Blogging is such a wonderful tool for photographers. Whether you are a student, or on a strict or non-existent budget, you CAN get an education for reading what professionals share about their own experiences. I have always viewed our industry as a melting pot of resources, passion, caring, and sharing. I am thrilled about the blog world. I am ecstatic to be a blogger myself, and I am thrilled that you are here.
I became interested in blogging, or should I say, stepped out of the comfort zone a few years ago being inspired by photographers and authors, Scott Kelby and Dave Ziser. I was amazed at how much these men were teaching me, and the rest of the photographers following them. It was beyond me the amount and the extent of their teachings. The blood, sweat and the tears they shared...and it was FREE! Scott Kelby could not have said it any better.."it's like we are literally stuffing money into your pockets!" I also thought at times, "are these people crazy?" I can't afford a $3,000.00 camera! The more I read and the more I opened my mind, the more I learned and the more I gained.
My benefactors were my clients, but they were also my pin cushion as I tried new strategies and ideas with marketing and booking, etc. Once booked, the technique and actions then came into play. And let me tell you folks, doing what was uncomfortable was not easy for me. Even though we crashed and burned many times and will contiue to do so, it eventually worked for us....experiment and play!
I specifically remember a couple we met last year for a consultation. I knew my husband and I were there for a reason...our work. I was among two other photographers they were checking out and this made me anxious to show them what we offer our couples......we offer our dedication and artistry. The meeting was NOT about our packages as much as it was about the couple themselves, I asked questions about how they met, things they like to do together, special places that were important to them. During the meeting I also learned family dynamics and other wonderful and valuable information that is crucial for wedding photographers and for photo journalism reasons.
I could personally identify with the bride-to-be since I myself had planned my entire wedding in 2007, and like this bride, I too was a plus-size bride. I felt like she could relate to me and my vise versa. I spoke about my biggest photographic nightmare concerns after she shared hers with us, and it just "felt right ." How many times do BBW's (big beautiful women), get knocked down going from boutique to boutique to find that they did not fit the mold. My attitude was BREAK THAT MOLD and let's create beautiful photography! The client was eating it up as was her fiance, also a plus size man.
Ok so after chit chatting with potential clients, and showing them what we are all about, Natalie closed the photo album sample she was looking through. She placed her hand on her fiance's hand, she smiled at him, he smiled back and she said "well, we have no need to meet with anybody else, we choose YOU!"
Natalie and Kenneth were married May 2, 2009 at the lovely Purple Orchid Resort & Spa in Livermore, California. Their wedding was beautiful. Natalie and Kenneth were stunning, they were surrounded by bountiful amounts of love, and because we established a relationship with our couple and I stayed in touch, their images....breath taking! They were so pleased with their entire experience with YStudio that they gave us a killer 5 star review on Yelp (www.yelp.com), and they initiated a Facebook Fan Page, as well as creating what we call now the YStudio motto.....as Natalie put it herself "you guys are more than a photo shoot, you guys were an EXPERIENCE!" We met some wonderful people and future clients at this wedding, some of whom still keep in touch with us today.
As anxious and nervous as I was at applying the new techniques I had learned from workshops, reading blogs, books, and watching educational DVD's the rewards were endless and worth it all. Natalie, also said the three words that meant something we were doing was right...."we choose YOU!"
"We choose you", were he words that reaffirmed my decisions to step out of the box and jsut do it! Reading blogs helped me make the decision to move forward, but it all boils down to one thing...... fear and I either you lose it or you get lost in it.
I hope that this blog helps someone else. So, step out of the box and please feel free to come back and share your experience with us all!
