Hi Linda, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I fell in love with photography in the 4th grade. I honed my skillset through my school-age years. I always had my camera with me in High School and was the yearbook photographer. When I left home and went to college in Grand Junction, CO and I fell in love with the darkroom and the creative processes and options opened up in the darkroom. While in college, I stumbled into a job at a local television station. Again, I feel in love with all new creative processes. Fast forward. I ended up spending 30 years in the TV industry – writing & producing commercials and promos… and then managing creatives who did the same. I lived in Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Michigan, and then Florida pursuing my TV career. Throughout my career- I never gave up on photography. It had become my ‘hobby’ and something I did for my family and friends on the side. In 2013 I was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. I spend the bulk of 2013 going through chemotherapy treatment – it gave me a lot of time to think about what I wanted, my priorities, my happiness. I returned to work later that year, and by the end of 2014, I left the television business and came full circle and opened my own business as a professional photographer.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road that leads me here was rough, but what I learned from those rough years gave me the absolute best foundation for starting my own business. Being a business owner, you need solid time management skills, strong drive & motivation, the ability to troubleshoot, and what may surprise some, creativity. Sometimes you need to look for unique and creative solutions for problems or just creative ideas to market your business. I had a deep skillset in all these areas from my previous corporate life, so for me, it helped me hit the ground running. In my first year out, I made the tough yet smart decision to apprentice for another local photographer to learn the bones of what it takes to run a photography business. I see some of my counterparts out there taking great images. Still, some seem lost when it comes to putting together a financially sound business model and organizing the administrative part of their business. I also look at any challenges as wonderful learning opportunities. Over the past few years, I have learned that not every client is for me (or me for them!). It’s a hard lesson to learn, but if you have a certain level of quality service, standards and product – you price for that investment. Some people are not concerned about their handbag and buy it from Target. Another may only value a Louis Vuitton bag. Some folks want Chevy others to value a Mercedes. You can hire a cheap photographer and get digitals delivered. My ideal client values photography from the beginning with my high-end service to my expertise and the creativity I bring to the session to the beautiful wall art or albums I create. It’s hard to learn the lesson that not everyone values what you do. Still, the ones who do have done their homework want that beautiful artwork that will last generations and appreciate the expertise that will ultimately make the whole process smoothly for them.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I take portraits of all kinds. I love making women feel amazing in their photographs, whether during a sunset family session at the beach or a boudoir session, a professional branding session or an engagement photoshoot- every woman deserves to feel amazing in her photograph! The comment I always hear from EVERY SINGLE PERSON before a session is, “I take awful pictures” or “I hate being in front of the camera.” And then the comment I always hear AFTER our sessions is, “you made it so easy, I forgot I was even being photographed.” To me, every person is beautiful. It’s my job to draw that beautiful feeling out of them during our session. It’s true what they say about the eyes being the window of a person’s soul, I see it in every client, and it’s so incredible. I love taking gorgeous, artistic images of and for my clients. And when the client first sees the images I took and a tear wells up in their eye because they never believed they were that photogenic, it touches my heart and makes it all worthwhile.
How do you think about happiness?
I get so much happiness out of making my clients feel special and beautiful! When you know people are not comfortable in front of the camera and you can make them feel comfortable, that’s hard the battle. Seeing their eyes light up when they first see their images fills my heart with so much joy!
Contact Info:
- Email: lindastansberryphotography@gmail.com
- Website: www.lindastansberryphotography.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindastansberryphotography
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaStansberryPhotography
Image Credits
Linda Stansberry Photography
