Family Photography in the Olympic National Park

I often teach other photographers who are in growth mode about marketing and defining their artistry.

I often talk about defining your artistry in such a way that you are not a service provider. In the beginning, you may feel like a service provider because you don’t have a defined method, a speciality, a style or a process.

However, as you form those things, you will also feel yourself building a protective wall around the way you love to create. If you allow people to push the wall down and force you back into service provider-ship, you’ll feel so full of resentment that you’ll want to pop. If that continues, you’ll quit.

After over 1,000 family sessions, my style, process, and specialty are all clear. Because I give those clear parameters, it’s much easier to operate as an artist NOT a service provider. I can say “here’s what I can do” just as easily as I can say “here’s what I cannot do”.

Well- it’s not always easy. It’s very emotional to build these walls and it’s very emotional when the walls are tested. There are a million + people on the planet who see you and I as a service provider with a camera. But then there are the ones who see your artistry. Who trust you and are all in for an artistic partnership. In my sessions, clients bring themselves, their love and their connection. I bring my process, my style, my personality and my systems. Teamwork.

So how do you lean into your artistry and get out of the service provider trap? You take a lot of photos until you’re clear on what you love, how you want to be treated, what systems work for you, how you work best and then you build boundaries around those things to give yourself room to create more in spaces that bring joy and fewer in spaces that cause resentment.

It’s simple, but not easy. People pleasing takes a back seat to trust in yourself. Steadiness takes center stage, while wavering must stay behind the curtain. The good news is, you are ALREADY brave. You’re ALREADY a working artist. You ALREADY have inside of you the tools to know what you love and the gumption to chase it.

If you are a potential client, I cannot wait to create with you! All you have to do is bring your lovely, playful selves.

This session took place in the Olympic National Park near Port Angeles Washington. I still have summer dates available if you’d like a session like this: