How I Became a Photographer

Clients often ask me how long I have been shooting or how I got started in photography. So here is the story! In 2009, I met a photographer, who is still a dear friend to this day. We hung out a lot! Every time we went for a drive, he had his camera along. Then there would be spontaneous moments of pulling to the side of the road to capture something that caught his interest. During these times, I watched and tried to figure out what he had seen, how was he framing this shot, and then later added in how might I shoot this scene if I were shooting.

Fast forward to 2013, this same friend gave me first DSLR camera!.I remember being pretty excited to now look throught the viewfinder myself and capture things from my perspective! So that summer, he started teaching me some of the core principles of photography and the settings on my camera. While I enjoyed nature photography, I remember thinking about maybe wanting to try something more people oriented. That fall, a good friend of mine got married. I asked her beforehand if I could second shoot her wedding (if it was ok with her primary photographer).

After shooting my friend's wedding and having her tell me that she liked my pictures, I continued to second shoot weddings and enjoyed the experience. Life changed in 2016, taking me away from Portland to Florence (a small coastal retirement town). A year later after aclimating to the new surroundings, I changed jobs and had a lot more free time, so I decided to persue photography again and really make it a business. I rebranded to Stephanie Ford Photography and upgraded gear.

I have learned so much in the efforts of creating and building a photography business! Most of it has been enoyable. But it has just blown me away how many facets there are to creating, building, marketing of a business. I really am not sure you ever know it all, or ever do it all perfectly. One of my mantras is: Done is better than perfect. And since starting my own business, I have had others talk to me about their ideas of starting a side business. I am all for it! You learn so much about yourself in the process. Plus, I also believe that we need to have a plan B in today's world.

So if you are considering delving into business, do it! If you need someone to ask questions to, be a cheerleader, bounce ideas off of, let's chat! Email me at stephaniefordphotography@gmail.com or message me on FB @stephaniefordphotography

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