An Interview

About a month ago I woke up to an email from a college student researching careers and wanted to interview me. Because so many people ask me I though it might be a good idea to just blog it<3

1.) What training ( school or experience) did you have in order to be a photographer?

I went to a technical school when I was 17 for Graphic Communications and then after that received my Associates degree in Graphic Design. I took a class in film photography in college but I never went to school for photography. Most professional photographers that I know haven't. Most of what I have learned I have taught myself over the years.

2.) What made you want to be a photographer?

Half way through obtaining my associates degree I found myself doing more and more design projects that had to do with photographs instead of actually designing things. I realized I had been spending most of my free time in the dark room instead of the design lab and after careful consideration decided that I was going to finish my associates in Graphic Design but not continue. During this time, I was asked to do my first engagement session ( I only had an iphone at the time.)She then asked me to do her wedding, I shot that and then I instantly kind of blew up and molded into a photographer. I didn't wake up and say "today am going to be a photographer" it just naturally happened.

3.) What strengths do you think being a photographer requires?

The wedding industry is very cut throat and competitive, especially now that DSLRs are so easy to come by, and everyone who owns a camera phone thinks they are a photographer. You not only have to be an artist, you have to be a business person too. I would say that 75 percent of what I do revolves around the business side compared to 25 percent of the creative side. I would say that the biggest strength you must is to be persistent. I believe the only way to succeed is to make something your life. You can't give up because you had a bad shoot or an angry client, you must go on.

4.) What is a typical day at work for you like?

There are two sides of wedding photography, there is the mode when you are shooting, and then there is the other side, the business and processing mode. The night before a wedding I run through all my equipment. I clean everything, go over check lists, format memory cards, make sure batteries are charged. The morning of a wedding I wake up, go over the shot lists with my assistant. Most weddings that I photograph are all day coverage which could mean I would meet the bride and bridal party at the salon at 7am. We then head off to the ceremony and after the first kiss, I read off a list of family members to make sure we get with group shots. Then comes bridal party photos, then my favorite time which is when I go off with just the bride and groom. I then usually have 15 minutes to which I have my assistant grab me food and I edit 10 images for a slideshow so everyone can see images that had just happened hours before. I then usually stay until the wedding ends photographing the dancing, candid's, etc. I go home and back up my files before I even take off my shoes. The next morning I edit more images and post them on different social media outlets and blog them which takes a few hours. On days that I'm not shooting weddings I'm either shooting family lifestyle sessions, emailing clients back, or keeping up with other forms of social media. I also watch webinars and read through wedding blogs to further educate myself. You don't really have a day off when you have your own business.

5.) What is your favorite part about being a photographer?

This probably sounds so cheesy, but I love being around love. All of those moments that happens at weddings are filled with so much emotion. I have cried at every wedding that I have ever photographed, and I love the feelings that I experience throughout the day.

6.)If there was one thing you could change about your job, what would it be and why?

I sometimes wish people understood how much goes into wedding photography. There is this common belief that wedding photographers charge ridiculous amounts of money for just one day of work. It's not like that at all. There are countless hours of emails and consultations and meetings months before the wedding. You are then on your feet for sometimes 12 hours( I once shot a 14 hour wedding) You then have thousands and thousands of dollars in equipment( because of course you have to have backups, and backups of backups) I then spend up to 20 hours processing those images. It is far more than a day's worth of work.

7.) Are there any specific parts of your job that you find challenging? If so, what are they?

The biggest challenge of my job is the actual business side. I am such a creative person and I am not as good as a businesswoman as I would like to be. Because it is so competitive you really need to be a salesperson as well, and as much as I like making a bigger profit, I hate being pushy. Another challenge I face is finding a balance between having my own individual life and owning a business. In most aspects your business becomes your life. A third challenge I face is the belief that only older photographers are good. I have found that because I am only 22, people look at me different. They think I don't know what I'm doing, and many people don't believe that the work I do is mine. They certainly don't think that I have shot almost 40 weddings in the past 1.5 years, you have to have a thick skin sometimes.

8.) What is the most rewarding part of being a photographer?

I think the most rewarding part of being a photographer is being able to make someone feel beautiful. I love hearing clients try to convince me that they aren't photogenic, and then that when I break their shell and have their true beauty shine. When I show a client the back of my camera and their eyes light up, to me that's one of the best feelings in the world.

9.) What advice would you give to a photographer who is starting out?

Shoot everything, bring your camera everywhere. Your camera needs to be an extension of yourself. Look for the beauty in everything. The dew drops on the flowers early in the morning, the way the clouds look before a storm, the complexity of each snowflake, the golden hues of sky as the sun sets. If you look close enough, it is everywhere just waiting to be captured.

10.) Being a photographer do you work alone or have an assistant/partner? Which would you prefer?

Depending on the package the bride chooses, I do have an assistant who second shoots for me. This means that while I'm with the bride and bridesmaid while they are getting ready, the assistant is off with the groom and groomsmen shooting them getting ready. Their other main job is to focus in on the groom while the bride is walking down the aisle so I can get the face on view of the bride. Other than that I do everything on my own, and prefer it that way. Down the road I will hire someone in house to edit my images and take care of the business aspect so I can do what I love the most, which is to shoot.