As a photographer + designer, there are several things I use during my daily workflow that I could not do without. This morning I am sharing . . .

9 Things That Help Me Do What I Do

1. My Beautiful iMac
My iMac works so hard for me and I owe so many “thank yous” to it every day for doing everything I ask of it and more! I love the simplicity, syncing, and compatibility of all my Apple products. My 27-inch screen is perfect for zooming in on vectors and images and working with multiple tabs & windows open ((which is super important for multi-tasking on several projects and editing photos.))
And.
To be completely honest – Apple makes the sleekest computers! It looks so darn good in my office.
2. Adobe Creative Suite
I subscribe to Adobe Creative Cloud so I can also access the latest versions of all of my favorite adobe programs: Photoshop, Illustrator and Lightroom.
3. Coffee
It is part of my morning routine that really helps me each day. This week I am hooked on Stone Creek‘s Star Wars inspired Light Roast from May 4th. 🙂
4. Spotify
Nothing helps me get into the zone than some daily jams. Currently I am loving: Tame Impala, Night Beds, and Purity Ring (we are going to the concert in June: Yay!)
5.  Planner
Because I have several sessions to edit, emails to respond to, and design projects to complete each week, I know I have to stay super organized in order to successfully keep up with my work.
I am naturally a type-A and totally dependent on my planner. And, I will be the first to admit that managing my own business full-time has taken it to another freakish level. I love calendars + to-do lists!
Whenever I book a session, I also book a due date for completion. I love being able to look ahead and plan accordingly for when everything needs to be completed. This helps keep me on task and helps me not book too many new assignments each week that would interfere with getting previous work completed. I write everything done in my planner and I update my to-do lists each week. It’s extremely helpful for me to see a weeks worth of tasks, events, sessions, weddings, meetings, and deadlines all in one place.
I also have my schedule on Google Calendar, but there is something so significant and rewarding to me about physically writing my assignments down and crossing them off once complete. I am a huge fan of my Sugar Paper planner.
6. Beautiful, Clean, Workspace
Nothing stresses me out more than seeing clutter out of my peripherals! I take pride in keeping my work and office space organized, clean, and overall beautiful.
My office is minimally decorated, full of natural light, and is a clean slate with light gray with white accents. I love my office space so much! I am a strong believer that having a clean and beautiful working environment significantly affects productivity.
7. Evernote

I usually wear my contacts whenever I leave the house, but anytime I am working on the computer I wear my glasses. I have purchased 3 different stylish frames from 39DollarGlasses.com and every time I order I new pair I love their company more!

9. Kenzo Belly Rubs

I have a really really really hard time pulling away from my work. While it is good to get into such a deep work zone, it is also  important  take a break every couple hours. I have learned that if I have been working on a specific design project for too long, I end up thinking and working in circles and overall just wasting time. Taking short breaks to use the bathroom, sip some water, and rub Kenzo’s belly allow me to breath and re-fresh.