HOW I GOT STARTED AS A WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
When I was a senior in college, I was planning a wedding of my own. During that time, one of my favorite parts of planning was scrolling through Facebook and The Knot and looking at wedding photographers work. Even after we had booked our photographers, I would still look at some of my favorites that I had stumbled across. Something about their work set my soul on fire. It was inspiring!
In fact, my mom and I had a conversation in the car one day, where she asked me if I wasn’t going to be a teacher what would I do. I told her I would love to be a photographer. She told me she thought I’d be really good at that. Something about that conversation sparked a fire in me. I was going to make this happen. The wedding I had been planning didn’t happen, however God created a new love within me-photography!
I received my very first DSLR camera during Christmas of my senior year at college. From the second that camera was placed in my hands, I shot anything and everything I could. From friends, to children, to the cows on my Papa Preston’s farm. I scoured Pinterest for tutorials on how to utilize light to how to shoot in manual mode.
I was a sponge, soaking up as much as I could! Within 9 months I had shot my first wedding, and within a year and a half I had shot my second. It look me a little while to figure out where I wanted to specialize in photography, but eventually I settled on weddings.
HOW I WENT FULL TIME
When Christopher and I moved back to NC, I had taken a break from photography as we got settled in, but within a year I had started taking on some weddings again and really fell in love with them! During that time frame, I had taken a job as an office assistant at a local hospital system. It was a good job with great co-workers, however I realized it wasn’t for me.
My business was starting to do pick up some steam, and God started impressing on my heart to go full time! I was going to need something supplemental that gave me the flexibility to work on building and growing my business to the next level. I didn’t quite have all the answers when I gave my two week notice, but I left my full time job in October 2017. I never looked back. I started teaching English to children overseas to add in some extra income, and worked on building my business.
One of my mentors, Mary Marantz, always said “Slow growth equals strong roots.” That is exactly how my business has went since that time. After our first son was born (spring 2019), ironically, it seemed that the business exploded. I was set to have a fully booked calendar for the year 2020. I can’t help but laugh at that little detail now. However, God provided for us and brought us through that season even though it was difficult. Pursuing a business in wedding photography has been one of the most rewarding parts of my life. It’s been a journey filled with ups and downs, but I am so thankful for the couples that Christoper and I are able to serve because of this business!
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