The Camera Roll Reflection Exercise: How to Review Your Year in Photos (And Why You Should)
I’ve been practicing what’s now called the camera roll reflection exercise since 2007—long before it had a name, long before it went viral, and years before I founded Picturli.
Back then, I simply loved photographing my friends and family. Every December, I’d scroll through the year and design custom calendars as gifts, twelve months of moments, curated with intention, so the people I loved could see their year the way I experienced it.
That annual ritual taught me something fundamental:
we don’t forget because life isn’t meaningful. We forget because life keeps moving.
Your camera roll is the closest thing you have to a personal time machine. And before this year slips quietly into the past, it’s worth taking the time to look.
What Is the Camera Roll Reflection Exercise?
The camera roll reflection exercise is a year-end practice popularized by Mel Robbins that invites you to scroll through your photos, month by month, to revisit the moments that actually made up your year.
When I first saw Mel teaching this, I felt deeply validated. She articulated something I’d learned through nearly two decades of doing it myself:
The years you take time to review are the years you actually remember.
Why This Exercise Works
When you intentionally review your camera roll, something subtle but powerful happens.
You stop measuring your year by goals missed or milestones delayed and start seeing what actually lived inside it.
You remember:
The unplanned gathering that turned into the best night of the year
A random Tuesday that was quietly beautiful
The people who showed up again and again
A child’s expression you’d completely forgotten
The ordinary moments you noticed enough to photograph
Again and again, I’ve found this to be true: the small moments end up being the big ones.
Not the staged photos. Not the perfect events.The everyday scenes that reveal who you were becoming.
How to Do the Camera Roll Reflection Exercise
(A Practical, Followable Guide)
After 18 years of refining this practice, here’s how to do it in a way that’s meaningful and useful later.
Step 1: Set Aside Intentional Time
Block 60–90 minutes. More, if you have it.
This works best when you’re not multitasking.
Step 2: Start at December 31 of the Previous Year
Scroll in chronological order. Let the year unfold as it actually happened.
(I personally count New Year’s Eve as belonging to both years.)
Step 3: Heart Your Favorites Immediately
This is the most important rule.
As you scroll, tap the heart on anything that:
Makes you smile
Feels emotionally true
Captures a moment you’d want to remember
Do not delete.
Do not organize.
Just mark what matters.
Why this matters:
If you ever decide to make a year-end photo book, you’ve already done the hardest part—identifying the images worth keeping. Instead of facing thousands of photos later, you’ll have a curated starting point.
Step 4: Move Month by Month
Look at everything:
Screenshots
Blurry photos
Random images
Notice what surprises you:
Trips you forgot
How much your kids changed
Projects you completed
People who appeared again and again
Step 5: Pay Attention to What You Didn’t Expect
The afternoon light.
A screenshot you took for a reason.
A quiet moment that suddenly feels important.
Also pay attention to the way you take a photograph. Did you clean the lens? Learn from your mistakes but don’t dwell.
Step 6: Notice Your Growth
Ask yourself:
What was stressing me out early in the year that’s resolved now?
What did I work through without realizing it?
Where did I change?
What Happens Next (and Why Most People Stop Here)
Almost everyone finishes this exercise feeling the same way: Moved. Grateful. A little emotional.
You think, “I want to do something meaningful with these photos.”
And then reality sets in. Thousands of images. Multiple devices. Duplicates, screenshots, blurry shots. Your partner’s photos. Your kids’ videos.
The intention is there—but the time isn’t.
So the feeling fades. And another year becomes digital clutter instead of a keepsake.
Why I Founded Picturli
This exact gap—the space between wanting to preserve memories and being overwhelmed by them—is why I founded Picturli in 2016.
I spent years creating calendars and photo books for loved ones, then realized what I truly loved was:
Curation
Design
Helping people see the fullness of their lives
My background in advertising, managing millions of visual assets, gave me the technical skills. My personal history gave me the why.
I know this to be true from lived experience: the years you preserve properly are the ones you remember.
How Picturli Helps After the Reflection
If the camera roll reflection exercise resonates but the follow-through feels daunting, this is where we step in.
Digital Consolidation & Organization
We gather photos from all devices, organize them chronologically, remove duplicates, and ensure files are properly dated and named.
Expert Curation
We identify the images that actually tell your story—without overwhelming you.
Thoughtful Design
Custom photo books that feel timeless and personal, not templated.
A Stress-Free Process
You do the reflecting. We handle the rest.
Make This Year Tangible
A year from now, most of these rediscovered moments will blur again.
A thoughtfully designed photo book makes the year retrievable—something your family can hold, revisit, and share.
The years I preserved? I can still tell you stories from them. The years I didn’t? They blend together.
If this exercise moves you, that’s your signal. These moments are worth preserving properly.