because, well, I like ham...

April

Lord Coe came to Leicester during the build up to the Olympics. I only had a brief few moments with him in my pop up studio before he was off again to his next job. It was great to meet him at the time, but after the success of the Olympics, I'd probably have to change that to an honour!

May

I couldn't select a photograph from May 2012, without it being from my own wedding I'm afraid! So, a bit of a cheat as this isn't a 'Sam Johnson Photography' photo. However, it certainly sums up the joy and slight silliness of the best day of my life. The 'mugboard' you can see is also now part of my 'wedding extras' for couples to hire for their wedding day! (...Shameless plug, I know!)

June

By June I was well into 'Wedding Season', and could have chosen from hundreds of different images from the five weddings I shot during the month. I picked this one as they were a particularly bubbly couple and I think this photo really sums up the joy of the day.

July

Krysten and Matt's wedding was one of five I photographed during July - a month which also included watching my big brother tie the knot!

August

This image was from one of the nine weddings I shot during August, along with ten portrait shoots and three commercial shoots. It was a hugely enjoyable but busy month, and I think the only way I survived
the many hours of editing was by breaking it up by tuning in to truly inspirational Olympics coverage.

September

By September, things had begun to quieten down a little, although five weddings in a month still keeps you more than busy. This image was taken during a day of photographing five different families at Leicestershire's beautiful Bradgate Park.

October

Most of October was taken up with three very memorable weeks on a honeymoon trip across South Africa. This photo of a male lion with a freshly killed wilderbeest is my personal favourite from the trip, but there are plenty of others that I would love to share at some stage when I get a chance.

November

My November image is a case of lighting and location coming together perfectly. Low sun can be a pain a lot of the time, but as I lined up this shot so that it broke through the trees, I knew it would be a winner.

December

This particular corporate portrait shoot is interesting largely for its location. The images were for a Leicester Sales and Lettings company, so we spent the afternoon in a £3.5 million mansion in the Leicestershire countryside.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!

See you in 2013!