THE JOURNAL

You don’t need 10,000 followers to build a fully booked photography business. In fact, some of the busiest photographers I know aren’t “influencers” at all. They’re booked because of one thing: client experience. From the moment someone inquires to the moment they receive their gallery, they feel taken care of—and that’s what keeps them coming […]

In the beginning, I thought the key to a successful family session was having a list of “can’t-fail” poses memorized and ready to go. You know the ones: standing in a V, walking while holding hands, a tickle shot if we had time. But here’s what I learned… Posed Doesn’t Always Mean Connected I’d go […]

I used to spend hours trying to “save” photos in Lightroom—bumping up the exposure, fixing weird skin tones, adding masks to fake a soft glow. And I’ll be honest… I thought that’s just how photography worked. Take the photo → fix it later. But here’s the hard truth: editing can’t save a bad photo.If the […]

When you’re first starting your photography business, it’s easy to think success comes down to one thing: taking great photos. And yes—your work matters. But the photographers who actually grow long-term, booked-out businesses?They’re doing the little things that build trust, loyalty, and momentum behind the scenes. If you’re still early in your business (or rebuilding), […]

When I first picked up a camera and stepped into the world of family photography, I thought I just needed a few go-to poses, a decent lens, and maybe some Pinterest inspiration to keep in my back pocket. Spoiler alert: I was very wrong. It’s Not One-Size-Fits-All I learned the hard way that what worked […]

Let’s be honest—most of us are building our photography businesses while juggling everything else. Kids. Clients. Dishes. Editing. Dinner.It’s a lot. And if you’re waiting for things to “slow down” so you can finally go all in—newsflash: they won’t. If you’ve ever said, “I’ll work on it when things calm down,” you already know:Things don’t […]

There’s so much noise in this industry—hot takes on what you “have to” do to be successful.Spoiler: most of it’s outdated, unrealistic, or doesn’t work for the life you actually live. Here’s the photography advice I’ve fully unsubscribed from: You Need to Offer Everything to Get Booked Nope. The idea that you’ll be more successful […]

Let me paint a picture of what booking mini sessions used to look like: A flood of DMs and emails.Me copying and pasting the same answers over and over.People asking what was included, how many photos, how to book, what dates I had left…And then ghosting me mid-conversation. Sound familiar? It was overwhelming. Time-consuming. And […]

A lot of photographers make these mistakes when posting: Surface-level captions that say nothing. (Ex: “Mother and daughter session in a dreamy flower field! Book a session with me!”)Telling people to book without giving them a reason.Making their content all about THEM instead of their clients. Stop just saying what’s in the photo.Stop being vague […]

Let’s talk about something no one tells you when you’re growing your photography business: Success isn’t one-size-fits-all. But it’s so easy to fall into the trap of chasing someone else’s version of success. You see photographers booking 40 weddings a year and think, I should want that.You hear that IPS (In-Person Sales) is the only […]