2026 trend predictions

♪ So much cleaner now ♪ ♪ Now ♪ ♪ Get 'til a little bit higher ♪ ♪ With the first impact you can get in good ♪ ♪ Get 'til a little bit higher ♪ ♪ I'll come into the top ♪ ♪ The hood artist of my little home shoe ♪ - Hello, everybody. Welcome back to another episode of O Shoot. I'm your host, Cassidy Lynn. And we're back with another episode. Today is trend predictions. We are doing trends and predictions. So I'm gonna predict things for the year. I'm also gonna predict trends for 2026. So yeah, that's kind of what we have in store for this episode. We are doing all things photography predictions. I've got some wedding predictions. I've thrown in there too. So it's gonna be a really fun episode. I hope everyone's having a really good day. Start of the week. It's Monday, a couple of weeks in January. So hopefully you're still feeling motivated at this point. I have a couple updates. First and foremost, my Scotland workshop is live. So I'm going to include a link in this podcast description wherever you're listening. There's gonna be a link for my workshop applications. If you are interested in going to the workshop, fill it out. Be one of the first to fill it out because I will be going through them and accepting based on the order that I received them. So yes, the podcast listeners, if you listen early, you'll get early access to the application. So it's very exciting. I have some really, really cool spots picked out. We are doing a full day at the Gossford House in Scotland, which is an amazing venue. It's literally like a giant castle on the inside. It's like, has this gigantic marble staircase with like, it's just so pretty. I'm literally obsessed. So yeah, it's gonna be great. I've got some other fun things lined up for Scotland that I can't quite reveal, but it's for the workshop. So some fun locations. I have two really awesome speakers for my workshop. Well, I'm speaking, so I guess technically three. Me, my friend Preston and Larkin Kendall, all three of us are going to be speakers and doing shoots and Q&A sessions and all of that at the workshop. So I'm only taking 14 people. So if you're interested, go fill out the application. I do know Scotland is compared to my last workshop. Scotland is a lot more cost-friendly, like getting there and all of that. Like airfare, transportation, all of that. Food, like everything seems to just be cheaper in Scotland than it was in Italy. So that's nice. Flights are not as expensive. But yeah, if you want more info on that, all the info is on the landing page for my workshop. Please, please, please fill out an application if you're thinking of it. Even if you're like, oh, I don't know if I'm gonna get accepted or whatever, like the beginning of the year is such a good time to be like, you know what? I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna go do that workshop. I'm gonna go try something new. And that's kind of how I feel about this workshop as well. Like, this is only my second time doing the workshop. So it's not like I'm like, a pro at it, but it's just like one of those things. It's like a bucket list thing that I really want to do. So if you're interested, go check it out. Other updates. So I also did my 2026 yearly planning. So last episode, I talked to you guys about how you can do the blank calendars and just plan out your year and give yourself deadlines and all of that. I did it for myself and it was great. It felt great. I got some really awesome things flushed out. Like just figuring out how much time I need for things, looking at like spacing out launches and spacing out, okay, well, I've got a wedding. Do I really want to travel to another place like literally within three days of that? Like just looking at my year and being like, oh, August is going to be really chill for me. What do I want to do in August? Yeah, it's just helpful because I feel like if you're not looking ahead and planning like that, sometimes things can catch you off guard. So yeah, it was really, really nice to get all my 2026 planning done and I've got some fun things in store. So tune in for that. We've got lots of travel. The next place I'm going is actually to South Africa. I don't think I've mentioned this on the podcast, but yeah, in February we're going to South Africa. We are modeling for retreats. So I've never been to Africa. So that'll be fun to really, really long flight sequence, just a lot of flights and lots of things. So I think we're honestly going to spend just as much time flying there and back then we are actually like being there. So that's also great. So yeah, that's coming up. And then random thing right before this, I like literally 30 minutes ago, I felt like my brain was really like foggy and there's this brand. I think it's called beekeepers natural or something like that. They had sent me these, they sent me like a bunch of PR, but one of the items was like a clarity boost, like a brain clarity boost thing. And I'm like, oh, I've taken probably three of these before at this point. I've done them and it's like throughout the last year, I've done like three of them. And it's like this little liquid shot and you just like swallow it. And I don't know, it just helps your brain kind of clear up and helps you focus. And like I've been having a really hard time focusing lately, specifically today, I don't know why. So I was like, oh, let me do this little liquid bee shot. It tastes like honey and whatever. So I do it and this is like 30 minutes ago. And like actually, two minutes after taking it, I just puked, like I threw it all up. And then I went and looked at the container, it expired like three months ago. I am assuming that expiration date is probably like a hard cut off because I just threw it all up. Like it was horrible. So there you have it, and now here I am, fresh is new. And honestly, it worked though. My brain is clear, you know, I'm locked in now. So, okay, let's get into my predictions for the year. So for 2026, I predict, the first thing I'm going to predict, I think a lot of wedding clients are just like photo clients in general. I guess it doesn't have to be wedding. I think photo clients are really going to focus in on wanting to find like their own photographer and finding a photographer like on their own. The concept of someone finding their own mom and pop pizza shop and like they discovered it, they love it. It's their favorite hole in the wall place. I think that kind of vibe is starting to be a thing for finding photographers. Like someone wants to book the photographer that they found but themselves that they love. It's their style. It's their little hole in the wall photographer. I really do feel like that is going to become super popular this year. And I think that's going to change a little bit of how we market ourselves and how we just in general conduct ourselves as photographers. I think that's going to change things a little bit when a client is super focused on wanting to discover themselves, they don't always like to be, they don't like to feel like they are being advertised too. You know what I mean? So I think the way that we post and market ourselves is going to have to change in 2026 because of that. So that's one of my predictions. Prediction number two, and this actually was on my ins and outs list for 2026. Trend prediction number two for photography. I think high apertures are so in. I think low apertures are out. And I know that's a stylistic thing, but I've been seeing it so much and I think it's true. I think high apertures are in. High apertures give luxury. It gives editorial a lower aperture while it's nice artistically and the background super blurry. I think people actually are starting to like being able to see background detail, especially with like, if you're getting married in Italy, yeah, you want to be able to see some of that villa you picked out in the background of your photos. You don't want it to be so blurry that you can't see anything behind you, right? I think high apertures are going to be way more prevalent this year. And then pairing that also long focal length as well. So if you want to get a little bit more of that like, blown out background look instead of getting it in aperture, you're getting it in a long focal length. So like more compression. I think it's an interesting, it's an interesting trend prediction. I already see it happening a little bit and I find myself gravitating towards high aperture photos as well. I do think there's going to be a fine line though because I think if you go and lean too far into the high aperture, then it kind of gives like, I don't have a good lens that can go down to like F2.0. I've got a lens that like goes to 5.6. And like, it's giving kit lens a little bit. So I think you have to be careful with the high aperture. I just don't think that people are necessarily going to be going down to like 1.2 anymore. I think the 2.0 I think even is a little bit low for this trend. I would say like in the 3.2 area for apertures is what we're going to see. Just a prediction. Don't aim me. Just a just a trend prediction. The next photography trend prediction for 2026. You love it. We've seen it. But it's so back. It's grass. That's right. I'm predicting that grass is back for 2026. And I'm not talking about like the yellow orange, like wheat grass stuff. No, I'm talking about lush green grass is so in. It's back. I even think maybe even like shooting grass in like the daylight in the daytime, which gives you that super neon color. I think that might be it into like grass is so back. I love grass. I think it's beautiful. Specifically like greens, right? That's kind of what I'm getting at. Like greens are back for photography. But grass, I feel like was so avoided for the past couple of years. I just feel like people didn't want to shoot grass. It was scary because it cast green shadows on your subject. And it's annoying because it gets neon green during the day. People have just been afraid of grass for so long. And I think grass is back, like justice for grass. Give grass the moment it deserves. And let's make it a thing for 2026. I love grass. Like I just feel like, yeah, that's it, that's it. I just I love grass. It's going to be so in, OK? Mark my words, you heard it here first, grass, 2026. OK, number four, this is going to be a wedding prediction, not so much like photography. I think we're going to see less of these big like bachelor rat trips where people like travel places. And instead, I think the travel is going to be way more focused on like travel for my wedding, please. I think that's going to be where the travel is heavily focused. And I think these like bachelor rat travel trips are going to be no longer. I think people are starting to finally understand. It's not realistic to ask your group of 12 friends to all drop $3,000 to go to Vegas for a weekend and take off work, like I just don't think. I think it's finally clocking to people that that's not always the best option. Instead, I think people already are doing this really prioritizing that like long week, that long wedding week and making it some sort of travel for a wedding. Even if it is like just within the US, I think that's going to be more of the priority. So we're saying goodbye to bachelor rat trips in 2026. Bachelor rat and bachelor trips. OK, number five, also going back to a wedding trend. In this kind of directly contradicts what I just said. But I think that for 2026, we're going to see a lot more European inspired US weddings rather than weddings that take place in Europe. I think with the price of everything, people are really starting to get fed up with like, they want to have a wedding in Europe but they can't like afford it. So I think the inspiration that we've already gotten from Europe weddings, like just the whole villa vibe, the gardens, like all those things, I think that is going to be implemented into US wedding venues. And we're going to see that shift happen. It's actually so crazy because the weddings, the venue, the wedding venues that I've seen in the US that have some sort of European inspiration and it's not all like new construction, black trim everywhere, white walls, floor to ceiling windows, clean, cut, modern, those types of venues, I actually feel like they're not necessarily the vibe. I don't know why, they're beautiful buildings. I think these European inspired US venues are really going to have a foothold in the wedding industry this year and I think a lot of more people are going to start gravitating towards those types of venues. I actually did a client call earlier this week and the girl is getting married at a space in, I want to say it's North Carolina in a space that basically can look like a European venue, but it's in North Carolina where her family is and she's going to make it look European on the inside. The whole thing is old and the windows are crazy. It's really cool and that's kind of what made me think of this. I'm like, huh, I feel like that is going to be the more cost-effective route that people are going to go. This year for weddings. So the next thing, going back to photography, another photography trend prediction for 2026. I think we're going to see a higher priority in authenticity and raw emotion versus a completely perfectly curated image. This is something we've already been seeing, but I think it's really going to amp up to the next level this year. I think it's going to be to the point where this is going to sound crazy, but I think clients might start asking to completely get rid of wedding portraits and get rid of all those stage photos and do 100% candid documentary weddings. Genuinely, I think people are leaning towards no poses at all, no direction at all, because this focus on raw emotion and authenticity is so strong right now. Do I necessarily love that? Not necessarily. I like the idea of it. I think it might lead to some unhappy clients when they realize that, oh, maybe they're not as happily photogenic as they would like to be, and their wedding gallery reflects that. But I think we're going to see a big minimization of wedding portraits in general, like posed photos. And just even having a section in a wedding day for posed images, I think if anything, we're going to start seeing more sections of 10 minutes of portraits here. First look, 10 minutes of portraits. And then after the ceremony, 10 minutes of portraits, and then in the middle of cocktail hour, 10 more minutes of portraits. And then, beginning of the reception, I still you away for 10 more minutes. I think it's going to be more like these chunks of time broken up throughout an entire wedding day, because that's going to allow for a little bit more of an authentic documentary style to take place. So that is my next prediction. Yeah, I mean, just in general, I think audiences are starting to crave more natural emotions, more moments, and unfiltered storytelling. And I think this trickles into every niche of photography, not just weddings. That's what people have been craving are always craving at this point. And I think we're going to really start to see it in 2026. OK, I just thought of another one. I'm adding it to the bottom of my list before we keep going. OK, the next one that I think is going to be really prevalent in 2026 is AI tools being mainstream in photography. This is a prediction. I don't know if 100% is going to happen, because there is a lot of pushback in AI. And I also have reservations when it comes to AI as well, as far as like it being ethical and all that stuff. I think all of that is very important. So I think AI is going to become very mainstream in a photographer's workflow. But I don't think it's going to be mainstream as in, oh, I have this photo. And I'm changing the color of this person's dress. I'm adding this person's in a t-shirt. I'm putting them in a blue tux, all using AI. I don't think like that. I think AI is going to be mainstream in the sense of AI calling AI organization, AI editing, stuff like that. AI masking and generative AI variations. I think all of that is going to be super mainstream this year. And I don't think it's going to be as taboo as it was. I think people are going to start hopping on the AI assisted options within photography, because I think people are going to start to realize that you can still be creative and you can still have creative control while utilizing AI resources. Yeah, and it's going to be really embedded embedded in the everyday flow of a photographer. Like I said, I don't think, when I'm talking about AI, I'm not talking about the unethical AI. I'm not talking about that side of things. There's a lot of really ethical ways in ethical editing, stuff, or isn't all of that that exist. And that is what I'm referring to. Okay, the next trend prediction I have for 2026 is vertical photo and video hybrids to make photos more interesting. So for example, a couple of years ago, we saw the rise of the GIF, or a GIF, as some people like to call it, we saw the rise of the GIF within photography, where people were posting lots of GIFs, you know, we were creating these little short bursts within our camera and then piecing them together and making a GIF. I think something like that is going to make a comeback. I don't, GIFs are not my favorite, but I think that they can be done better than how we've done it in the past. There's also something that I just learned, and it's called a cinematograph. Yeah, a cinematograph. And if I understand it correctly, it is a video, technically it's a video, but it's framed as if it's a photo, but only like one thing is moving in the photo. So for example, I saw a, like, it was like a detailed shot with like, there was like a bunny or something on this table. It was like a table scape, really pretty like candles, florals, whatever, but there's a bunny sitting on the table. And it's technically a video. The whole thing is still except the bunny is like moving around a little bit. That would be an example of a cinematograph, I think. Another example I saw was like, it was a frame of like a city scape with a pair of glasses kind of in front of the frame. And then there was like snow falling and the only thing that was movement was that snow falling, the rest of it was still. So I think it's a really interesting and creative way to make photography interesting on social media and make your work stand out. So there might be something worth trying. I think you might need a tripod for it, but you also might not if you've got a steady hand or whatever. Yeah, that's one of my predictions for this upcoming year. I think, and this is going to be controversial, okay, for 2026, I think that the subtle edit is out. And I think, and if you want to edit like that, you do that. Just because it's a trend doesn't mean you have to do it, okay. I think the more nostalgic retro film edit is really going to take over, you know, we've seen it be present over the past couple of years, but I feel like the nostalgia film cinematic edit has been fighting at the same time as this subtle true to color edit. And I feel like they're in a race to be at the top. And I think that the film nostalgic edit is going to win over this like, it's, I'm talking about the edit that's really subtle. It's edited, but it's like giving like a luxury, a true to life photographer, that's kind of the edit I'm talking about versus someone that has a really cinematic style that captures a lot of nostalgia. There's lots of grain, there's lots of color and, you know, that type of vibe. I think that the cinematic film edit is going to win this year. Okay. That's my, that's my prediction. I'm not, I'm not trying to say there's anything wrong with having a subtle edit or anything like that, but I, that is, I think that's going to happen. I mean, the subtle edit has run its course, but I think at the end of the day, people really are leaning towards a nostalgic analog film vibe right now. It's really making a comeback. So I think tied in with that is kind of the forgetting of the subtle edit and it just kind of had its moment and now the film grainy cinematic edit is going to take over. Okay, guys, we're taking a quick break to talk about my photography resources that are all available to you on CassidyLinEducation.com. If you like what you're hearing in the podcast, you're going to love my freebies. I have four free guides for you to choose from, my finding locations guide, my posing guide, my guide to camera gear and my resources for photographers free guide. You may already know this, but I have presets as well and these are four of my absolute favorite presets available on my education shop. I have my brand new satin summer preset pack, which is soft, subtle and luxurious, whereas some of my other presets like my honey bulb or preset is warm, bold, versatile and has red undertones. And if you want more of a film preset look, definitely check out my creamy dreamy preset pack, which is one of my ultimate favorite preset packs. Another resource I love is my email templates, which are only $30 and basically these templates are super easy to pop into your honey book and it basically has every scenario that you would need to communicate with your clients. There's new inquiry emails, automatic response emails. If you're unavailable, there's an email template for that. And if you get unhappy clients, I've gotten email template for that as well. So head on over to CassidyLinEducation.com/shop, where you can have access to all of my presets, my brushes, my email templates, my free guides and more. And because I love my O-Shoot listeners, you can use the discount code O-Shoot to get 10% off any of my digital products on CassidyLinEducation.com/shop. That'll be linked in the description of this episode. Make sure to go check it out. We're jumping into an add-on quick to talk about a long time sponsor of the podcast. You guys know what you love it. We're talking about Aftershoe. If you already don't know about Aftershoe, let me enlighten you because your world is about to be changed. Aftershoe is the fastest photo-calling and editing app out there. The best thing about Aftershoe to me is how fast it makes my editing and cooling workflow. Basically, what Aftershoe specializes in is automated AI editing, which is tailored to your unique artistic style. So not only can it cool through thousands of images so fast, it knows your editing style and it will edit your photos tailored to your style based on your preset and your editing. So when you open Aftershoe, you will start with culling and it's going to cull your images quicker with AI-assisted culling. Aftershoe can automatically cull your images by detecting unwanted photos, which saves you hours of your time. It'll group similar images, filter unwanted blinks, filter blurry photos. Then once you get done with culling, we head into Aftershoe edits. With only a few clicks, and I actually mean that it's literally only like two or three clicks, Aftershoe will edit your photos just like you normally would in your own style. You can set up a personal AI profile in your style, so Aftershoe will know exactly how to edit. Aftershoe is straightening and cropping tools that will automatically crop your photos for you. And if you're ever editing on like an airplane or something, Aftershoe is always available without the need for internet. And honestly, there's nothing worse than getting nickled and dived for a program like this, so Aftershoe offers unlimited images and sessions for one flat fee per month. So if you're like me and you edit thousands and thousands of photos at once, it doesn't matter how many photos you edit, you're always going to get charged the same price. And today for OSHO listeners, you can get 15% off for anyone who buys Aftershoe using the link in the description of this episode. Thank you so much Aftershoe for being a proud sponsor of the podcast and now back to the show. Up next, my next prediction is prints are finally having their come back. A moment for all of the hardcover books and eight by tens out there that have been waiting for this moment. After you're finally back, prints, welcome, welcome, welcome, I'm glad you're back. Because what we're seeing happening right now in photography is an emphasis on nostalgia. In every single way, people are wanting nostalgia in bringing back film. People want nostalgia and super rate. People are, you know, records are back. I'm even predicting that the, the walkman is going to be back like the cassette tapes that you listen to while you walk. All of that is back. Okay. Which means that prints are also back. I think the tangible like reveal of your photos visibly in front of you, that is going to be a really big trend for 2026. We're talking like, let's say you do a session with me. I print off the best photos and I put them in like a book in front of you. That's included in your package price and like, I give you this book and you, the first time you see your photos are in this book in front of you. I mean, I'm sure all of you listening have looked through family members, wedding albums before. Maybe that's a unique experience, but I've looked through my grandma's photos, I've looked through my mom's photos. It's quite literally an album that was put together by their photographer and like, that was how they got to see their final images was in this book. And I think people really appreciate tangible prints these days. Yeah. I think the print, I think prints are back. And every single way printing, I think printing your own work too is back. Like if you're a photographer, printing your favorite photos from the year and putting that into a little book, how fun would it be? This is such a fun idea. I literally just thought of this. Having like a photo book yourself, maybe it's like just small. Where every single year, you print, let's say it's 10 to 15 of your favorite photos you took that year. You put them in this photo book, you label it 2025 and the next year, you're going to take 10 to 15 of your favorite photos and put it in their label at 2026. How cool would that be to look back on in like 10 years and be like, wow, in 2025, I really thought I was on to something, but like, low key, I sucked or like 2025, wow, I had some really amazing clients. I totally forgot about those clients, like, how fun was it to shoot weddings and now I don't even do that anymore. Whatever it is, like, that would be such a fun idea. That's your sign. Start doing that this year, guys. Literally right now. Start doing it. You're order your hard book photo album, okay, that's, and that is my prediction, prints our back. Yeah, I have nothing more to say to that other than that is probably one of the strongest predictions I have on this list, I would say. Okay. And the next one we have, I think almost every photographer this year, this is a trend prediction or just a prediction, so like, don't quote me, but unless I'm right. I think almost every photographer is going to offer some sort of film and digital pairing package to their clients this year. I saw that this past year there was a very high demand for film photographers and there's a high demand and there's not a lot out there. So people that shoot film are booked and busy. So I think a lot of digital photographers are starting to notice that and they're like, wait, I want to be booked and busy. I want to be shooting these amazing weddings that prioritize film. So I'm going to offer it as like a combo package. I'm going to shoot some film, but I'm also going to shoot digital. I think most photographers at the end of 2026 are going to have some sort of experience shooting film because if you don't, I fear mama that this is where we start to get a little left behind. If film doesn't speak to you, that's fine. I just think a lot of people are really loving film lately. And I just really think the industry is, it's so interesting where the photography industry is heading right now because it is half nostalgic film super eight, bringing back the old school style of everything. It is half that and then it is half cutting edge technology, the fastest cameras we've ever seen, the best lenses we've ever seen, the fastest SD cards, it is just so different like the fastest editing we've ever seen. It is just so interesting because I don't know which one of these like sides of photography is going to win or if it's like we're just pairing them together because what I think could also be really interesting in a really fun way to stand out in 2026 is to offer, you know, you're doing digital photography, you're offering a super fast turnaround on your photos. I think that alone could be, could really make you stand out. Think about those videographers that shoot during the day and then like during the reception, they edit a little sneak sneak peek and then they actually like showcase that sneak peek at the reception like, that's crazy. But I think something like that, the extra hard work that that takes really makes someone stand out. So, with that being said, I don't really know which side of photography is, I think they're both trends right now. I think the cutting edge super fast delivery is a trend. I also think that the film, the wait four months for your photos is also a trend. So I don't know, it's super interesting. Okay. The other thing that I think is going to be like even more of a trend in 2026, I think it was a pretty big trend in 2025 is unique formats while you're doing photography. So like, drone and aerial photography for example, or like 3D photos. Have you guys ever seen those like 3D film photos? Stuff like that I think is going to be even more popular this year because it's just another way to stand out. At this point in time, it feels like anyone can get a camera and take photos, but it's being able to storytell and use something like a drone to capture the setting of where you're at or using a 3D photo to showcase a movement of something that's happening. I think that is going to be a trend. Honestly, anything really to make regular photos stand out is going to be a trend this year because I think photos are great. We're all photographers, that's great, photos are great. But how can we take our photography skills, showcase them on social media and still stand out without getting in the loss of a bajillion other photos. That I think is going to be the challenge of this year and that's why I think this prediction is so strong. Okay. Next up, we have, and this goes back into the whole film discussion, but I think it's going to be really popular to hire a third shooter at your weddings that is specifically designated to only shooting film. Similar to how you would have a second shooter, and honestly, I feel like it would be good to have a main shooter, second shooter, and a film shooter. But I think the concept of bringing a film, only photographer with you, while you shoot, and having that experience, having someone that can solely focus on film and nothing else, I think that is going to be a tempting thing this year. I don't know how many people are actually going to do it, but I think it's an idea and it's a thought and we should definitely consider it because if these film digital combo packages are actually going to be popular, how important is it for you to focus on one thing at once and not have to focus on film and digital? I don't know. It just feels like it would be a really good idea to have someone that specializes in it and then you can focus on the digital and you just pay them, you know, for the film and for their time or whatever. I don't know. It's kind of a good idea. Just thought. Just thought. Okay, my next prediction, and this is something that is definitely going to happen for 2025. We saw a very large increase in the, for lack of a better term, the hate of influencers. What is a better word I could use for? People just being, they're over it. People are over influencers trying to push products on them 24/7. So with that, I think that's going to continue in 20/26 and because of that, I think we're going to see new influencers rise, but then the problem is still going to remain that those influencers then become unrelatable and try to push products and then the cycle continues. I don't know what the solution is for this. I don't know if the solution is if you become an influencer, you need to like keep yourself rooted and not allow yourself to get lost in sales, sales, sales, sales, sales, like actually continue with the brand that you started or I don't know if like there really is a good solution to this because the influencer pipeline is kind of like you're relatable. People love you and then suddenly you become unrelatable and you start making a lot of money and brands pay for things for you and then people start hating you because you're unrelatable but you're unrelatable because they love you in the first place. It's this really interesting pipeline and I think at the end of the day, the influencer being over influencers is very, very valid. I'm over a lot of influencers because it's just I feel like I'm being sold to every minute like bring back good old fashioned entertainment like I and this goes back to my very first point of this episode of people don't like to be sold to. They don't like to feel like it's an ad so that's why the influencer hate is there because almost everything is an ad sometimes for some influencers so yeah, it's it's a very real thing and I I don't really know what's going to come of it. I don't know how it's going to be solved if it just becomes like all the big influencers in the world just suddenly everyone hates them. I think a good thing if you happen to be an influencer listening to this, it's really a good idea to maintain your relatability even if you do start to make like more money or you know you move to LA or whatever it is, maintaining your original level of relatability I think is really important. Okay, that was a little bit of a tangence we're going to get back on track. One of my other predictions for this year, I think that a lot of clients are going to be finding their photographer on TikTok. I have noticed within myself as a consumer that TikTok really has become a search engine for me in a lot of ways. If I'm looking for current news and events, if I'm looking for a local restaurant, if I'm traveling and looking for restaurants, if I'm looking for things to do in an area, I'm going on TikTok. It's really weird, but I am and I think because of that, this thing I'm noticing within myself, I think that photographers are going to be discovered a lot more on TikTok because I think clients are going to utilize TikTok in that way as well. It's going to shake a lot of worlds if it does happen, a lot of people are going to have a wake up call and realize that they actually need to get on TikTok. I do just want to say, I do a lot of mentor sessions with a lot of photographers and it is so common for photographers to be like, "Oh yeah, I'm on Instagram," but I have TikTok, but I don't really use it. I don't know how to use it or I don't like it and whatever. A lot of people do not like being photographers on TikTok. They don't like marketing on there and I do just want to say that even if you don't like it, if you feel like it's not succeeding, it is important and I do think that you should really, really try to use TikTok as a photographer if you can, if you feel motivated to. Okay, moving on. This is a photography prediction and just like, now we're talking about gear, okay? I think that Sony specifically is going to release their own 35 to 150mm f/2.0. The only reason I say that is because I want them to, but that's my trim prediction. I think that, well, I think that whatever brand decides to notice what the Gen Z photographers are using, what gear they're using, what they like, I think whatever brand adapts to that makes changes, makes the lenses people want to see, whatever it is, I think that is really going to influence and increase their buying power, buying power, selling power. Just get more sales, right? I think that people, as much as people love sticking to their brands, if there is enough of a draw for a specific piece of gear, I think that can make people switch to other brands. So yeah, that's just a little side note. This is random, but I also kind of think that Fujifilm is going to make a comeback and before you guys come for me and you're like, Fujifilm's always been around. Fujifilm doesn't need to make a comeback, I used Fujifilm. Fujifilm is not mainstream, I would say. I do, I know one person that uses Fujifilm and like, I just don't think it's as popular as you guys think. I think Fujifilm is going to make a comeback because the nostalgia being such a big thing right now in photography, Fujifilm's cameras, in my opinion, feel the most nostalgic. Even in the way they look, they're just nostalgic looking cameras. I feel like there's a Fujifilm, like one of those, the ones that have the color profiles built into them and stuff, that one's already popular. So I think kind of riding on that wave, if Fujifilm is able to do something to attract more people in, I feel like Fujifilm really can make a comeback. Okay, I've got three other predictions. I really think that wedding content creators this year are going to start learning how to do video and like get a camera, learn how to do video and I think they're going to start offering dual packages and I think we might start to see wedding videographers face out a little bit. Is this something I'm happy about? I would, no, I don't want wedding videographers to like lose their jobs, but with social media and TikTok short form content becoming such a big thing, there is just no avoiding short form content being more easily accessible and like it being easier to film. We've noticed the rise in content creators at weddings this year and what I think is going to happen is they're going to realize, oh, people actually still do want wedding videos. So I'm going to find a way to offer both. Like I'm going to get a vlog camera or like a little video camera and I'm going to piece together a wedding video for them. I'm going to do their, I'm going to be the content creator for the day, but I'm also going to piece together something a little bit more professional, not necessarily wedding videographer level, but something a bit more professional. So then they can offer both as like a dual package and then you know, wedding videographers are kind of like, what the heck man? Yeah, that's just something I see happening because content creators did become so big in 2025 and like I've worked with plenty of content creators and it mainly was just this year or last year. So I think content creators are definitely becoming the normal and I think they're going to start to adapt and learn how they can build out their business better. So that's, yeah, you might not like to hear it, but that's what I think about that. Okay, as far as like wedding dresses go, this is so niche, but that like next scarf with wedding dresses, I don't think that is going to be a thing. I think that's kind of like an out trend. I think what's going to be in is big puffy sleeves and like guys going back to like 80s weddings. I think that kind of scaled back and a bit more tailored is going to be the thing. I don't know why I feel like this, but I just feel like that's where things are headed and that goes into my last prediction as well. I think that the style, you guys know like the old portraits, like my mom and my grandma like for their weddings, they have like a couple of wedding portraits that are like sit down in front of like a background and like you kind of sit in your wedding photos are like super pose. I think something along those lines is going to be popular for 2026. I mentioned that people are over the pose photos, like I don't think that there's going to be like these huge sections for like wedding portraits anymore, but I could see clients like wedding clients being like we want one or two sit down classic style photos and then that's it because I do, I do think that that was really popular back in the day and I think that is something that people might still want to adapt from kind of retro photography. I think that might be something that people want to adapt into their photography today. I don't know, it's all very interesting and there you have the 2026 trend predictions guys. Like I said, you heard it first here, but if it's it's not true, you didn't hear it here, so there you have it. Next week I've got another episode for you guys debating between either doing a guest episode or I really want to do an episode for like 2026 growth strategies for you guys and how you can grow your businesses and give you like real practical growth tips. So yeah, either of those are coming up in the future so stay tuned for that. See you guys so much for listening this episode and like I mentioned earlier in the episode if you want to come to Scotland, fill out an application, yeah, I'll see you next week for another episode. Have an amazing rest of your day. Bye. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music]