I have always loved taking pictures. My camera journey started with a disposable camera that I got at Christmas, next I received a silver digital camera, then I got a iPod and my first iPhone! In 2017, I bought my first professional camera. There wasn't anything super special about this camera but it fueled my love for photography. I used that for personal use and a few family sessions but I never thought I could or would build my own business off of it.
In May of 2021,
the Haywood Family was the first family that invited me into their story. They had just had their third baby and wanted to capture a few pictures to remember those early days. I jumped on the opportunity because I loved the idea of photography, I just never thought I could do it. I didn't charge them for this session, I was just so excited to share something I was passionate about! I took about 30 minutes and grabbed a few pictures and edited them on my phone. They loved the pictures, but the album I delivered to them was inconsistent, had poor lighting exposure in a lot of the pictures, and overall was not something I was extremely proud of.
After this picture was taken, it took me 9 more months to decide photography was something I wanted to pursue and an additional 2 months to start promoting myself on social media.
I started with advertising on my personal page but launched my business pages shortly after. I started the pages in March of 2022. During that time, I started looking into education to help me expand my business and knowledge. I found Chelsea Allegra and knew she had a ton of value she could share to help me with my business. I took her Photo Foundations course in April and May of 2022 where I learned the basic concepts of editing, posing, starting a business, workflows, marketing, and more! This helped me to get a grasp on the foundation of what I wanted my business to be!
I continued to work on my work for a few months and then decided to take an in person workshop to meet other photographers, build my experience, and grow my portfolio. In July of 2022, I participated in Payton Herring's Take Flight 2.0 Workshop. It connected me with so many local photographers, who I am still in contact with, and helped me understand running my business even more! After this workshop, I improved my editing style, marketing techniques, and gave me confidence to run my business.
During the Workshop, Payton also hosted a Styled Shoot where I was able to build my portfolio with wedding portraits. Josh and Riley, the couple in the photo, were troopers. We shot this in the middle of the day during the middle of July in North Carolina...it was HOT! The results from the shoot were well worth the heat. This session showed me that I was capable of capturing dreamy photos that were worth paying for!
Since the workshop in July of 2022, I have continued working on and pursuing this dream of mine. In the mix of it all, I got married and had our first son. There has been many challenges but I am confident that this is where I am supposed to be. My work continues to improve and I am continuing to pursue education even now with Erin Thompson Photography to help further my business and better my work. I cannot wait to see how EPP continues to grow and where I'll be in the next 3 years!
