Am I still doing photography?

 

Let’s address the elephant in the room, am I still doing photography? It’s probably no secret to anyone that my photography business has gotten a little quiet. And in case you are new here, YES I am a photographer. I always will be. But it does look different now than it ever has before. After countless questions of “how’s business?” I figured it was a good time to finally address the very topic so many people in my life seem to be wondering.

 

My Journey As A Photographer

 

Photography was never something I envisioned myself doing when I was younger. I remember being in 8th grade getting ready to head into high school and a bunch of my friends chose photography as their elective class. Mostly because they thought it sounded easy.

And in my true nature I wanted to run in the opposite direction from what everyone else was doing. But my Junior year of high school, something switched for me. I had been playing around with my moms camera at home and I decided that maybe I should take a class or two to get better skills.

Turns out, I loved it and I was actually pretty good at it. So one class turned into several. And before I knew it, I was heading to college with a major in photography.

From the very beginning I told myself I would never do weddings. But that was short lived because after my very first wedding I was hooked. I never expected my business to take off in the way that it did but I can just say that being a wedding photographer was one of the most fun times of my life. Especially in the years leading up to my own wedding day.

 

What Changed?

 

After some reflection, I realized that photography… specifically wedding photography is a single persons game. Now I know there are plenty of married photographers out there. By no means am I saying it’s impossible. But it’s definitely a challenge to have work/life balance as a wedding photographer. My husband would be at work all week long and I would be home. And then every weekend when he was home, I would be out at weddings or at photoshoots.

Essentially our schedules were totally opposite. Plus during peak wedding season, I would have to miss out on all the fun fall festivities with friends and family.

I had already thought about scaling back on my business after I married Tyler. But that plan went into full effect when I found out I was pregnant with my son at the end of 2021.

I knew then, that I wanted to be a present mama. And working weekends with a baby at home was not something I wanted to do. So I began to scale back little by little. And 2023 I made the hard decision to be my final year as a wedding photographer.

Yes, I still have an associate team that will photograph weddings for me, as well as other sessions. But if I am being honest, these days I don’t advertise much. And my photography life has really just been per request as they come.

 

Where I’m Going From Here

 

It’s a blessing to now be in a position where I do not HAVE to work. My husband fully supports our family and I get to just be mom. Making income here and there for the fun of it and to help contribute financially when I can.

Photography will always be a part of my life, but I have stepped back and now use my photography skills for other avenues in my business that require less client projects. I get to use my skills for content creation. My membership The Social Herd. And just taking photos of our own family life.

A slower paced life is something I have always dreamed of and I am grateful that God has let all the pieces fall into place to get me here. But now that I am out of the industry, I have felt this urge to help other women get into it if they feel called.

I owe so much to my photography business and believe that it’s such a great source of income for anyone wanted to get out of the 9-5 rat race. Which is why I am now teaching others how to become better photographers, start a business, book more clients, etc.

If that’s something you are interested in, check out my freebie: how to exceed client expectations and get booked more as a photographer

And if you want bite sized photography education for less than $5 per month, you can subscribe to my Instagram profile! Just click the button at the top of my profile that says “subscribe”!

 

In Conclusion

 

I don’t ever see myself letting go of photography completely. But it does look different in my life now, than ever before. But I am excited for all the new avenues that this business and industry has opened for me and I cannot wait to see what is next. Here’s to new adventures!