Why do I need to speak with you before hiring you?

The reason is a lot more helpful to you than you may think…..

Who’s been here:

-asking for recommendations for photographers on Facebook and being flooded with answers

-being sent a price guide that you don’t understand

-being sent a price guide with no explanation or additional helpful info

-hired a service ‘professional’ that didn’t know what they were doing

-hired a service ‘professional’ that ripped you off

-suffering through a really uncomfortable photoshoot

-had high hopes but unclear expectations and got some photos back that you didn’t love

-didn’t get along with a photographer

YIKES. how do we prevent this?

A phone call, zoom meeting, or in person meeting with your potential photographer.

I have heard it time and time again… people get on a call with me and explain I’m the only photographer they have contacted that wanted to chat before sending them over an agreement. Doesn’t that seem rushed? You would have a chat with any service professional that you’re considering hiring, right? To make sure they understand your vision, they understand the job, and to make sure you at least somewhat believe this person is a good fit for the service you are looking for to be done. Correct? Photography is no different! Getting a clear vibe for your photographer is even more important, because photography is extremely personal. Photographers are not one size fits all. This is a huge misconception!! I don’t care if it’s for Pet photography, a branding session, or a $4 million dollar wedding, your photographer knowing who you are, what you want, and what you value most is the single most important factor in getting great images. Not every photographer is for every client, and not every client is for every photographer. It’s just the way it is. And furthermore, there is no mandatory regulation for pricing, what is included, or even whether or not a photographer uses legally binding documents like contracts which protect you, the client. I mean, there isn’t even anything in place to ensure whom you're talking to even OWNS a camera. So educating yourself is totally a requirement!

Photographers are NOT one size fits all.

So why talk to me? Because I want to know you. I actually don’t care about being salesy. I want to do my very best work for YOU.

How much can a vendor truly care for you if all they do is send over a price guide? That’s all the effort they’re giving you?

I’m a legitimate business owner, a hard working preschool teacher out in the community, and a mama. I have more compassion in my heart than most can even muster up. But the real reason why I am dying to hop on a phone call with you is because I want desperately, to know who you are. I want to know your love story. I want to know your families story. I want to know who you are, and what makes you tick. I want to know what is most important to you, so that I may throw my own self into that thing, so that your wedding day or family session or couples session is full of the essence of your spirit. I don’t want to just take pictures. Anybody can do that. I want to preserve emotion. Capture feeling, fleeting moments in time, personality, heartfelt touches, the way you move through the space your’re in, the way we can almost hear the way your laugh sounds even though we can only see in the image that you’re laughing. I’m not aiming for a regular photo or two, that anyone could capture. I’m not going to rest until I feel that your spirit has been seen by my lens.

One of my favorite Western North Carolina Micro-Weddings ever.

I’m not going to rest until I feel that your spirit has been seen by my lens.

Moments can be both editorial and documentary.

The ONLY way for me to get to know you on the level that I need to be able to photograph you in the way that I want, is to chat with me. This isn’t some painstakingly long, tedious process. I just have a few questions for you, about you, and then we are done. The whole chat will take 10-20 minutes of your time. I’ve gotten great at being specific and not wasting your time, however, I am very personable and easy to talk to, so doing this step isn’t painful for you.

Doing this step isn’t painful for you. You can only benefit from this essential step. If a photographer wants you to hire them without speaking to them first, you should honestly be very concerned.

The difference between being photographed by someone who cares to know what you like and what you want, who gives a shit about you…. well, there is actually no comparison. I see photos constantly on social media that have no heart, no emotion.. there’s just nothing special about them, and those, are the photos that have been taken by a person that is not tuned in.

A photographer is placing their perception of the people and world around them in a little square and preserving it forever. Your wedding is IMPORTANT. Your family is IMPORTANT. Your engagement session is IMPORTANT. The imagery of your life that you have to look back on MATTERS. Don’t you want me to have a little background information about you so that my perception is spot on? Don’t you want me to care who you are and what you’re paying me to do?

Then we should hop on a call.

Let me spoil you. Let me show you what I can do.

Editorial photo of stunning newlyweds set amidst North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountain at a breathtaking AirBnB

Honestly, knowing that your photographer cares about you and your vision and who you are is more important than pricing. Because even if you have a photographer that’s within your budget and you’re happy about that, if they cannot execute the feeling you want to get when you look at your images, it won’t matter how much the session was….. you just paid for something and still didn’t get what you wanted.

I don’t do my job solely to make money. I do this work because it means something to my heart, I am so in love with what I do, and because I feel called to do it. I don’t do this job with greed in mind. I don’t do this job for clout. I do this job because it makes me unimaginably happy to soak in the loving energy of others, and in return, give them photographs of their beautiful and loving energy.

Please do not settle for a photographer that doesn’t see this as a loving energy exchange.

Lots of folks do their job. Not everyone LOVES it. Can you see the difference in their work? Sure you can.

This is how it feels when your photographer takes the time to get to know you. This is from the client pictured above.