film fridays: a personal project where I put down my digital camera and share images created on film.
Last week I went to TheFix to see wedding photographer Jasmine Star speak in Dallas. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I signed up. Will she be speaking about business? Technique? Client interaction? Let me just start by saying this lady is FUNNY! At times it sounded like I was sitting in a comedy club. : ) Anyway, she basically went through the story of her humble beginnings and how she got to where she is today. Dropping nuggets of photography wisdom along the way. She’s wildly popular and a go-getter for sure. I found her energy and enthusiasm very inspiring. In fact, going to her seminar inspired me to start this new “Film Fridays” series on the blog!
One of the topics she brought up that struck me was that the average wedding photography business closes 3-4 years after start up. I searched for these stats but was unable to find anything on photography businesses specifically. However, it IS known that 50% of all small businesses in the US won’t last 5 years. Back to photography businesses (specifically), Jasmine theorized that the reason why this failure occurs is because photographers don’t always reach out and make friends with other photographers. They tend to look at other photographers as competition and withhold information from each other. Therefore, when times get tough, a new photographer in business will feel they are fighting an uphill battle alone and are likely to throw in the towel a lot quicker than if they had a network of friends and support. Considering humans are social creatures by nature I find this theory plausible. Although, I’m sure it’s only a small percentage of the reason. If anything, it sure doesn’t hurt to have friends with like minded interests. Something I definitely intend to work on and fit into my (ridiculously-hectic-I-am-not-a-SAHM) schedule.
Keeping with this topic here are two friends I photographed a few weeks ago. They asked me to take photos of them for their new Beauty Blog they started together. I love that these two beautiful teenagers are interested in something other than just boys and popularity! Plus I loved that they were doing this project together. Collaboration is not easy. You aren’t always going to agree. But teaming up with someone pushes you and inspires you. Kind of like having an accountability partner. Keep up the good work girls!
Taken with Mamiya Fuji400H
And here’s a fun digital vs film comparison. (Film on bottom left with 80mm, digital on right with 85mm) Film just looks so warm and beautiful, doesn’t it? Hello creamy skin tones!
