Freewheelin’ #8 - Stability and Ceilings
The plan for 2025 was to stabilize and make my company future proof. Turns out, my year was almost a copy of 2024, business-wise and travel. For the way I operate, I might have hit a small ceiling, which means 2024 was a great setup to built upon. I’ll get you up to speed with everything that happened in 2025.
Quick Recap
In 2025 I traveled for 67 days, of which 35 days were during one large tour in Africa. My turnover increased a little but my profits stayed the same as in 2024, even though I had a significantly slower (or better distributed) year. To me, that’s a great sign for a stable business.
I also managed a few more side-quests this year, like a barter deals with a Kayak company, getting myself a rooftop tent and launching a photography course in Dutch. As much as possible, I try to combine my personal interests with business opportunities. And within the creative sector, this is often a fine combination with photography and videography.
This year was about stabilizing and making my company future proof. As it turns out, I hit a small ceiling for the way I operate. As I travel frequently, I can not always be there for my clients. This stands in the way of further growth. But, as I still desire to travel, I can confidently say that this is where I need to be right now.
In Freewheelin’ #8 you’ll read all about my travels, projects, business developments, personal life and goals of 2025.
Travel
I only had 1 trip planned for 2025 in February, but it got cancelled last-minute due to a lack participators. Luckily, I got a new trip with the same organisation to Africa later in September. Later in the year, I also got a trip with one of the biggest adventure travel organisation in Europe: Travelbase. And I ended up going on a few trips from my own bucket list. Here’s a quick recap of where I went:
I traveled for 67 days in total (18% of the year) over the span of 7 trips to 11 countries.
Destinations
In chronological order, this is where I’ve been this year:
Lombok
I celebrated New Years on the Gili Islands next to Lombok, Indonesia. This was my end destination of my trip after visiting Laos and The Philippines prior (see Freewheelin’ #7). I climbed up the Rinjani Vulcano and chilled at the beaches of the Gili Islands. This destination was a clear vacation for me, especially after the busy months before I left on this 1 month trip.
Sicliy
My trip in February got cancelled, so I wanted to book a trip to replace it. I always want to have something to look forward to when I’m at home. After a little bit of searching, I went for Sicily. This island of Italy was an ideal place to visit in March due to the weather and a lack of tourists at this time of the year. I went for 5 days, rented a car and set out for a roadtrip around the island.
My main focus was to shoot as much content as possible. Mainly so I could distribute my photos and videos with Amazing Aerial Agency, where I had picked up more passive income than the year before.
Sicily was a warm welcome and surprised me with the diverse landscapes and of course lovely Italian food. Especially Taormina was a wonderful place to visit. I wrote a blog about my top 10 favorite spots for photography in Sicily, and made a drone video with my top locations.
Black Forest, Germany
With two other people I met through Instagram (Nina and Daphne), we set out for a quick trip to the Black Forest in Germany. From The Netherlands, this took us around 7 to 8 hours to drive. For a few days, we drove through this area, did a couple of hikes and slept in our tents. Nina also captured my new profile picture here, as displayed in this blog’s header. It’s always wonderful to meet like-minded people, and it came as a welcoming surprise to go on this quick tour together.
Travelbase: Kayaking in Norway
Kayaking between the massive fjords in Norway; I don’t think it was ever on my to-do list, but afterwards I kept thinking why it wasn’t before. The surroundings were superb and as a kayaking-enthousiast, I was enjoying myself to the fullest while capturing photo and video content for Travelbase.
This was my first job with Travelbase, which is a massive adventure tour organizer in Europe. I’ve been trying to work together for years, but they have a media team where you have to apply for. This year, I finally got a call and we sat down for a quick introduction. At the end of the call, I already got a promise for Norway.
The collaboration went smoothly and I hope to extend this into 2026 with more trips.
Faroe islands
I got to visit one of my top bucket list countries: the Faroe Islands. These islands are situated between England and Iceland and are known for its raw nature and harsh climate conditions. In short: a perfect place for a great adventure.
I linked up with Tim Roosjen, a travel photographer who lives close to me in The Netherlands. We’ve been discussing going on a trip together for a while and we finally got a date and destination set in stone. In August, we went for 6 days to discover and capture the islands to the fullest. I also got to test my new Mavic 4 drone, which came in handy with the heavy winds.
This video of the Faroe Islands also got awarded a “Video of the week” award on Airvuz, a drone-centered social media platform.
Daktent.nl: Switzerland
The last few years I dreamed of owning a rooftent. I loved the idea of hitting the road with the flexibility of a rooftent, but up to this point I didn’t have a car that could support one. Up until the start of 2025, when I switched to a Volkswagen Polo, the possibility came alive. My friend Marieke got a collaboration with Daktent.nl and recommended the company. I reached out and got a favorable deal on the rooftent.
As part of the deal, I needed to capture some content with the tent abroad. I messaged Isak, who was living with his girlfriend in Germany at the time, and got him aboard for a quick roadtrip to Switzerland. We shot the needed content, as well as hiking to some of my new favorite spots in the Swiss Alps.
And the best thing, now that the collaboration has finished, I get to keep the rooftent. I’m absolutely planning more trips in 2026!
Overland Travel: Africa
I first got in contact with Overland Travel at the start of 2024 to discuss a potential collaboration. Overland Travel organizes tours with specialized trucks to drive through all sorts of countries. We settled on a 2 week trip in the North Cape of Norway. Though, as there were not enough registrations for the tour, it was cancelled. That was a bummer.
I looked at their travel agenda for 2025 and found two overland tours in Africa later in the year. I proposed to join one of those, and they agreed. A tour from Botswana to Kenya in 32 days. Crazy, right?! We crossed through 6 countries while driving through the smallest villages, meeting the most welcoming people and experiencing a constant safari from our trucks. It was an unreal feeling to capture this with photo and video.
The editing afterwards took weeks. But hey, it was an adventure of a lifetime!
upcoming Travels
After a successful collaboration with Stray Travel to Laos last year, we got in touch for Vietnam and Cambodia. While discussing it, they asked me to visit New Zealand for them as well. The country where everything started in 2020, even with the same company I traveled with, how can I say no?
I’m leaving on January 16th for 6,5 weeks to visit Vietnam, Cambodia and New Zealand. Perfect timing, since my projects are always slow around these months. The Cambodia tour from Stray didn’t have enough participants, so I have decided to fly to Siem Reap for 5 days between Vietnam and New Zealand. And, drum roll please, I’m bringing my own model to New Zealand. My girlfriend Luna will be joining me on a 3 week tour :)
Later this year, I’m hoping for a follow-up collaboration with Travelbase and maybe another trip with Columbus Travel. I’ll also be reaching out to a few new organizations to spark some interest. I’m aiming for another 10-11 weeks of travel in 2025, and I’m doing well already with the 6,5 weeks planned.
For personal trips, I’m looking for quick escapes to places like the French coast with the rooftent, the French Alps or Austria. I’m also very interested in countries like Kazakhstan and Kirgizia, so maybe I get to cross out one of those this year.
Projects
In 2025, I stabilized with my business and my projects. Most of the jobs in 2025 were in line with the year prior. Even though I had less jobs, I still got the same turnover from projects like travel photography, corporate content, local governments and social media productions. Lets start off with my 2026 showreel:
Notable developments
Not much new: Even though I matched my turnover with 2024, the year felt really empty at times. On average, I worked on 1 to maybe 2 projects a week. It’s great for having spare time, but not for growing a company. This comes from a lack of new projects and clients, as well as missed opportunities due to constant traveling. Especially the latter is a conflicting one; the more I travel, the less I can tend to my clients’ needs. I’m starting 2026 of with more emailing and trying to get some more projects in the pipeline, but realistically, I may have hit a ceiling of how much I can do in the current situation.
A situation of bankruptcy: Through LinkedIn, I got contacted by someone doing marketing for a solar panel / home battery installer. They wanted a series of video testimonials and photos of customers with a home battery, so they could promote their product. After recording and editing 10 videos for the company, the company went bankrupt just 2 weeks after I had sent my invoice (almost €5k). Apparently, they had a big debt and were working on an investment that fell through last-minute… which meant I was last to receive any money from them. It’s now 8 months later and I haven’t seen a dime. The company looked healthy and promising, so I didn’t think of asking for a deposit. Now I wish I had.
Dutch website pays off: Last year, I created a Dutch version of my website to increase my SEO for projects in my area. And it worked! I got two new clients because they found me directly in either Google Maps or on Google. One of those clients came back to me for a second and third project, so the effort of launching a second website has payed off!
Barter to project: As you know, I love barter deals for products I already wanted anyway. This way, I can get a product for free, create content and get a new connection for future collaborations if the deal works out. This year, I got a project from WakeStore to shoot a full day of content after collaborating with them on a free paddle board last year. I also got foldable kayaks from Oru Kayak and I’m still in touch to create more content for them in 2026.
Teaching: Every year I get a few requests to teach people around me about photography, videography or other things. This year, I taught people about using Lightroom and practicing Videography, and gave live drone lessons to multiple people. I enjoy people asking me about this, because it confirms my positions as a practiced content creator!
Prints: After Etsy didn’t work out the way I hoped, I increased the amount of prints I have on websites like WerkaandeMuur & Picfee. I’m currently monitoring if those websites are worth uploading more work too. If they start to generate passive income, I might upload my full print portfolio to both, to run alongside my own printstore.
A grab from the shelf
As always, my projects are all over the place. So here’s a grab from my favorite projects, companies and moments.
New product introduction
I’ve been collaborating with Dekker Chrysanten on countless projects so far. Last Summer they asked me to shoot content for a new variety that they developed. Prior to launch, we shot a campaign of the new variety with a local florist. The photos were used for large posters and a big announcement, along with a promo video. All colorful and happy, as the new variety identity had to show.
WakeStore
After a succesful barter deal last year, WakeStore hired me to capture their new products in the Spring. We hit the waters to shoot fun tubes, sup boards and accessories. Never a boring day as a photographer! :)
UK terminal Amsterdam
Central Station in Amsterdam got an update in 2025: a UK Terminal for trains. The driving force behind this was Summit Company, who brought the heads together of all the involved parties to ensure a smooth development. I was asked by an Agency, who worked for Summit Company, to highlight the building progression and the film testimonials from all the involved parties including NS, K_Dekker and Architects. Here’s the short version of the result. A longer 8 minute version can be found online as well.
Festival Strand van Oranje
After not photographing a festival in 2024, I was asked again in 2025. Just two days before the festival, I was asked by a friend who ran the media team. One of their photographers had to cancel last minute, so they needed a replacement. I was happy to oblige. I always love the vibe of festivals and the freedom that comes with capturing the atmosphere. Hoping to do more in 2026 again!
Collaboration with a marketing agency
At the start of 2025, I got in touch with a local marketing agency. They offer packages to companies like Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar and the Bavo Church in Haarlem. With pre-made scripts, we created video and photo content to use in marketing campaigns. What I like most about a collaboration like this, is the chance of working on bigger projects for companies I may never worked with without a marketing agency. Even though the pay is lower, I still enjoy these kind of projects.
Classics by Legends
An uncle started a company to store, maintain and rent old timers. To hit the ground running, he needed content to fill his website and make a convincing first impression. We captured a small introduction of his services on video and photo. The website looks promising now, and I hope he can build his name quickly in the industry.
The quality of productions has solidified over the past year. The quality only inches forward now, which (to me) is a great sign: I’m in a good place to create high-quality content and the biggest learning process is now complete. Now, I can capitalize on my skills and knowledge, and keep learning from smaller details and projects.
Photography course [NL]
I’ve been planning to release a photography course for years now, and I finally got to it this year! I released “Van Camera tot Creatie” this year and got around 10 customers so far. The course can be purchased on my own website and a third-party website called Udemy. Here’s my promotional video:
I’m currently writing a course for photographers who want to make a jump to videography, which I hope to release this Summer! Keep an eye on my page if that might be something for you ;)
Amazing Aerial Agency
Wow! I wanted to add around 500 pieces of new content to Amazing Aerial Agency this year but ended up uploading around 3 times that. With around 2500 pieces of content online, I now generate around €1500 a year. That’s the passive income I wanted, and secretly wished for too.
“I now generate €1500 a year of passive income”
To rely less on my projects, things like these are very important to me. I use the money to plan new trips and extend my portfolio even further. In 2026, I hope to add another 1000 pieces of content. In time, I hope to earn around a 1-months’ salary per year with stock photography. More is always welcome, of course.
Looks on life
Early in 2025 I got contact by Sander, the owner of Looks on Life. His concept was simple: great photography from countries worldwide to print on 11x11cm blocks of wood. As he still developing his idea, he asked me to join the photographers team and help him set some things up. We even created a promo video with the prototypes:
The product is officially launching this January and I’m very curious what’ll do on the market. As a photographer, I receive a commission for every photo sold. Looks on Life takes care of all production and marketing, so I can focus on the things I like best: capturing the world.
Opportunities
The more you’ve achieved, the more you scratch of your to-do list. I’m finding myself in a place where I’m steady and happy, slowing down the additions to my to-do list in 2025. That’s why there are few opportunities I have in mind for 2026, but here goes:
More readings
In 2025 I did a reading to local business owners about my work as a content creator. These readings always deliver new connections over time. Upcoming year, I got a reading planned for a photography club where I’ll be telling my story to around 100 people. I quite like to share my experiences and extend my network, so I’m hoping to do more readings in 2026 when the opportunity arises.
Another course
Now that I’ve launched my first course, I’d love to add another one: videography for photographers. I now know how to create a course, structure my website and promote it, so adding a new course would be half the effort. I’m already writing the script and I’m hoping to release the course before the Summer starts.
Social media changes
The algorithm of Social Media changes all the time. Currently, the trend is to display more text in your posts. Personally, I like clean images with a strong caption, but the current trend asks for easier hooks. The hooks need to be on the content, not in the caption. It’s a logical by-effect for the social media that gets quicker by the day.
I’ve been implementing some text in my posts and currently I’m testing new methods with the posts on EveBase to create more traffic. I’m monitoring it to see what changes I need to make, without losing my identity as a content creator.
Re-Editing old content
Last but not least, I’m re-editing some old content from travels before I joined Amazing Aerial Agency. This way, I can give my content a second life to be sold as stock as well as getting fresh content for my social media channels.
Network
As mentioned before, my business stabilized in 2025. Network-wise, I didn’t get many new contacts but rather progressed with the ones I had already. I’m still organizing drinks for creators around Alkmaar and working in the office of EveBase every fortnight. Two notable things that happened in my network were:
Dutch WEbsite
The Dutch website I created last year got me two new customers. This is more than my English website did this year. Mouth-to-mouth is still the best way to get customers but the Dutch website is giving me another way for potential customers to reach me.
Skypixel admirer
I’ve been active on Skypixel for 6-7 year already and never had someone reach out directly. Until this year, when I received a request to capture a hotel in Belgium by drone. It’s crazy that a social media for drones can generate a project like this, right?!
We didn’t get to it in 2025, but in the Spring of 2026 we still plan to photograph the hotel from the inside and outside.
Business
In 2025, I raised my tariffs from 80 to 85, as well as increasing my daily rate. I still get relieved faces when I tell new customers that my tariff is 85, so there might be some wiggle room for next year. I decided to keep my tariffs the same for 2026 as I didn’t feel like I increased my services as much to add another 5. Also, I feel like there’s a mental limit for hourly tariffs around 100. Underneath that, you’re “cheap” or “affordable”, above you might get turned down on pricing. In my current situations, I cannot afford to lose customers on pricing. In the future, when there is a higher flow of constant projects, I can increase my tariffs more easily.
I worked on 1 to 2 projects a week on average this year, which felt like I wasn’t busy at all. There were moments I didn’t think I would even match my turnover from 2024, but luckily I still managed to reach the goal. Here are the numbers of 2025:
Revenue
The big growth is over. I stabilized this year with just over 2k extra in total revenue.
Revenue 2021: €23.724
Revenue 2022: €38.256
Revenue 2023: €54.000
Revenue 2024: €64.300
Revenue 2025: €66.500
Almost every project in 2025 was a hybrid between photography and videography. I feel like the market is moving that way too with Social Media creating a need for video content.
Profit
My goal for 2025 was to reach 70k in revenue and profit around 52k. I did edge a little closer to the revenue goal, but made more cost for travels. The profit matched the one from 2024 almost to the dime. But I’m still happy with the result. This profit allows me to pay for everything and still save some for later. I also have a buffer of around 5 months for when the market falls flat.
I’m going to renew my goal for a 70k revenue with a profit of 52k. Lets see what 2026 brings.
Investments
Even though I thought most investments were made, I still got a few new things to play with. Here are my investments of 2025:
Patato Jet Hydraulic Tripod
Nanlight LED light
DJI Mavic 4 Pro
Canon RF 100-500 F4.5-7.1 Lens
Photomast Pole MK2 - 8 meters
In total around 8k of investments in 2025.
What’s next?
I want to upgrade my R6 Mark II to a R5 Mark II, as I notice the 20MP of the R6 is not enough for my wishes. My R5C is also getting old and unreliable at times, so I want a new camera to bring on travels without doubting my equipment.
I’m also thinking of upgrading my C70 to a C50. The C70 is fine but a little heavy for my liking. I’m currently selling the R6 Mark II and C70 and hope to buy the C50 with the money I get back from these two combined.
Personal life
The year started with a low in my personal life but as my friends, family and business were steady, it was good to manage. Here are some of the things that happened in 2025:
Relationships
The year started with heartbreak. A 1,5 year long on/off relationship ended abruptly without explanation. Even though I knew deep-down it wasn’t going to work, I still tried to save whatever there was. The break-up was hard but also a relieve. Getting back into dating was pretty hard for a bit until I met Luna in the Summer. We matched without question or compromise, something I didn’t expect at all. It feels like a warm embrace and it has been smooth sailing ever since. I’m grateful to say the least. And the best part: she’s joining me in New Zealand this February. Can’t wait to discover together!
Uncle again
I became uncle for the third time! And also to three friends who got kids in 2025. Slowly, I’m edging towards that life phase but I’m not there yet. I still want to travel and discover before settling down as they did. And that’s fine. I got to adapt to my friends and family entering a new phase and finding my place in the whole of it. It’s wonderful to see it happening around me, and I’m sure I can share the magic one day.
New car and rooftent
At the start of the year, I managed to get a new car from my friend’s uncle. It’s a Volkswagen Polo. I wanted a new car for more comfort on long journeys, more professionalism and the option to add a rooftent. I got a rooftent now too, thanks to a collaboration with Daktent.nl. The car and rooftent give such freedom and I’m looking forward to more trips in 2026.
Weekly dinner
With 3 friends we started a weekly dinner, rotating between our houses. This way, we get to keep in touch frequently and have a small “night out” every week. It’s such a small thing honestly, but it means the world to me.
Social life
I’m very grateful for the social life I have currently. Friends in all sorts of capacities, great family and lots of things to do. This has not always been the case, so I enjoy every moment of it. Some friends are entering other phases and slowing down on their social life, which is fine as I’m still finding new connections and friends to share experiences with. Let’s keep that rolling, shall we?
2025 Goals
For 2025 I wrote down a couple goals in my Freewheelin’ series. I crossed out the goals I managed to reach.
Travel for a quarter of the year (1 week every month on average)
Get more steady jobs and hours (if possible, also remotely)
Keep evolving my crafts
Attract new clients with updated showcases and portfolio
Say no more often
Plan more free days and a vacation
Find ways to stay motivated and keep my mental health in check
2025 looked a lot like 2024, so some of the goals were not as easy to reach as imagined. I had less paid travels and I was less busy with projects. As a result, I didn’t have to plan free days or say no. I’m transferring these goals to 2026 and I will try more actively to achieve them!
2026
2026, what are we looking at:
Travel for 10+ weeks in total
Get more steady jobs and hours (if possible, also remotely)
Release my second online course
Attract new clients with updated showcases and portfolio
Find ways to stay motivated and keep my mental health in check
Increase my passive income with stock, prints and courses
Now that the business has stabilized, I want to further extend my network and increase my passive income. Not much else for 2026, just keeping the red line intact.
Social Media standings
Last year I went viral with a video and I’m still getting an insane amount of views on TikTok. The video is currently on 4,9M on TikTok and 800k on Instagram. This viral video really boosted my socials, making me more interesting for companies to work with. I would like to reach 10k on Instagram as well, but the growth on Instagram seems limited with my content and the current algorithm. Overall, the growth is slowing down, so let’s see what happens in 2026.
See you in 2027!
Cheers, Mike
More of this series
GOOD TO SEE YOU!
My name is Mike Tesselaar, in short MiTe. I’m a photo- and videographer from The Netherlands with a heart for traveling and adventure.
I write blogs about photo- and videography, travel, freelancing and personal related stories. Hope you’ll find inspiration and feel welcome to stick around a little longer!
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