I recently had a client ask me if I had children. When I told her yes, my husband and I are parents to two funny little boys, ages 4 and 1, she replied "Wow, are they the reason why you started photography"? At first I wanted to say "no", but I realize that yes, actually they are the reason why I started this business. I always knew who I wanted to be, but along the way, I was unsure of what I wanted to do. Since the get-go, I have been Miss Artsy-pants, drawing and coloring and taking pics of everything. I remember begging for Kodak 1-use cameras for field trips, Disney vacations and more, and as I grew up, I always seemed to have a camera in my hand, and ready to upload my world on to the web. When I first became a mom, I never felt satisfied in photographs of my son. I spent hundreds of dollars on photoshoots at mall-chain photo shops and I felt so limited and that I didn't have a voice in what I wanted to pay for. I wanted photographs that capture smiles, laughs, personality and show how my son was not like anyone else's child. Each child is unique, yet I felt like I was stuck with cookie-cutter images that were just "ok". I was at a local Sears Portrait Studio, and the manager there and I were talking and she was telling me how she felt so trapped by her job and that she absolutely has a passion for photography and wishes she could talk to clients, style shoots, and really make unique photos. I thought about this for awhile and realized I felt the exact same way. We bonded well and came up with a game plan for future sessions of our oldest son, who was about a year old at the time. She allowed me to bring props, outfits, you name it to Sears the next time we went in and we created photographs that aren't very typical of chain studios. She was amazing and I am truly thankful for those images. Again, I only received 10 at the time, and by contract I had to purchase a package, etc. The amount of insane money that I spent was crazy to me and I felt that I could do this for someone else, at a fraction of the cost. The manager is no longer working there and is a successful photographer in the Dover area. She is amazing! I started looking at my own digital camera differently and thought, "Maybe I can do this at home". I started researching into backdrops, floor drops, equiptment, and all that I needed to start this little "project". It was not cheap but holidays and other events where I would be given gifts, I requested starter items. My husband from day one told me that if this hobby of mine was going to be give me something to do in my spare time, sure why not. I was told by other family members that I had no clue how to run a business or that I am just doing it for a hobby. Well, I like proving people wrong. More than anything. Cue three almost 4 years later and I am so proud of this small business I am building. Each day, I receive more and more traffic to my Facebook page, I get unique requests by email, and what started as just photographing children, has branched into insanely gorgeous territories, such as engagements and weddings. Every single day I am learning something new. Now that I have two boys, I spend any free moments behind the lens capturing them day to day, because like all kids, they grow too quickly. I don't want to have any regrets of not being to remember certain days because I wasn't able to capture the moment. I have had amazing support from my husband, mother, sister, mother-in-law and more. I have a few certain friends who have been with All Dolled Up Photography from the beginning and allowed me to capture their children as they grow. It will be our 4th anniversary very soon and I have come a long way. I am excited for the future, the growth of my business and extremely thankful for the network of other photographers, some new friends, who are with me by my side, teaching, supporting, and encouraging me with advice, criticism and critiques. This is our littlest son, Zackary. His name was inspired by my husband and mine favorite TV show, one of my favorite designers, Zac Posen, and part of my favorite music, Hanson.
If you are a mom or dad, and you have seen something online that has inspired you, or wished that you could have photographs taken that you feel are so strongly designed in your mind, please reach out to me and let's make it happen! Props, outfits, locations, I promise to make any vision you have come alive.
My vision the other morning was "a little gentlemen exploring some leaves" and all I could think about was a cream cable knit amongst the bright leaves...below is what I came up with. Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment