What business owner doesn’t want to get found through Google and AI search? Jamie Bugbee spent over 20 years as a dental hygienist before postpartum depression led her back to a camera and a way to come home to herself. And once she put herself fully into learning and tackling SEO for family photographers, she was able to grow her photography business by 400% and leave her day-job to go full-time.

Jamie is a Portland-based family, maternity, newborn, and brand photographer who now teaches photographers how to grow through their own websites. We talk about the practical side of getting found online without leaning on social media: on-page and off-page SEO for family photographers, backlinks and local citations, and how to blog in a way that’s actually built to be found – not just written and forgotten. We also cover the tools Jamie uses to track what’s working and what’s not working, silent killers to your page speed and searchability that might be working against you, and more.

Find It Quickly:

2:20 – From dental hygienenist to photography
5:00 – Picking up a camera again after having kids
12:00 – The mentorship that finally clicked
14:20 – The bones of modern SEO for family photographers
21:00 – Blogging effectively
27:30 – Tools for tracking what’s working and what’s not
30:15 – Jamie’s Photo Fuel

Mentioned in this Episode:

Keywords Everywhere

White Spark,

Google Search Console

SEO Edge

Microsoft Clarity

Free Guide from Jamie: Luxury Client Journey

Connect with Jamie

• Portland Oregon family photographer (Jamie’s website)
• Jamie’s Instagram for photographers
• The PhotograpHER Podcast:
• The Booked Photographer (course)

Connect with Leah

Leah’s website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

Leah’s instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell.photo

Learn Page with free resources + stay connected : https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

Loved this episode?

Please subscribe so new episodes show up automatically in your podcast feed, and if you leave a rating or review, it helps other family photographers find the show, too!

You might also like:

Episode 76: Falling for Lifestyle, Session Prep, and Playing the SEO Long Game with Becca Lueck

Episode 69: Stop Posing, Start Playing

Episode 62: Micro-Pivots – you don’t have to burn it all down

Becca Lueck has been photographing families in the Portland, Oregon area for 16 years, but she didn’t find lifestyle photography until year seven. Once she did, everything changed. We talk about the before and after of learning to fall in love with the work you’re doing, how it changes, and how to keep it interesting.

Becca is the founder of Becca Jean Photography, a membership for family photographers, and a suite of courses covering everything from business systems to video. She’s also been blogging and building her SEO for years, to the point where she can now publish a post and rank on the first page within days.

In this episode, we talk about how she got there and how things look now. We also get into her video workflow — how she moves between photo and video inside a family session without losing momentum — and her honest take on where new photographers should put their energy.

Find It Quickly:

3:30 – Getting started
7:00 – Mini sessions and slow early growth
12:00 – Discovering lifestyle photography in 2017
20:00 – Client prep: email sequences other tools
27:00 – Styling guidance and client closets
30:00 – Adding video inside a family session
37:00 – SEO over Instagram
41:00 – Becca’s membership
44:00 – Photo fuel: in-person events

Mentioned in this Episode:
Becca’s Membership: https://courses.beccajeanphotography.com/p/family-photography-collective

Style and Select: https://styleandselect.com/

Becca’s CRM: https://17hats.com/

How Becca edits film: Adobe Premiere Pro

How Becca edits photo: Imagin AI

Tristin Tracy: @tristentracy_photography

Connect with Becca:
Education: https://beccajeanphotography.com/education

Instagram: @beccajeanphotography

Connect with Leah:
PhotoFuel Retreat and Mastermind: leahoconnell.com/retreat
Free resources: leahoconnell.com/learn

You may also like:

You might also like:

Episode 69: Stop Posing, Start Playing
Episode 70: Thoughtful Marketing and The Power of Mentoring with Lydia Fine
Episode 66: Kids Photography Camps, School Photos, and Creative Offers to Support Your Business with Rebecca Hunnicutt

You’re halfway into a session, things are flowing, and then… nothing. The energy drops, your brain goes blank, and you’re thinking – WHAT NOW?!

This is the final part of the four-part in-home family photography series, and I’m giving you eight specific moves to pull out when a session stalls or you need to jolt yourself in to a new perspective.

Find It Quickly:

2:56 – 1: Three focal ranges
4:37 – 2: Shoot through something nearby
5:34 – 3: Doorways
6:41 – 4: Invite music
7:55 – 5: Invite play
9:00 – 6: Look for the moment, not the space
10:57 – 7: Use furniture in non-conventional ways
11:38 – 8: Let the mess be the story
13:10 – Recap
13:43 – Series wrap-up + how to get the field guide
14:52 – What to expect next on the podcast

Mentioned in this Episode:

In-Home Session Field Guide (free): leahoconnell.com/home-fieldguide
Photo Fuel Retreat and Mastermind: leahoconnell.com/retreat

Catch the rest of the in-home family photography series on the blog and wherever you listen to podcasts:

Part 1 – The Walkthrough

Part 2 – The first 10 minutes

Part 3 – Story Filters

In Part 1, we prepped. In Part 2, we got the ball rolling. This episode is all about how to open your dang eyeballs, guide with your heart, and sink into a capturing an in-home family photography session that is less precise and more honest family gold.

If you often leave sessions feeling like you checked the boxes but you never really GOT anywhere emotional, this is your next-level.

I originally learned the concept of “elements of family story” from Brooke Schultz, and Story Filters are my evolution of that over the last 5 years.

I think of them like themes I can carry into a session like a scavenger hunt, or lenses for seeing what’s actually in front of you rather than hunting for your next pose. In this episode, I’m sharing what they are, how they work in practice, a few examples of my own current Story Filters and how to go about creating your own.

Find It Quickly:
1:49 – Introducing Story Filters (your personal in-shoot scavenger hunt)
3:37 – Story filter examples
5:06 – Filters in action: how they change the way you see and direct
7:52 – Why filters matter: seeing people not subjects
9:28 – Direction vs. documentary: finding the middle ground
10:51 – How to develop your own filters
14:09 – Series recap + next episode preview
15:03 – How to get the Field Guide for all these tips in writing to reference for your next shoot

Mentioned in this Episode:

Episode 72: Part 1 — The Walkthrough Video

Episode 73: Part 2 — The First 10 Minutes:

Also listen to:
Episode 59 with Brooke Schultz: https://leahoconnell.com/episode-59-messy-action-the-artful-pivot-and-creating-from-the-inside-out-with-brooke-schultz/

You’ve done your prep. You’ve watched the walkthrough video. You knock on the door – now what? When you strip away all the context and think about what a family photography session may feel like for your clients, you realize there’s a stranger in their living room asking them to act natural and it can be weird. The first 10 minutes of an in-home family session is your chance to make it less weird and set the tone for relaxed, connected family imagery they’ll love.

This is Part 2 of a four-part May series on in-home family photography. I’m sharing about what to do the moment you walk through the door: five practical ways to set the tone, build trust with kids and parents, and ease into the session before the cameras are even out. You’ll also hear two things I’m careful not to do because they have the potential of sabotaging all my positive efforts up to this point.

The free In-Home Session Field Guide has all of this in one concise spot, including language from last week’s episode, swipe email copy, a pre-shoot pep talk for yourself, and more.

Find It Quickly:

2:30 – Why the first 10 minutes matter more than you think
5:00 – Tip 1: Hospitality
10:30 – Tip 2: Kid level
13:00 – Tip 3: Notice the good
15:30 – Tip 4: The loop
17:30 – Tip 5: The pep talk
21:00 – Transitional shooting before direction
22:30 – What not to do

Mentioned in this Episode:

In-Home Session Field Guide (free): leahoconnell.com/home-fieldguide
Episode 72: Part 1 — The Walkthrough Video: https://leahoconnell.com/guide-to-in-home-family-photography-sessions-part-1-the-walkthrough-video/
Episode with Rachel Larsen Weaver: https://leahoconnell.com/an-interview-with-rachel-larsen-weaver-on-pursuing-the-love-of-art-business-and-people-photo-fuel-podcast-episode-13/

You might also like:
Episode 69: Stop Posing, Start Playing
Episode 68: Why I started a retreat and mastermind for family photographers

Most photographers walk into in-home family photography sessions and just start shooting wherever the light looks nice. This series for photographers is about doing it differently – starting with what you do before you even knock on the door.

Download the in-home family photography series companion guide for quick reference to all the tips in this collection:

The two in-home session traps photographers fall into

When you’re getting started with in-home family photography sessions at home, it’s pretty common to go one of two ways: you either freeze when you see a small, dark space or get overwhelmed by a large beautiful home and end up shooting on the couch because there are too many options.

I used to default to wherever the nicest light was and treat the whole thing like an outdoor session with furniture.

It was fine at first but the sessions felt too staged, and didn’t really feel like they held the sentiment or personality that I was hoping for.

Then I started settling in and realized – it’s not the home that sets the tone.

I had to stop expecting the home to do all the work, the same way I’ve talked about not expecting your clients to know what to do. I began to understand that the energy I brought through the door was the difference between a session that felt stale and one that felt true.

The walkthrough video

About two weeks before an in-home family photography session, I send a prep email asking the family to send me a walkthrough video of their space. Just a phone video they can text to me with no need to tidy up or make official in any way. I take down as many barriers as I can because the goal is equal parts preparation and a casual step toward familiarity before I arrive.

Two things happen when they do this.

First, it takes the relationship from strangers to more friendly.

Second, families often mention things off-the-cuff as they’re walking around: where they eat breakfast, the spot where they always do puzzles, the way they ride bikes in the driveway. A lot of times they don’t think to mention that in a questionnaire, but it shows up naturally when they’re just walking through their own home.

If they don’t send the video

If they don’t send the video, I don’t push — I’m experienced enough to work with whatever I walk into.

In this case, I will often Google the address and pull up the latest real estate photos. Of course, it’s not the same, but this at least gives me a frame of reference about things like spacing, tree coverage, windows, if there’s a front porch, etc.

What I’m looking for in the walkthrough video: Light, Life, and Layers

When I watch a walkthrough video, I’m scanning for three things: light, life, and layers.

Light — where is it coming from, and when? Front of the house, back, side? I’m building a mental map of which rooms will be working for us the best at the time of day we’re shooting.

Life — visual cues of where the family actually lives, not where they think they should pose. The game table. The counter where they eat breakfast. The worn-in couch. Life wins over a technically perfect room for me every time. It’s how I end up shooting in mud rooms and messy kids bedrooms all the time.

Layers — architectural elements or unique home elements that add interest. A doorway painted in a cool color. A bay window. An exposed brick wall. A pretty mirror. These are the details that make an in-home session feel considered rather than accidental.

The whole thing takes five to ten minutes. I consider it the indoor equivalent of location scouting. You can’t exactly ask to tour someone’s home in advance, and honestly I’d find that a little awkward anyway.

But this gives you the same thing in a very concise and approachable way.

Planning for confidence, not execution

One caveat worth naming: coming up with ideas doesn’t mean you have to execute all of them.

The goal of this planning phase is to feel like there are options. You are not going to hit every spot on a mental list and you’ll likely have to kill some darlings. The point is to walk in as a trusted professional who’s already done some thinking instead of just flying by the seat of your pants and hoping it works out.

Find It Quickly:
1:30 – The two traps in in-home sessions
3:00 – The mental shift required
4:30 – Asking for the walkthrough video
7:00 – When they don’t send it
8:30 – What to look for : Light, Life, and Layers framework
12:30 – The real win, regardless of how it’s executed in the end
14:30 – Part 2 preview + The In-Home Session Field Guide

Mentioned in this Episode:

In-Home Session Field Guide: leahoconnell.com/home-fieldguide >>

Episode 69: Stop Posing, Start Playing >>

Episode 55: Set the Table – how to stop expecting your clients to perform for you

Free resources: leahoconnell.com/learn >>


CONNECT WITH ME ON INSTAGRAM: @leahoconnell.photo

A few weeks out from the first photography retreat and mastermind in Virginia, I’m sharing the honest debrief — five things I learned, what I’d do differently next time, and one big decision I made about the future of the program.

Lesson 1: I got a lot of things right and did what I set out to do.

I took a lot of swings with this photography retreat and mastermind, and most of them landed exactly how I hoped, which was a huge confirmation.

The chef-prepared welcome dinner set a great tone to start on the first night. I wanted the weekend to feel warm and unhurried as we all got settled, so a local private chef made us a beautiful dinner, and it immediately put everyone at ease.

The house — an old restored farmhouse in a small Virginia town — was exactly the vibe I was after: cozy, and comfortable, but spacious enough to spread out.

The group size felt right too: five people, small enough to give each person real attention but big enough for everyone to contribute different perspectives.

Putting the retreat in the middle of the four-month program was a gut call I questioned at first, but in hindsight felt just right. We had months to build relationship before sharing space, and then the in-person experience deepened everything that followed.

Also, using Voxer as the connective tissue between sessions proved to be a huge bonus. Voice notes in the car, hiding in a closet to ask a quick question, doing life together in the in-between – that kind of trust and community weaved into our regular lives is exactly what I envisioned.

2. The in-between moments were king

I knew going in that the unplanned conversations would be the magic, but I didn’t know what they’d be about. I planned the sessions and the agenda, but the spontaneous rabbit holes developed our time in an unpredictably wonderful way. One person would surface a struggle, the whole group would light up, and we’d follow it somewhere I never could have pre-planned. That’s not something you can manufacture when you have a tight schedule. If anything, it’s an argument for protecting the space between.

3. What I’m going to adjust: adding an on-location session

Every family session during the retreat was in-home because that’s what I promised and what these photographers were there to practice. And those sessions were wonderful— real families in real homes, winter jackets and slightly dirty backyards, the full range of it.

But I recognized that most photographers who do or want to do in-home work are in transition and/or not wanting to completely elminate outdoor work. They just want to adjust the tone and feeling around the work as a whole. The skills we practiced in-home are ones they also want to carry into their outdoor work. So next round, I want to include at least one session in a park or downtown setting that shows how you can bring that same unraveled feeling to a different environment.

4. Doing it differently is why it worked

I went into hosting this photography retreat and mastermind with quite a bit of imposter syndrome. I wondered at first if it needed to be more bougie, more edgy, more something. But I decided to lean into exactly how I approach my photography — grounded, real, not performing anything — and I learned that trusting my gut was a good move.

It meant I wasn’t nervous going into it because I wasn’t stepping into a performance role. And the ripple effects — seeing how the conversations and skills are showing up in people’s work, in the sessions they’re booking, in how alive they feel doing them — that’s been fuel I didn’t know I needed and a confirmation that I’m in the right place with this offer.

Photo by Denise Van Photography

5. Hosting is really fun — and more demanding than I realized

I already knew I love hosting. In the last year, I’ve started hosting monthly gatherings as part of my photography business marketing, and those have been really energizing me, too, so I think it’s a trend for my work overall.

During the retreat I was fully on. I cooked soup on the rainy night, prepped the morning coffee, sat around a table of flowers talking about pictures and families and business and it was all pure delight. I didn’t feel tired at all. And then it ended, and I felt the drop in a way I hadn’t anticipated.

Now I know what it takes AND that I want to keep doing it.

The big decision: one photography retreat & mastermind a year

Right after the first round ended, I started marketing a summer retreat. The energy was high and the momentum was real. Within a week and a half, I had a lot of conversations with people saying “this sounds incredible, but the timing doesn’t work for me.”

I started listening to that — and more importantly, I started looking honestly at what I was basing the decision on. Excitement and capacity are not the same thing. I had the excitement. I didn’t have the readiness – logistically within my family life and photography business – to turn around and run another full round three months later.

The summer timing would have put the coaching portion straight into my busiest season as a photographer. It would have done the same thing to participants. The timing that seemed like an asset — practicing new skills right before your busiest season — can also be overwhelming when you have all those implementation ideas and no bandwidth to act on them.

I’ve decided to run the retreat & mastermind only ONE TIME per year, in the spring, for five participants. It may change in the future, but in order to protect the quality and magic of this approach, that’s where I’ve landed.

If you’ve been watching and thinking – heck yes, I want that – you can claim your seat whenever you’re ready. There’s no waitlist, just rolling enrollment on a first come, first serve basis.

Check out the next upcoming retreat dates and details here and grab your spot when you’re ready.

Find It Quickly:

0:00 – Free resources at leahoconnell.com/learn
1:15 – Intro
3:00 – What I got right
8:30 – Why the in-between moments were king
12:30 – What I’m changing for the next round
16:30 – The biggest reason I think it worked
21:30 – The surprising tax I wasn’t expecting
24:30 – A big decision about future rounds

Mentioned in this Episode:

PhotoFuel Retreat: leahoconnell.com/retreat
Episode 68: Why I Started a Retreat for Family Photographers

You might also like:

Episode 68: Why I Started a Retreat for Family Photographers
Episode 70: Thoughtful Growth and the Power of Mentoring with Lydia FineEpisode 67: How to Break Through a Growth Plateau in Your Photography Business

Over the past few years, Lydia and I have worked together in 1:1 mentoring and voxer coaching to support her family photography. I wanted to bring her back to talk about what that journey has actually looked like. We talk about the numbers, the mindset shifts, the decisions she’s made, and what it means to grow a business thoughtfully when you’re also showing up fully for the rest of your life.

Lydia is a purposely part-time photographer. She has a full-time job in marketing, two kids, and a very clear set of priorities — and she has built something genuinely impressive within those constraints. This conversation is for anyone wondering whether mentoring is worth it, when to seek it out, and what it really looks like over time.

Where Lydia started

When we first worked together in 2022, Lydia was earning about $15,000 a year and charging $300-400 a session. She felt sick with nerves before every shoot. Even though she knew she needed to raise her prices, she was terrified to do it because she didn’t want upset or lose her current clients. At a certain point in her journey, she’d tried courses, posing guides, workshops, and Facebook groups, but none of it was cutting anymore.

“I just felt really lonely. I had nobody to bounce things off of. And the Facebook groups just were not cutting it — it’s like the wild west out there.”

The Investment Doubt

Her biggest hesitation was whether spending $250 was worth it when she was only earning $15k a year. She almost talked herself out of it.

She said that what changed her mind was watching me work first. She had seen me give a lot of free coaching, gallery walkthroughs and audits, whole talks about the industry and photographing in homes and workflow … enough to earn her trust. Trust always has to come before the investment, in both photography and in education.

The breakthrough: you don’t have to compete on photos alone

The moment Lydia points to as the first real turning point was a 2024 call when we were talking about differentiation. She’d been operating under the assumption that she couldn’t stand out unless her photos were extraordinary. I asked her what clients said about her in reviews & what stood out to them. She had an immediate answer: that she’s a great communicator.

“My brain just exploded. It completely changed everything about how I marketed my business, how I spoke to potential clients on my website, all of it. And then things just really skyrocketed from there.”

Voxer Coaching: The Audio-Only Mentoring Option for Family Photography

After we’d worked through the big turning-point stuff, Lydia came to me with a different kind of ask. She didn’t have a giant list of crises. She had micro decisions — the kind that come up every day and in between all the things. How to respond to this email. Whether to adjust her booking flow. How to handle a client who was pushing back.

She pitched the idea of Voxer-only mentoring between our bigger mentoring calls, and it became one of the formats I started offering after our trial because it was so valuable. This is how she describes it:

“It actually feels very much like a therapist for my business. I don’t only go see my therapist when I have some big, huge problem. I see her every two weeks, no matter what, because we always have something small to talk about. By talking about them when they’re small, they don’t become big problems.”

The voice format matters too. Lydia works a full-time job. She can reply in the car, on a walk to the office, between pick-ups. It fits into the life she actually has, and works for both of us to keep communication going, even though we’re in two different time zones.

The numbers

From 2023 to 2024, Lydia’s revenue roughly doubled. From 2024 to 2025, it grew another 50% — including $16,000 in incremental revenue from an associate photographer she onboarded.

When we first started working together, she was charging $300-400 per session. This year, her family package is now $1,025. Her senior package is $1,850. The week we recorded this, she’d just booked a session at $2,250 — the first time she’d ever had a two at the front of a booking.

“I wouldn’t have believed you. I really wouldn’t have believed that I would ever have a price with four digits before the decimal point — or that I’d be okay with it.”

When are you ready for mentoring to support your family photography?

Lydia’s answer: when you realize that posting a question in a Facebook group is going to get you 17 different answers from 17 people you can’t fully trust, and you understand that doesn’t serve you anymore.

When you’ve tried the asynchronous watch-a-video courses and know that your life, your market, your situation is specific enough to need something more tailored.

She’s spent $22,500 on professional development since launching in 2021 — about 10% of everything she’s earned. She doesn’t flinch at that number because of what she’s built with it. It seems like a lot at first, but when you invest in quality education, it is really one of those things that follows the spend money to make money principal.

How to choose the right family photography mentor

Trust and personality compatibility come first. Beyond that, Lydia’s says it’s crucial to find someone who is an open book – a true teacher, not just constantly steering you toward their next highest-priced offer or affiliates. Someone who will hold their ground when you push back, because a mentor who folds under pressure teaches you that their recommendations aren’t that strong.

You also have to show up ready. That means being willing to act on what you learn, even when it’s uncomfortable. You can skip the hard parts of a course. It’s harder to do in a real mentoring relationship.

Intentional growth with intentional rest

Lydia books her family vacation in October, at the peak of fall busy season, for Q1 the next year, specifically because that’s when she most needs something to look forward to. She sends her camera to for a cleaning in mid-November and leaves it in the shipping box until she’s ready to pick it back up. She’s built rest into the plan, not as an afterthought.

She said the biggest win in all of this is that the last two fall seasons were the first in years where her kids didn’t tell her they never see her.

“All these things have kind of led to just quality of life outside of my business. And knowing that my kids don’t think I’m an absent parent from July through November is really nice.”

Find It Quickly:
2:30 – Where Lydia started: lack of confidence, scared to raise prices, feeling alone in decision-making
7:00 – The first doubt: was mentoring worth the cost if she was just making $15k a year?
9:00 – The 2024 breakthrough: you don’t have to compete on photos alone
15:00 – How she helped me form my Voxer coaching package around making micro decisions and the in-between moments
21:00 – “Like a therapist for my business”
26:00 – The numbers: revenue doubled, then grew another 50%
30:00 – From $300 sessions to $1,025 to $1,850 (and her first $2k+ booking)
33:00 – When is someone ready for mentoring?
38:00 – How to choose the right mentor — and what to avoid
43:00 – Intentional rest, boundaries, and how support has helped her be a more present parent

Mentioned in this Episode:
PhotoFuel Retreat & Mastermind: www.leahoconnell.com/retreat
1:1 Mentoring: leahoconnell.com/education
Illuminate Courses: illuminateclasses.com

Connect with Lydia:
Photography Instagram: @lydia_apolloandivy
Education Instagram: lydiafine_forphotographers
Mentoring with Lydia: https://www.apolloandivy.com/for-photographers/photography-business-mentor/

Alternative title: Tips for directing family photos without them feeling stiff or awkward – because that’s the real problem, right? My #1 key to loosening up a family (and myself!) is to explore with curiosity and allow the PLAY.

Creative play is what takes your sessions from cookie cutter to oozing with personality.

In this episode, I’m walking you through how to move beyond rigid posing and into something more alive and collaborative. Listen in as I share how curiosity (both about yourself and your clients) can completely transform the energy of your photos.

Why technically “perfect” posing falls flat

Posing is a foundational part of lifestyle family photography, but that doesn’t mean it has to be rigid. I believe the biggest culprits for draining the energy of a session are precision and over-calculation.

You need to understand composition and know how bodies work together, directional light, and how to guide people through a container of time to make photos with meaning. But when posing becomes overly precise, you start to lose the connection. The energy drops and your people start to feel like puppets instead of a family.

Pablo Picasso once said, “ You have to learn the rules like a pro to break them like an artist.”  That’s the difference between posing and playfulness for photographers.

 The art of paying attention

There’s this misconception that natural, candid-looking photos just happen. They don’t. That effortlessness is intentional. The most natural-feeling images – the kind that feel stumbled upon – tend to come from a cocktail of emotional awareness, relaxed direction, and a willingness to play.

The mental checklist can get loud when you want to do a great job. The key is to not let it get louder than what’s honestly happening in front of you. The problem is, when we start to see the unravelling, a lot of photographers will start to scramble for the control. You may feel yourself tense up and wonder how you’re going to get them back. You might get all sweating and start giving over-detailed directions.

In that moment, there are 2 powerful things you can do.
1. Take a deep breath
2. Ask a question (more on that shortly).

Again, this isn’t about abandoning structure, but instead, allowing space within it. Curiosity is your best friend.

1. Curiosity with yourself

If you ever find yourself feeling awkward or stuck when you’re directing family photos, get curious with yourself and ask why that might be. Take a look at the moments where you tense up and think through what could be causing it.

Do you forget how to behave like an adult human and direct through an intimate moment when the parents are close togethe? Maybe maternity sessions or breastfeeding photos get you feeling like you want to run or don’t know what to say? Maybe it’s when you try to direct dads.

Whatever moments are causing a problem for you, get honest with yourself about what those hesitations are and what mental blocks might be holding you back.

If you’re in the moment of a session and you find this happening, simply breathe and notice.

• Notice the wind
• Notice the dappled light in the corner or a patch of sun down the hallway
• Notice the clouds or sky
• Notice the grass tickling your feet
• Notice something you can physically touch

When you start to notice and embrace these elements, they will start to spark ideas for you. Ideas for exploring and playfullness, connection with nature or a home environment, and allowing the surroundings to participate instead of blocking everything out.
 
This act of slowing down, scanning your environment, and picking something to notice physically creates an intentionality for creativity. You can embrace your awareness and allow that curiosity to lead the next moment or idea to unfold more naturally.

When you do this in the moment, it allows you to go somewhere new, beyond what you planned beforehand on paper.

This is hard for photographers, because planning feels way more comfortable and predictable. But creativity goes hand in hand with spontaneity and you have to be open to flowing with that energy when it comes.

Curiosity with your subjects

In addition to getting curious with yourself during your photo sessions, you can also get curious with your subjects. Rather than telling someone what to do during the session, you can look at it as collaboration, cooperation, and investment in your subjects.

This takes us back to my earlier suggestion of taking a deep breath and ask a question.

With kids, you can ask questions like:

• What did you do for your birthday this year?
• I wonder if we could find any bugs over there?
• Do you like making shadow puppets? (This ties back into noticing your environment if you’ve seen a wall with harsh light and shadows.)

Consider your subjects (specifically children) and how they typically respond.

Are they going to like being told to just sit on a couch next to their siblings? Probably not. Instead, ask them if they like jumping on a couch! Or let them hide behind the couch and pop out to “scare” you! That creates play and excitement, rather than restrictive commands – and let’s be honest, it’s a lot more real.

Asking questions creates space for an honest response. When people (both children and adults) feel like they’re participating, they tend to soften. It allows them to feel a little more invested versus being told what to do the whole time.

Some of my best images come right after someone has laughed unexpectedly. You don’t get that without play and honest engagement.

 Most photographers want to know the exact words to say and the spots they will shoot in. When we have more control, we think we’ll have more confidence. But that mindset often leads to stale images, because clients are expecting their photographers to be the creative ones. They want you to lead in a way that let’s them know you’ve got them no matter what – even if and when it’s not perfect.

What happens when you lead with curiosity

Directing your sessions with openness and curiosity requires trust from both sides. Trust is often established long before your clients come into the shoot, but you maintain it by the way you come into the shoot. This means being willing to crawl on the floor and make shadow puppets and run around a little!

Curiosity asks you to believe that something good will happen, even if it’s not scripted and you’re not in control.

There is gold waiting for you in your images if you simply allow it to unfold.

The practical shift to introduce play into your photoshoots

 The more you practice that balancing the direction with the curiosity, the questions, the exploring, the playfulness… the more confident and competent you actually become in your work.

When curiosity leads, instead of changing your subjects 15 times, you let their wiggling and falling out of a pose naturally be part of what you intend.

If hands are feeling stiff and awkward, ask yourself, “What could give this some energy?” Or “How can I walk them into this position without just telling them to stand there?” You may feel the need to position and pose them immediately, or to stop shooting until you get the pose “back” – but let it breathe a little. Stay in it. You might be surprised by what you capture in between.

Practice hands-on playfulness & curiosity the Photo Fuel Retreat!

If you’ve been thinking that it’s time to start exploring curiosity and playfulness in your sessions, but aren’t quite sure what it looks like in practice, the Photo Fuel Retreat and Mastermind is an experience where you can let loose a little more and dive into deeper levels of your creativity within family sessions.

The Photo Fuel Retreat is an intimate, in-person experience designed for family photographers who care deeply about storytelling, sustainability, and doing work that actually feels good.

Find it quickly:

1:29 – Why Sessions Feel Stiff

3:28 – Curiosity Over Perfection

6:10 – Curiosity with Yourself

7:09 – Breathe and Notice

10:36 – Curiosity With Your Subjects

13:37 – Trust the Unscripted

15:50 – Practice and Experiment

Mentioned in this episode:

The Photo Fuel Retreat: leahoconnell.com/retreat

You might also like:

68: Why I Started a Retreat for Family Photographers

63: One Step at a Time – Curiosity, Generosity, and the Creative Life with Dave Herring of VeryGood CO.

58: What even IS a mastermind? Inside the Photo Fuel Retreat and Mastermind for Family Photographers

For a long time, I thought being a photography educator meant I needed a shop full of templates, mini-courses, and downloadable resources. But anytime I tried to create those resources, something felt off — like I was handing people a spoon when they needed a kitchen renovation. In this episode, I’m sharing how The Photo Fuel Retreat & Mastermind came to life. This retreat for family photographers is my most passionate project yet and I really believe it’s the most meaningful avenue for impact I can make.

The problem with digital products

When I first started teaching photographers, I sold a few templates and even made a small course about workflow and systems. But I had trouble talking about them and selling them, because deep down I wasn’t bought in. I knew they were helpful, but only with a lot of context.

And as fast as the culture and tools and software were changing, it felt insincere to provide such tailored solutions that would be out-of-date in a few months.

The group coaching experiment

I loved doing 1:1 mentoring, so eventually, I explored the idea of small group coaching with The Homestyle Accelerator. The first round sold out quickly and got good feedback — but I left it feeling like we had crammed a lot of content into a short amount of time, without a lot of space to develop relationship, feedback, or implementation.

Something was still missing.

My experience with family photography retreats

In 2022, I attended Brooke Schultz’s Love Soaked Mastermind in California. At that point I wasn’t teaching, wasn’t mentoring, and didn’t have a podcast. I was a family photographer ready for something more and not sure how to get there.

That retreat was transformational, and it had everything to do with the trust and experience that came from being in the room. The same thing happened when I attended Rachel Larsen Weaver’s retreat and mastermind in 2024.

I started my business fresh out of graduate school when I turned my attention away from the classroom to pursue photography. The idea of marrying these two passions of teaching and photography was there from the beginning. But it wasn’t until I began attending in-person events that it really made sense in the way I’d imagined.

Why online spaces weren’t enough

I still believe there’s real value in courses and workshops for learning specific skills or even in certain seasons of your life or business. There are also certain things a PDF just can’t fix – things like creative stagnation, burnout, shifting your style, raising your prices without losing all your clients.

You can hear advice about all of those things while you’re folding laundry, but it doesn’t give you the accountability you need to make them happen. Sometimes, you have to get your hands dirty and really do the work.

Designing the retreat for family photographers

Once I let myself take the retreat idea seriously, it felt both terrifying and freeing.

I decided the first retreat would be close to home and an easier foot in the door for me to manage. When I imagined what the actual sessions would look like, I knew I didn’t want styled shoots. I wanted the them to be closest to what photographers would actually experience with their real clients.

Challenging homes, resistant toddlers, the full range of it. I didn’t want to just open the door for creating pretty photos, but to practice skills they could weave into their sessions down the road.

Community over competition

One of the things I kept coming back to when creating this retreat is what happens when you sit across a table from five other photographers and you know their names and their stories.

You stop being jealous of people’s work and start becoming their biggest cheerleader.

Comparison is one of the biggest problems I hear about from photographers these days. We need more of collaborative energy in our industry, and small group by small group, I’m hoping to help foster more of it.

Believing in your offer

I don’t have a huge following or a big team. By a lot of metrics, an in-person experience like this shouldn’t make sense. All the coaches told me to “scale” through “passive income.”

But I’d rather make a deep impact on a handful of people whose faces I know and whose growth I get to witness than sell a bunch of of $5 templates. I’d rather my work be face to face than working on systems logistics and delivery funnels.

I know for certain that the photographers attending these retreats will experience transformation that will impact their lives and business. To me, that’s the absolute best use of my time as a photography educator.

Find It Quickly:

0:00 – What I thought being an educator was “supposed to look like”
2:00 – What wasn’t working
4:00 – Group Coaching
6:40 – The initial idea for a retreat
10:00 – Where online resources fall short
12:30 – Deciding to go all in on in-person
14:00 – Designing the retreat
17:00 – The transformation

Mentioned in this Episode:
PhotoFuel Retreat Waitlist >> https://www.leahoconnell.com/retreat

You might also like:

Episode 9: Connecting with clients by owning your story

Episode 30: My Story – The roots, experience, failures, & inspirations that shaped my photography business + paying it forward

Episode 37: What I’m working on in slow season as a family photographer

Have you ever looked at your work and thought, This is fine… but something feels off? In this episode, I’m talking about the sneaky middle season no one prepares you for—the growth plateau. It’s not burnout or failure. You’re seeing success, booking clients, and producing solid work. Deep down, though, you know what got you here isn’t going to get you there – wherever there may be for you.

I’ve been hearing this over and over in mentoring conversations lately. Photographers who feel bored, invisible, resentful about pricing, creatively flat, or just quietly craving something more—but they can’t quite name it. Listen in as we explore what might be holding you back.

What Is a Growth Plateau in Your Photography Business?

We talk endlessly about starting a business. We also talk about early growth, sustainability, systems, style, client experience, and marketing strategies that help us grow. What’s not talked about enough is the middle—that steady, functioning, slightly uncomfortable middle.

A growth plateau isn’t burnout or failure. You still care about your work, plus you’ve built traction and consistency.But it’s the in-between space where what got you here isn’t going to get you to the next level. The strategies, habits, and creative approaches that once felt exciting now feel predictable. You’ve climbed a mountain, and instead of celebrating the view, you’re wondering why it feels a little underwhelming.

Plateaus are sneaky because nothing is obviously broken, and that’s exactly why they’re easy to ignore.

Signs You Might Be on a Plateau

Plateaus can sneak up on you and aren’t obvious. They show up in subtle shifts in energy, motivation, and satisfaction. How can you tell that you might be on a plateau?

1. Your Work Feels Flat (Even If It’s Good)

As a photographer, plateaus can appear in your imagery. While your images are technically solid, emotionally, something feels thin. Maybe you’ve scrolled through a recent session that you should be proud of, but nothing feels exciting about it.

Often this looks like:

• Defaulting to the same prompts and poses
• Feeling underwhelmed while editing
• Wanting deeper storytelling but not knowing how to access it
• Delivering beautiful work that doesn’t stretch you

It’s not that your work is bad, but it no longer stretches you.

2. Your Marketing Feels Invisible or Hollow

Another sign that you might be in a growth plateau comes down to your marketing. Even if you’re still posting, blogging, and sending newsletters, something is miss. It could feel like there’s no real fire behind it. The words feel recycled, images feel repetitive, and your clientele seems to only be repeat clients, which is wonderful, but you’re noticing fewer inquiries from strangers. Your audience isn’t expanding — it’s circulating.

You may find yourself questioning what you even want to say anymore or what to offer. This isn’t a marketing failure, but it’s likely a clarity issue.

3. Your Sessions Feel Repetitive

If you’ve been in business for any length of time, you’ve probably found your sessions to be repetitive. Once we find what works, we stick to it, but that limits us. This forces us into a growth plateau, because sessions begin to feel mechanical. You show up, perform, deliver, and repeat.

While there’s nothing wrong with this approach to business, there’s also nothing surprising or inspiring. When creative energy dips while competence remains high, that’s a powerful indicator that you’ve outgrown something.

4. You’ve Hit a Pricing Ceiling

Lastly, and often what is the biggest indicator of a growth plateau—you hit a pricing ceiling. You’ll begin to recognize this if you’re booking consistently, yet the income doesn’t match your effort or experience. When you invest in education and skill, yet you’re barely making a living wage, resentment creeps in—not toward your clients, but toward the imbalance.

A pricing ceiling often signals a deeper internal shift that hasn’t been acted on yet. It’s less about the numbers and more about identity, confidence, and vision.

You Haven’t Failed — You’ve Outgrown Something

When children outgrow their clothes, we don’t shame them. We size up. We take inventory of what still fits, what can be passed down, and what needs replacing.

Your business deserves that same grace.

A plateau is often proof that you’ve grown. You built something sustainable, developed skill, and earned trust. The discomfort you’re feeling now isn’t failure—it’s the tension that comes right before expansion.

The real question becomes: do you need steadiness, or do you need change?

Is the Next Level Necessary?

While the next level is an option for you, it’s not necessarily the right path for you. As a photographer, there will be seasons where stability is exactly what your life requires. Entrepreneurship can make us feel like we must constantly evolve, improve, and scale. But sometimes the most mature decision is to hold steady.

You can acknowledge that you’ve outgrown parts of your business without immediately dismantling everything. You can decide that for the next six months, consistency and predictability serve your family and your mental space better than reinvention.

However, if you’re staying small solely to avoid discomfort, that’s different. You created this job. You are allowed to adjust it. Growth at this stage often requires risk (creative risks, visibility risks, or financial risks). Comfort itself can become a ceiling.

The Questions That Move You Forward

This season isn’t about “should.” It’s about curiosity. If we were sitting down together, I would ask you questions like:

• Where do you feel bored?
• Where do you feel safest?
• What do clients love about your work—and do you love those same things?
• What are you avoiding because it feels exposing?
• If you could snap your fingers and see your business three years from now, what would it look like?

That last question matters deeply. When you remove constraints and consequences, your real desires surface. Many photographers circle around their dreams without fully naming them. We censor ourselves before the thought is complete.

Free writing, long walks, honest conversations with trusted peers—these create space for clarity. Naming what you want is the first breakthrough. Acting on it is where the real growth begins.

Why You Can’t Always Break Through Alone

There’s a level of business you can build independently. You can learn from podcasts, experiment with pricing, refine your workflow, and make steady progress on your own. But identity shifts are harder to navigate alone.

Perspective has limits and when you’ve been doing this for 10 or 15 years by yourself, your box becomes familiar and small. Inviting feedback, accountability, and honest dialogue expands what you can see. It also normalizes the plateau. When you realize everyone hits one, shame dissolves.

Being witnessed in the messy middle changes everything. It removes the pressure to posture or pretend you’ve already figured it out.

Why I Created the Photo Fuel Retreat

I created the Photo Fuel Retreat and Mastermind because I believe plateaus are thresholds. They are not dead ends; they are doorways into deeper work.

This experience isn’t about hustling harder or chasing trends. It’s about slowing down enough to reconnect with your vision. We shoot real sessions with real families—not styled shoots built for perfection, but work that reflects what you actually do. We critique honestly. We share meals. We talk about pricing, identity, boundaries, creativity, and sustainability.

It’s not about talent. It’s about clarity, courage, and community. We’d love to have you join us. Join the Waitlist >>

Find It Quickly:

00:26 – The Sneaky Middle: Understanding the Growth Plateau

03:21 – Signs You’re on a Plateau

07:29 – Plateaus as Transition Points: Steady Seasons vs. It’s Time to Change

09:56 – Breaking Through: Better Questions, Discomfort, and Taking Creative Risks

13:35 – Self-Coaching Prompts: Find What’s Boring, Safe, and What You’re Avoiding

16:37 – Why Support Systems Matter

21:00 – The Retreat Details

Mentioned in this Episode:

The Photo Fuel Retreat: Join the Waitlist >>

You might also like:

Episode 62: Micro-Pivots – You don’t have to burn it all down.

Episode 54: Seasonal Booking and Creative Growth in Family Photography with Lyndsay McNiff

Episode 52: Staying Open to Growth, Redefining Risk, and Betting on Yourself with Annemie Tonken

Building a photography business doesn’t always mean choosing just one lane and staying there forever. For many photographers, the most sustainable paths are layered, seasonal, and shaped by the realities of life.

That’s exactly the story of my guest today, Rebecca Hunnicutt, a lifestyle family photographer based in Portland, Oregon. Rebecca and I first connected in real life at Reset Conference, and in this conversation we dive into the many branches of her work—from family photography to school photography to teaching both photographers and kids.

We talk about how school photography became not just a revenue stream, but a strategic and sustainable foundation that supports her family work, and what it really looks like to juggle multiple niches.

Make School Photos a Part of Your Photography Business

If you’ve been thinking about adding school photography to your offerings, the Picture Day course is exactly what you need. Learn how to market, book, photograph, and deliver outdoor school photography for local daycares and schools to fuel your family photography business and boost your income.

Join the Waitlist >>

How It All Started: From Nurse to Photographer

Like most photographers, Rebecca didn’t take the traditional path into photography. Her first career was in nursing, specifically pediatric care, which set the stage for her natural connection with children and families. That background in nursing and educating parents and kids through their illnesses, morphed into her unique approach to photography education.

School Photography as a Strategic Marketing Funnel

Many family photographers think of school photography as a completely separate beast. For Rebecca, it’s become the backbone of her business in both revenue and marketing.

“I see my school business not only as what it is itself, but as a way to fuel my family business.” – Rebecca

She photographs around 1700 kids each fall and uses school email lists to generate new family session leads. It’s also work she can do during school hours, which is perfect for managing work-life balance as a parent.

The real magic is in her systems. She developed a self-service help desk in Airtable to reduce the customer service load, something many photographers overlook until they’re deep in the weeds. It’s a beautiful blend of artistry and automation.

By creating an automated response for each intentional question that a family could have, Rebecca has reduced the customer service tasks of 1700 families to only the ones that really need custom support.

Running Kids’ Photography Camps That Actually Inspire

One of the most fascinating parts of our conversation was how Rebecca runs summer photography camps for kids—and how much she gains creatively from them. The camps started during the pandemic and have evolved into a highlight of her year.

The camps are open to kids in grades 4–7, and each camper gets to use a real DSLR camera. They explore shutter speed, composition, and even color theory through hands-on experimentation.

And yes, they also serve a strategic purpose: the camps build community, brand recognition, and even uncover unexpected opportunities (like connecting with a school principal!).

Education for Adults: Teaching Photographers How to See Differently

In addition to working with kids, Rebecca teaches adult photographers how to elevate their work through composition, color, and creative location usage. Whether it’s a model call strategy or maximizing a less-than-perfect shooting spot, her philosophy centers on shifting the way we see.

“It’s really interesting that the thread through everything I teach is how to see differently.” – Rebecca

This focus applies to all her offers: from school to camp to family photography. It’s what makes her work visually rich and emotionally resonant. Consider how you see things differently from others and is that something you could leverage for your own offers?

Systems, Outsourcing, and Scaling a Multi-Offer Business

Rebecca doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges of managing multiple business arms. She’s transparent about the cognitive load, especially during school portrait season. But she leans on outsourced help, from editors to VAs, to keep things flowing.

What keeps her grounded is clarity: knowing which seasons support which offers, and not trying to scale all the things at once.

Travel as Creative Fuel

When she’s not working, Rebecca’s photo fuel comes from traveling with her kids and photographing their adventures with intention. It’s not just personal documentation; it’s a space to experiment, play, and feel connected to her craft outside of client work.

Find It Quickly:

01:53 – Meet Rebecca Hunnicutt

03:02 – Rebecca’s Photography Journey

04:22 – The Intersection of Family and School Photography

06:54 – Teaching Photography to Kids

08:49 – Challenges and Rewards of Photography Camps

10:49 – Balancing Multiple Photography Ventures

15:08 – The Importance of Seeing Differently

18:59 – Exploring New Ideas for Photography Courses

20:10 – Balancing Multiple Business Angles

20:58 – Challenges of Managing School Photography

23:06 – Streamlining Family Photography Operations

26:58 – Innovative Customer Service Solutions

29:57 – Future Goals and Personal Motivation

30:42 – The Joy of Travel Photography

33:36 – Creative Solutions for Business and Personal Life

Mentioned in this Episode:

Photo Fuel Retreat Waitlist

School Photography Course Waitlist

Airtable

Photography Education: elenasblair.com

Connect with Rebecca

Website: hunnicuttphotography.com

Instagram: instagram.com/rebecca.hunnicutt.photography

Instagram: instagram.com/rebecca.hunnicutt.education

You might also like:

Episode 5: 6 shifts that helped me grow my family photography business | Photo Fuel Ep 05

Episode 6: The Key Ingredient to Your (Family Photography) Success

Episode 62: Micro-Pivots – You don’t have to burn it all down.

If you have ever felt overwhelmed by how loud and crowded it feels online with the constant posting, optimizing, and trying to stay visible, you are not alone. Over the past few years, I have found myself quietly moving toward something slower, more personal, and more sustainable: analog marketing.

This shift started with my newsletter, The Firefly Letters. It became a space where I could be more honest, more thoughtful, and more myself than anywhere else online. That small decision to write more intimately led to something bigger: a deeper interest in creating real, human connections that extend beyond the screen.

That’s when I made the shift from marketing as a performance to marketing with intent. In today’s episode, I’m sharing some of the ways I go analog in my business and what that looks like for this year. Listen in as I highlight a few ways you can incorporate analog marketing into your own business!

Why Analog Marketing Feels Right

Online marketing certainly has its place, and it can be powerful. It is also fast-paced, competitive, and often exhausting. Analog marketing is not a rejection of online tools. Instead, it is a conscious choice to focus on building trust, fostering genuine relationships, and creating memorable experiences.

These are four analog marketing strategies I have been using in my business that feel aligned with my values, and they are actually working. I hope they give you a few ideas of your own.

1. Handwritten Snail Mail That Feels Personal

There is something powerful about receiving a handwritten note in the mail. It signals care and presence. I send postcards and notecards to clients I have loved working with, families I want to reconnect with, or people who come to mind for one reason or another.

Don’t get these confused with promotional messages or marketing. These notes are simple acknowledgments that let clients know that I see them and I’m here.

I use beautiful cards that don’t have my logo or marketing language splashed across them. Sometimes I include a local coffee shop gift card or a note recalling a memory from a previous session. These cards often end up on refrigerators or bookshelves, and that physical presence lingers in a way a digital message rarely does.

Even if you only write three or four cards a month, this can be a meaningful and memorable touchpoint in your business.

2. Local Gatherings That Build Real Trust

Hosting small, in-person events has been one of the most refreshing ways I have connected with people recently. These gatherings are not complicated or highly produced. I have hosted simple things like a book swap on my back porch, a wine night at a local patio, and even a pumpkin painting morning at a neighborhood park where kids were welcome.

These meetups are not about selling, but they instead focus on conversation and presence. They work because they are built on trust. I send the invitations through a private email list for safety and intimacy, (I don’t recommend blasting them on social media). That keeps the tone personal and the setting relaxed.

In-person relationships grow faster and more naturally than digital ones. Even if you are an introvert, gathering with three or four people in a cozy setting can lead to genuine connection—and you never know when it will lead to future work, too.

3. School Photography That Introduces My Work

One of the best ways I meet new families is through outdoor school photography. It is not traditional or posed. I use natural light, focus on personality, and approach it with the same mindset I use during full family sessions. The beauty of this work is that it allows people to experience my style and approach before ever reaching out for a session of their own.

It is a form of service first, and marketing second. If parents love the way I photograph their children, it opens the door for future sessions, referrals, and a sense of familiarity with me and my work.

If you are curious about doing this kind of work, make sure you’re on the waitlist for my school photography course.

4. In-Person Retreats That Speak for Themselves

Of all the things I do in my business, hosting retreats has been the most transformational—for both myself and the photographers who attend. These small, intentional gatherings provide space for honest conversation, shared meals, and real learning.

There is something about being in the same room with like-minded creatives that accelerates growth and builds lifelong connections. I don’t have a massive online following, but I also don’t need one. When people have an incredible experience, they talk about it. Their stories become the most authentic form of marketing.

Rather than chasing trends or constant content creation, I focus on depth and service. Retreats allow me to be fully present and create something meaningful, which naturally generates interest and excitement for future events.

Analog Marketing Is Not About Going Backward

Choosing analog marketing is not about rejecting the digital world. It is about valuing presence over performance and creating experiences that people remember, big and small. These approaches may not scale in the same way as viral reels or targeted ads, but they create loyalty, trust, and genuine connection which converts in just the right ways for a local, personal business.

If you are feeling burned out by the fast pace of online marketing, it might be time to try something slower and more rooted.

Find It Quickly:

01:37 – Embracing Analog Methods in Marketing

04:22 – Introduction to Photo Fuel

04:47 – Analog Marketing Method 1: Snail Mail

08:41 – Analog Marketing Method 2: Hosting Local Gatherings

17:10 – Analog Marketing Method 3: Outdoor School Photography

20:08 – Analog Marketing Method 4: In-Person Education Retreats

Mentioned in this Episode:

Photo Fuel Retreat Waitlist

School Photography Course Waitlist

The Firefly Newsletter

Free Resources

You might also like:

Episode 56: The Missing Link to your Photography Marketing with Michelle Franzetti

Episode 54: Seasonal Booking and Creative Growth in Family Photography with Lyndsay McNiff

Episode 36: 3 Methods for Journaling | Increase your Noticing Power and better your photography, business, and life

Does your quiet January inbox have you spiraling about your prices? You’re not alone. This time of year has a way of bringing out the darkest corners of our business fears.

Questions like, “Did I price myself out of my market?” or “Will I ever get inquiries again?” swirl in the silence of a post-holiday lull. If we can learn to spot the pattern, we can break the cycle and make better decisions for the long game.

Get Clear on Your Big Picture:

If you’re feeling swirly about your business right now, it’s probably not because you need a new strategy—it’s because you haven’t slowed down enough to see the big picture. The Big Picture Workbook walks you through 10 thoughtful prompts to help you zoom out, get clear on your direction, and make confident decisions as a family photographer. You can print it or journal digitally and revisit it anytime you need grounding.

Download Now >>

Why January Feels So Triggering for Photographers

January is slow and that silence can mess with your head. If you’re a family photographer, you already know that our work is deeply seasonal. September through December is absolutely bonkers. When January rolls around, it’s crickets. It’s not that you’re doing anything wrong. It’s just the nature of the industry.

But your nervous system doesn’t know that. All it sees is a lack of validation, a lack of inquiries and a total absence of “yes” energy. That’s when fear creeps in.

You start second-guessing your pricing, your model, and your offers. You go back and reread that pricing sheet you felt good about just weeks ago and start thinking… “Maybe this is too much.”

Let me stop you right there.

Fear-Based Pricing vs. Data-Driven Decisions

The thoughts that pop up during this time can feel very real:

• “No one’s going to book me at this rate.”
• “Last year was probably a fluke.”
• “I should just lower my prices before it’s too late.”

But these thoughts are reactive and urgent. They usually show up when you’re tired, overwhelmed, or operating in an emotional spiral—not from a grounded place.

Bring in the data and begin by asking yourself:

• How many inquiries did I receive in January last year?
• When do my clients usually start booking for spring?
• Did anyone say “no” because of price?
• What did my calendar look like by March or April?

Fear ignites all the negative thoughts, while data reinforces reality. Sometimes just taking a closer look can pull you into more clear and grounded decision-making.

Pricing Confidence Starts with Client Trust

Here’s a truth I come back to again and again: You teach people how to treat your pricing.

If you’re constantly discounting, backpedaling, or adjusting rates out of panic, you become unpredictable and that erodes trust.

Think of brands like Trader Joe’s or Aldi. Their prices are their prices. No coupons. No surprise discounts. No manipulation. You just know what to expect and that builds confidence.

Your photography business deserves that same level of steadiness that then converts and builds loyalty.

If your clients are always wondering when your next sale is, they’ll wait. If your pricing changes constantly, they’ll doubt. Your prices should feel safe for both you and them.

So… What Should You Do During the January Lull?

Shift from panic to strategy. This slow season is a gift if you treat it that way.

Step 1: Zoom Out

Look at the last 12 months, not the last 12 days. Ask:

• Did my pricing support me overall?
• Was I booked in a way that felt sustainable?
• Did I have too many sessions crammed into too short a window?
• Was there room to breathe or did I hit burnout?

January might feel scary right now, but it may have actually been the breather you needed all along.

Step 2: Revisit Client Feedback

What do your clients actually say about your work and experience?

Go back to the thank-you emails. The glowing testimonials. The DMs that made you tear up. Create a folder for them. Read them out loud if you need to.

No one’s emailing you to say “Hey, your pricing was too high,” right? And if they are, is that the client you want to attract?

Step 3: Check Your Numbers

If you’re not already tracking your inquiries, bookings, conversions, and revenue by month, this is the time to start. I highly recommend a CRM like HoneyBook, but please don’t rely on memory.

Here’s the deal: silence is not data, but trends are. The more you track, the more empowered you’ll feel in making smart decisions that actually move your business forward. You can get started with HoneyBook today and even get a discount when you sign up with my affiliate link!

Try HoneyBook >>

What If You Still Feel the Financial Pressure

It’s so valid to feel the financial pressure or burden that a lack of revenue creates at the beginning of the year. Here’s the reality: lowering your prices doesn’t always fix the problem. It can often create new ones.

Before you overhaul your collections, think through some of these ideas:

• Offer a one-off seasonal session (think: brand minis in February, “Love Your Family” shoots around Valentine’s Day or a small business branding pop-up).
• Review how you distribute payments; would offering payment plans create more stability?
• Evaluate how you’re saving during the high season to support the lower ones.

Sometimes the issue isn’t the price – it’s the structure, the strategy, or the timing.

Pricing Isn’t a Panic Button

Pricing is a leadership decision, not something you tweak on a whim. You need to own it..

You do not need to re-earn your worth every quarter or prove your value every January. You’re allowed to stay steady, even when the market feels slow..

Let this be the year you stop letting seasonal dips define your confidence.

Find It Quickly:

00:24 – Understanding Pricing Anxiety

02:25 – Seasonal Nature of Family Photography

04:34 – Data-Driven Decision Making

11:59 – Client Communication and Feedback

15:50 – Financial Strategies and Adjustments

20:30 – Mentoring and Support Options

Mentioned in this Episode:

Big Picture Workbook

Photographers-Only Email List

Photo Fuel Retreat & Mastermind Waitlist

Voxer Coaching

You might also like:

Episode 54: Seasonal booking for creative growth with Lyndsay McNiff

Episode 44: The four stages of Client Experience

Episode 39: My History of Pricing as a Family Photographer

Dave Herring is a photographer, educator, founder of Very Good Co, and a longtime friend. He’s also what you might call a creative nomad—someone who has consistently followed curiosity, values, and people rather than forcing himself into a predefined box.

In this episode of Photo Fuel, Dave and I chat about how curiosity led him to an entirely new career as a photographer and educator. From leaving the East Coast and relocating his family to California with no concrete plan, to working with brands like Leica and Hasselblad, Dave shares how paying attention to what felt meaningful—and staying generous along the way—shaped both his career and a life that supports his ultimate measure of success: being in charge of his time.

This conversation explores what it looks like to build a creative and sustainable business honestly and purposefully, one step at a time.

In This Episode, We Talk About:

• How curiosity—not necessarily strategy—became the driving force behind Dave’s business moves
• Boldness in entrepreneurship
• Blending past experience into creative work
• Why and how generosity and free content became foundational to Dave’s business model
• The surprising ways giving freely can shape community, trust, and opportunity
• Rethinking success beyond metrics, numbers, and visibility

Even though Dave primarily works in landscape photography, this episode offers perspective that transcends niche. It’s a reminder that values, curiosity, and integrity are transferable and that there’s more than one way to build a meaningful creative life on your terms.

Links Mentioned in This Episode

• Post: How Generosity Changed Everything
  https://dave.online/writings/how-generosity-changed-everything
• Very Good Co:
  https://shopverygood.com/
• Unsplash:
  https://unsplash.com/
• Dave’s YouTube Channel:
  https://www.youtube.com/@davidherring
• Stephen Shore Photo Books:
  https://www.rizzolibookstore.com/product/stephen-shore
• Dave’s Website:
  https://dave.online/

You may also like:

Episode 61: How Nicole Hodgson Reinvented her Photography Business from families to brands

Episode 52: Staying Open to Growth, Redefining Risk, and Betting on Yourself with Annimie Tonken

Episode 42: 3 Times family photographers should shoot for free (a case for generocity)

What if the answer isn’t a full rebrand, a new niche, or burning your business to the ground—but a small, thoughtful shift instead?

In this solo episode of Photo Fuel, we’re talking about micro-pivots: small, intentional changes you can make in your photography business that restore energy, clarity, and alignment—without starting over.

This conversation is especially for family photographers who still love photography, but feel like something has quietly shifted. The work feels heavier. The spark isn’t gone, but it’s dimmer. And the idea of “pivoting” feels just as overwhelming as staying stuck.

Micro-pivots offer another way.

What is a Micro-Pivot?

A micro-pivot is a small adjustment in how you work—not necessarily what you do.

It’s not a rebrand.
It’s not a big public announcement.
And it’s not a permanent decision.

Micro-pivots are experiments. They’re small, intention testing ground for potential.

Our work as family photographers is relational and energy-intensive when we’re shooting — but burnout is usually because of an issue with structure, pacing, messaging, or boundaries, not from photography itself. Micro-pivots help you address that without blowing everything up.

Signs You Might Be Craving a Micro-Pivot

You might be ready for a small shift if:

• You still love photography, but sessions feel heavier than they used to
• You’re creatively restless or bored
• You dread certain parts of your workflow
• You fantasize about “starting fresh,” but don’t actually want to quit
• You feel pulled toward slower pace, deeper work, or different clients

These feelings aren’t failure. They’re often just growing pains – and that’s a good thing.

Types of Micro-Pivots You Can Make

Creative Micro-Pivots

• Slowing down sessions
• Observing more, directing less
• Starting a personal project alongside client work
• Editing with more intention or restraint

Structural Micro-Pivots

• Fewer sessions per month
• Shorter or longer session lengths
• Reduced travel
• More defined availability or boundaries

Client Experience Micro-Pivots

• Rewriting prep guides to reflect how you want sessions to feel
• Leading sessions with more confidence and clarity
• Being more explicit about expectations

Offer-Based Micro-Pivots

• Testing a seasonal or experimental offer
• Offering a small brand photography package
• Teaching locally or hosting a workshop
• Trying a low-stakes educational or community-based idea

How to Experiment Without Risking Your Business

The key to micro-pivots is treating them as experiments, not commitments.

• Give yourself a time boundary (30 days, 3 months)
• Test ideas privately or with existing clients
• Keep your core business stable while you explore
• Measure success by energy and clarity—not just income

Trying something new doesn’t mean it has to work forever. Sometimes the clarity, information, or simply just TRYING something different is the win.

When a Micro-Pivot Becomes Something More

Some micro-pivots stay small—and that’s enough.
Others quietly grow into something bigger.

Signs a shift may be worth continuing:

• You feel more energized
• You’re clearer about what you want
• Clients respond differently
• You want to keep exploring

And sometimes a micro-pivot simply teaches you what you don’t want next—and that’s valuable too.

A Gentle Reminder

You don’t need to burn it all down to feel better about your business.
You’re allowed to change slowly.
You’re allowed to experiment.
And you’re allowed to change your mind.

I’ve created a companion worksheet with journaling prompts to help you explore your own micro-pivot potential – sign up here to grab it and start thinking deeper about what you might need to shift.

// Links Mentioned in this Episode //

Episode 61: From Families to Brand Photography with Nicole Hodgson

Episode 59: Messy Action, The Artful Pivot, and Creating from the Inside Out with Brooke Schultz

Episode 56: The Missing LInk to your Photography Marketing with Michelle Franzetti

The Micro-Pivots Journalling Workbook : https://leahoconnell.myflodesk.com/pivot

In this episode of Photo Fuel, I’m kicking off a short series all about pivoting, evolving, and exploring new creative seasons as a photographer. Specifically, we’re going to hear from someone who recently made the shift from family to brand photography – what it took, how it’s going, and everything in between.

It’s so easy to stay siloed inside family photography—hearing the same strategies, the same voices, and the same recycled advice. But there is so much to learn from creatives who step outside the familiar and build something different – whether you apply that to your own pivot or just your own growth in what you’re already offering.

Nichole Hodgson is the perfect person to start off this conversation.

Nicole is a former marriage and family therapist turned lifestyle brand photographer based in Northern California. She began her career photographing families, but over time, she noticed something interesting: many of the women she photographed were also building businesses of their own.

Those sessions sparked a new sense of alignment that she couldn’t ignore, eventually nudging her toward an entirely new direction—brand photography.

What followed was a thoughtful, intentional pivot from family to brand photography that required clarity, courage, and a willingness to rebuild. In this conversation, Nicole shares the full arc of that shift—what stirred first, what steps she took, and how she’s navigating her first year inside a new niche.

It’s warm, candid, and deeply relatable for any photographer who has ever wondered about stepping into something new, expanding offers, or just what it takes to build shift your business into a niche.

In this Episode:

Recognizing When a Pivot Is Calling You

Nicole shares the quiet signs that she was craving a new direction and how she honored that intuition even before she had a plan.

The First Steps of Shifting Into Brand Photography

Nicole breaks down how she approached this major transition – from saying yes to early opportunities to committing the work to rebuild the identity of her business.

The Pros and Cons of Family Photography

We talk openly about what she loved, what drained her, and what felt unsustainable in family photography—conversations that many of us feel but don’t always name.

How Past Careers and Personal History Shape Our Work

Nicole’s background as a therapist deeply informs the way she connects with clients, structures sessions, and serves women entrepreneurs. Still, she’s found a way to fully embrace her role as a brand photographer and hold it with its own esteem for the excellence she delivers.

Value-Based Pricing (and why it works differently for brands than families)

On a super practical note, Nicole explains her pricing structure for brand photography and how shifting her niche allowed her to rethink pricing, marketing, and positioning with more clarity and strategy.

Confidence, Identity & Showing Up as the Face of Your Business

We talk about the mindset work behind letting yourself be seen—something that can feel vulnerable, but also incredibly freeing.

How Motherhood & Entrepreneurship Led Her Toward a New Journaling Course

Nicole also shares how her personal journaling practice (and her life as a mom and business owner) inspired her newest offering: a group course on building the habit of journaling.

// LINKS MENTIONED //

• Rebrand with Maddie Peshong: https://www.maddiepeschong.com/brand-photography
• Episode 18: The benefits of being an introverted photographer switching careers, shooting multiple genres, and more with Caitlin Alohilani
• Free Resources for Family Photography Education: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

// CONNECT //

Nicole Hodgson

Website: www.nicolehodgsonphotography.com | Instagram: @nicolehodgson.photography

Leah O’Connell

Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com | Instagram: @leahoconnell.photo

You might also like:

Episode 59: Messy Action, The Artful Pivot, and Creating from the Inside Out with Brooke Schultz

Episode 56: The Missing Link to your Photography Marketing with Michelle Franzetti

Episode 54: Seasonal Booking and Creative Growth with Lyndsay McNiff

This episode releases on the week of Thanksgiving, which is also a big time for holiday deals and making purchases for your photography business – so I have a recommendations. This chat is a short and sweet touchpoint to share the Big 4 in my business – aka, the four software tools that are essential for keeping things running smoothly. This powerful combo is the nuts and bolts of my marketing, sales, communication and delivery – the tech stack of dreams.

If you’re thinking of upleveling your tooling or getting started with some client experience systems to scale your work, listen for the tools that are my top four photography business recommendations – what each tool does, why I chose it, how they connect to one another, and what to consider most if you’re shopping for smarter systems this season.

Why a Photography Tech Stack Matters

Photographers don’t need dozens of apps—they need the right few. With a strong, connected ecosystem, you can:

• streamline your photography workflow,
• improve your client experience,
• save hours of back-and-forth communication,
• automate parts of your marketing, and
• make more sales with less friction.

My goal has always been a business that feels simple, sustainable, and human. These four tools help me do exactly that.

The Big 4 Tools I Use in My Photography Business

1. HoneyBook — My Client Management System (CRM)

Category: CRM + client communication

If you’ve ever felt scattered across email threads, Google Docs, phone reminders, and mental checklists, HoneyBook is the system that brings it all together. It manages inquiries, bookings, contracts, payments, questionnaires, and communication—all in one place.

Why it’s essential:

• Automated workflows help you create a seamless client experience. Even if it needs adjusted and personalized from client to client, the system itself keeps you from forgetting to send people what they need in a timely manner and helps you keep it all organized in one place.
• Faster booking with pre-set proposals and a streamlined way for people to complete it all
• Clean, organized communication in a single inbox
• Every project tracked from inquiry to final delivery

HoneyBook is the heart of my backend system and for me, feels completely essential.

TRY HONEYBOOK: https://share.honeybook.com/leah9738526

2. Pic-Time — Client Galleries & Product Sales Income

Category: Gallery delivery + online store

Pic-Time is where my client work lives after a session. I can connect the gallery to Honeybook as well so literally everything related to that client is accessible in one place. As a gallery delivery platform, this is how my clients experience their final product, so the professionalism, style, and ease of the platform navigation is crucial. I love that I can include slideshows right in the gallery as well to really elevate the viewing experience.

After viewing, clients have a killer storefront they can browse and see their images within all the products. This really incentivizes ordering and I’ve seen a pretty significant shift in how my clients use their print credit and my ability to be more hands-off with it as well.

Why I recommend it:

• Beautiful, easy-to-navigate client galleries
• Built-in sales tools that increase print and album purchases
• Clean design that fits beautifully with an all inclusive brand while still feeling very personalized

It’s a delivery tool and a quiet powerhouse for post-delivery sales.

TRY PICTIME: https://leahoconnell.pic-time.com/referral

3. Flodesk — Email Marketing & Client Relationship Building

Category: Email marketing

Flodesk is my ride or die for email marketing because it’s simple, visually appealing, and soooo simple to use compared with other platforms I’ve tried. It allows me to build and stay connected with my community in a meaningful, consistent way. Because of Flodesk, a vast majority of my clients come from email, which keeps me from living on social media and helps me create marketing that feels more intentional and personal.

How it supports my business:

• Automated email sequences for new inquiries and subscribers
• Consistent layouts for brand recognition
• Simple audience segmentation
• Perfect for launches, updates, and seasonal messaging

TRY FLODESK: https://flodesk.com/c/PHOTOFUEL

4. Showit — The Backend Design to my Website / Online Home

Category: Website builder

Showit is the visual front door to my brand. It’s where clients land, learn about, and decide if they want to work. The creative freedom of the drag-and-drop interface allows me to tweak already-amazing templates for a site that feels natural, warm, and true to the environment I want to invite people into.

Why I love it:

• Unlimited creative control for both desktop and mobile
• Drag-and-drop interface
• Seamless blogging with WordPress
• Integrated tooling to support high-level SEO

TRY SHOWIT: https://showit.com/r/jt922s

How These Tools Work Together

The thing that makes these four platforms powerful isn’t just what they do individually—it’s how they support each step of the client journey:

• Showit is the online home that attracts people and brings them closer (via Honeybook contact forms & Flodesk embedded opt-in forms)
• HoneyBook manages inquiries, booking, communication, and workflows
• Flodesk nurtures long-term connection and marketing
• Pic-Time delivers final galleries and drives print sales

How to Choose the Right Tools for Your Photography Business

Before you dive into purchasing or buy something on a holiday sale just because it’s on sale, ask yourself:

• What are problems I’m facing?
• Which of these tools would help me solve that problem most quickly?
• What could I let go of with the use of this tool?
• Do I have the time and energy (or am I willing to make it) to integrate this new tool?

Your tech stack should support your creativity, not complicate it.

BOTTOM LINE:

You don’t need every new platform or tool under the sun. But choosing the right stack and thinking long-term about quality can transform the way your business feels and grows on a regular basis.

If you’re evaluating upgrades or building your first foundational systems, check out the tools linked in this episode and reach out if you have any follow-up questions via instagram or email – I’m always happy to talk business!

// LINKS MENTIONED //

Episode: 25: Navigating Black Friday for family photographers
Episode 31 : Your Black Friday Investment Plan

Episode 46: Why I switched to Honeybook and how it’s going: (on spotify)
(on apple podcasts)

Honeybook referral link: https://share.honeybook.com/leah9738526

Pictime referral link: https://leahoconnell.pic-time.com/referral

Flodesk referral link: https://flodesk.com/c/PHOTOFUEL

Showit referral link: https://showit.com/r/jt922s

The Photo Fuel Retreat & Mastermind: https://www.leahoconnell.com/retreat

In this episode of Photo Fuel, a family photography education podcast, I’m joined by the wise and wonderful Brooke Schultz — photographer, educator, and creative force behind Heartful Magazine — for a deep dive into the art and evolution of a career in family photography.

Brooke has built a career that’s as intentional as it is imaginative. She’s a Utah-based family photographer and industry educator who helps photographers create their own unique style instead of mimicking trends. As the founder of the Love Soaked Method, Brooke’s philosophy centers around connection, emotion, and artistry — and her work has been featured by Oprah, Martha Stewart, Kodak, Rangefinder, Parents, and more.

Beyond photography, Brooke’s creativity spills into podcasting, writing, and music — all woven together by a throughline of making motherhood deeply seen.

The Power of Messy Action

Brooke shares how she first discovered lifestyle family photography and why she believes that messy action is essential to developing your photography style.Those early, imperfect images? They matter because of the process even more than the way they turn out.

We talk about the courage it takes to create before you’re ready — and how naïveté can actually be a powerful creative advantage.

Creating From the Inside Out

One of the biggest takeaways from our conversation is Brooke’s reminder that your personal story and values aren’t distractions from your art, but a powerful source that guides your signature style.

When you create from the inside out, your style naturally becomes more cohesive, intentional, and sustainable. Brooke explains why the phrase “the only sustainable art is selfish” isn’t about ego, but about alignment — making work that lights you up so that you can keep showing up for others with genuine energy and inspiration.

Leading With Confidence and Calm

We talk about what it means to “set the temperature” in your sessions and be the grounded, confident leader your clients are craving. When you show up as a calm, sturdy presence, your families feel safe enough to be real, and that authenticity translates directly into your images.

Your energy sets the tone. The more you’re rooted in yourself, the more natural connection you’ll draw out from your clients.

Listen on Apple Podcasts HERE | Listen on Spotify HERE

LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS | LISTEN ON SPOTIFY

Also in this episode:

• How Brooke transitioned from digital weddings to soulful in-home family sessions
• The power of messy action — and why your early “bad” images matter
• Why your personal story is the foundation of your style
• The truth behind the phrase “the only sustainable art is selfish”
• What it means to “set the temperature” and lead sessions with confidence
• Why being the calm, grounded presence your clients crave is part of your job
• How personal growth and artistic growth go hand-in-hand

Photo Fuel is a family photography education podcast that is all about coming back to your creative core and sustainably developing the vision, art, and business you crave.

Make sure to subscribe for future episodes on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and leave a review if you loved this episode!

// LINKS MENTIONED //

Connect with Brooke

• Website
• Instagram
• The Emotive Bootcamp
• Heartful Magazine

Mentioned in this episode

• Dr. Becky Kennedy — on “sturdy leadership”

Connect with Leah

• Website
• Instagram
• The Photo Fuel Retreat & Mastermind

Have you ever had a photo session that lit you up — where something clicked and you thought, this is the kind of work I want to make more of… but then you got home and thought, okay but… how?

Maybe you’re stuck doing holiday minis for a super low price, or maybe your clients are happy and your calendar is full — but you feel like you’re on autopilot and dying a little bit inside. You love what you do, but something feels off. Whatever it is that has you feeling like you’ve hit a plateau and aren’t really sure how to get off of it – you may be ready for a mastermind.

The Photo Fuel Retreat + Mastermind is a four-month experience designed to help family photographers reignite their creativity, strengthen their business, discover their unique vision, and refine their work into something that feels totally aligned.

Why a Mastermind (and Not Just Another Course)?

Courses are great — until they aren’t.
They can teach you big-picture ideas and technical skills, but when you’ve hit a plateau, what you really need is people.

You need conversation. Real-time feedback.
You need to talk through what’s working and what’s not, and then actually practice it — with others who understand the nuance of your experience.

That’s one of the most beautiful pieces of what a mastermind for family photographers offers: collaboration, accountability, and fresh perspective. It’s where understanding happens — not by memorizing poses or strategies, but by rewiring the brain for confident creativity.

The Power of Doing (Not Just Injesting)

The very best way to grow as an artist and business owner is by doing. The retreat creates a safe space – without client money and expectations on the line – to practice skills and experiment with pushing your own boundaries. Through verbal and hands-on processing, you stop second-guessing your instincts and start trusting your creative eye again. You begin to notice opportunity — the light shifting in a room, a child’s movement, the in-between moments that make your work come alive — and learn what to do with it.

That kind of creative confidence doesn’t come from a course you take alone at your desk. It comes from guided, intentional, and supported experience.

Inside the Photo Fuel Retreat + Mastermind for Family Photographers

Here’s the full breakdown in nuts and bolts:

• 7 group calls between February–May focused on creative growth, marketing, pricing, and business systems tailored to your goals.
• 2 one-on-one coaching sessions with me for individualized feedback.
• A 4-day all-inclusive retreat in Madison, Virginia — a cozy, character-filled home where we’ll gather for shoots, deep conversation, and creative reset.
• 4 real family shoots — no styled models or fluff. We’ll work with real families to help you refine your skills, fill portfolio gaps, and experiment freely.
• Portfolio & website audit — personalized feedback on your imagery, design, and SEO.
• Unlimited Voxer access — a “back pocket” support system for everyday questions, brainstorms, and encouragement.

See full details about the Photo Fuel Retreat here

Who It’s For

This experience is designed for family photographers who:

• Have been shooting for at least a year or two; we’re not covering camera basics or shooting foundations, though photographers of varying skill levels are welcome and will surely be an asset to one other!
• Feel like something’s missing in their work or business
• Want to create images that feel more candid, connected, and timeless
• Crave feedback and community through the “off-season” and beyond
• Are ready to refine their art and strategy for the next season of growth

If you’re ready to stretch, grow, and reignite your creative spark, this is your space.

Is It Worth It? Common Questions Answered

“Is it worth the investment?”
If you’re ready to move from information to transformation, then the short answer is yes. This is about more than learning — it’s about rewiring how you approach your craft and business. (More on this in the episode)

“How is it different from other retreats?”
It’s intimate — just five photographers.

It’s not “luxury” but it is deep, connected, and genuine. We’ll work with real families, have deep coaching conversations, and focus on real results. We’ll also journal, share meals, and poke around a small VA town together. This isn’t a vacation; we will work hard. But we’ll be doing it together and I promise you will leave refreshed and creatively on fire.

“What’s the vibe?”
Think coffee on the porch, laughter in the kitchen, and honest, heart-centered conversations within a small, trusted group of peers. We’re going to also pack in a lot of shooting, a lot of work talk, and a whole lot of dreaming.

Why I Believe in This

I’ve been in photography for over a decade, and the biggest leaps in my growth came from spaces like this and working in person with mentors who challenged me, expanded my perspective, and reminded me that I’m not in this alone.

That’s the heart behind this retreat.
I want to help you build a business that supports your life, art that reflects your perspective, and a images that speak to family legacies.

Ready to Learn More?

Find all the details about the Photo Fuel Retreat + Mastermind and join the waitlist here:
https://www.leahoconnell.com/retreat

If you want to chat about whether it’s the right fit for you, send me an email or DM me on Instagram @leahoconnell.photo – I’d love to hear what you’re dreaming about.

You might also like:

Episode 47: One Year of the Photo Fuel Podcast

Epsisode 44: The 4 Stages of Client Experience in Family Photography

Episode 41: What every photographer needs to know about “conveying value”

In this episode of Photo Fuel, I’m joined by Michelle Franzetti for a conversation that will knock your socks off, make you laugh, and make you think. It’s part photography marketing lesson, part mindset shift, and all about building a family photography business that actually works in today’s world.

Michelle shares how her background in marketing shaped the way she approaches her photography business, and why age-old principles still matter more than any algorithm tweak. We dig into what 2025 requires from small businesses, how to create a marketing plan that’s more than just “share and hope,” and the importance of designing seasons in your photography marketing so you have rhythm, clarity, excitement, and traction.

Michelle talks about why in-person connections are so powerful, even when they aren’t directly related to photography, plus the surprising criteria for a “successful” gathering that will make you want to host one tomorrow.

Listen on Apple | Listen on Spotify

Other topics we touch on in this episode around photography marketing:

• Michelle’s unexpected entry into marketing and how it shapes her photography business today
• A simple but timeless take on marketing: be interesting & connect with people
• What 2025 demands from small businesses and photographers (and how to adjust)
• Why posting and hoping is not a plan—and what’s missing from the equation
• How “marketing seasons” can keep you focused and motivated
• The overlooked magic of in-person connections for your photography business
• Why hosting meaningful & FUN gatherings can fuel both your community and your business longevity

This is a thoughtful, energizing conversation for any photographer who wants marketing to feel more human and be more effective for their local market.

// LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE //

Connect with Michelle:

Website: https://franzettiphotography.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/m_franzetti/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Michelle_Franzetti

Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/558214206287176

Connect with Leah:

Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell.photo

Voxer Coaching: https://www.leahoconnell.com/voxer

The Firefly Letters (weekly longform newsletter) – https://www.leahoconnell.com/newsletter

You may also like:

Episode 54: Seasonal booking and creative growth with Lyndsay McNiff

Episode 52: Staying Open to Growth, Redefining Risk, and Betting on Yourself with Annemie Tonken

Big Picture Questions to Guide your Photography Business Goals

After years of packing my professional cameras and lenses on every family trip only to leave them in the bag the whole time, I chose to document our beach vacation entirely with a point and shoot camera.

As a professional lifestyle family photographer, I’m used to complete control over my settings and multiple lenses for precision and intention. But something about the idea of stepping back from all that technical control felt liberating (and really fun).

The experiment was partly about proving to myself that expensive gear is only a piece of the craft. I wanted to remember the why. To feel it.

I know that good photos come from understanding light, composition, and timing, regardless of what’s in my hands to do it with. Even though I always have my phone with me, and it obviously has an excellent camera, I was curious about how changing my tools to something more rudimentary might change my approach to capturing our family memories.

Would I miss the creative control I’m used to? Could I still create images that felt authentic and beautiful?

And most importantly, would this shift allow me to be more present with my family while still documenting our time together?

Over this six day challenge, I was pleasantly surprised and delighted.

I was forced to focus on strengthening composition when other settings weren’t at my disposal. I was stuck with one focal length, and even though I typically shoot with prime lenses, this perspective pushed me to photograph differently.

Some moments were frustrating when the camera couldn’t keep up with motion or my usual precision timing. But other times, I was delighted by the layers that happened unintentionally and gave the images a more natural quality.

In this post, I’m sharing the exact point and shoot camera I chose and why, pros and cons of the simpler gear, and some powerful lessons I learned through the process.

If you’re deciding whether to bring expensive camera gear on your family vacation, or if you’re a photographer curious about intentionally limiting your tools for personal work, I hope this honest account gives you the insight you need!

Read more: Photographing the Holidays and Making Personal Work More Fun (You can also listen to this on the Photo Fuel podcast here on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.)

The Point and Shoot Camera I Chose

I chose the KODAK PIXPRO C1 Zoom Digital Camera. It has 13MP, is super compact, and features a 26mm focal length. I liked its retro design, the fact that it’s rechargeable (no eating batteries), and was excited about the flip selfie feature! It also can take video, which I was excited about experimenting with but ended up not using at all on this trip.

Honestly, I was also eager to find a point and shoot camera under $100.

I wanted a budget-friendly point and shoot that still delivered clear focus and crisp image quality. I didn’t need anything professional since I wanted to limit technical complexity and focus on moments and skill.

I wanted that nostalgic, documentary-style vibe without expensive film or dozens of throw-away polaroids, and this camera delivered.

The ONE time I Reached for My DSLR

I still packed one of my professional cameras for this vacation – the Sony A7Riii with a 35mm lens – because I wasn’t super comfortable with the point and shoot yet. I wanted to make sure I had backup in case the point-and-shoot camera images were completely falling flat. I only reached for it on ONE occasion and ended up photographing for about 5 minutes with it before setting it down again. The family milestone happened indoors in low light, and I didn’t want to risk missing it due to blur or underexposure from the point and shoot.

I’m glad I had both tools to at least have the choice, but mostly , I loved the lighter load of the point and shoot for everyday activities.

Taken with Sony Mirrorless AR7iii & Zeiss 35mm lens

Taken with Sony Mirrorless AR7iii & Zeiss 35mm lens

Taken with Sony Mirrorless AR7iii & Zeiss 35mm lens

The Pros and Cons of Using a Point and Shoot Camera for our Family Vacation Photos

I was nervous to rely on such a comparatively “low-quality” tool for our vacation photos, but was delighted every day by both the experience and results.

Pros:

• Because the camera was so tiny, it felt less intrusive to pull out and take snaps here and there. Naturally, this lent itself to images that feel really authentic and natural, without pretense, and truly in the moment.
• The lack of settings to choose from, or really any manual control, freed me up to focus on the seeing part. I was reminded of the power of composition. (Even though camera does have zoom capability, I didn’t use it once. Like I mentioned, I shoot with prime lenses normally, so I am used to “zooming” with my feet.)
• I photographed more because I was more likely to pack the point and shoot in my crossbody pouch for trips like mini-golfing and to the beach vs toting my whole camera bag. I also wasn’t as concerned with it getting damaged in the sand, water, heat, etc.
• The point and shoot camera shines in natural light (which is also my favorite kind). Photographing outdoors or with good indoor light was easy and produced those lovely nostalgic color tones straight out of camera.
• THE SELFIE FLIPBACK FEATURE. Okay, this is SO FUN. And also, the only way I made it into these vacation photos.

Cons:

• The limited creative control with settings also means shutter speed and aperture were unadjustable. Photographing the moving, curious babies and playful running could be frustrating when the images turned into a big blur.
• The point and shoot camera struggles in low light. Sure you can use the built in flash – and flash is really having a moment right now – but for quick and candid, natural-looking shots, it was rough indoors.
• Less flexibility in post-processing workflow – but again, highly processed photos were not the point. I wanted straight-out-of-camera material, so while I applied some general edits, no huge adjustments were needed. The lack of higher image quality or RAW files wasn’t a deal-breaker.

An example of indoor low-light

Lessons I Took Away from a week of Photographing with my Point and Shoot Camera.

1. The Power of Composition

I’m a big believer that constraints breed creativity, and this was completely true of the point and shoot camera.

• Without settings to wiggle with, I had to be more choose-y about what I photographed and how. The extremely wide lens forced me into horizontal framing when I typically gravitate towards vertical orientations.
• I became acutely aware of what I included in the frame, which opened my mind about what’s ‘acceptable’ and ‘beautiful.” Because of this, I captured things with a more documentary slant than usual, and the results brought in some special touches I may have otherwise missed.
• I tend to get a little… wonky when it comes to alignment. IE: not straight. Using this little camera forced me to focus on purposeful lines and and focus; without other settings to rise in importance, composition became the leading lady again.

2. No hiding bad light

When shooting RAW and manual, you have a lot more flexibility with correcting lighting and exposure in post-processing. This format makes it abundantly clear how the light is falling – there’s no hiding where shadows fall or how directional light affects the subject.

It was a great reminder about using light purposefully.

3. Creative approaches to motion and depth:

• Blur is having its moment as an artistic choice, and honestly, I’m not a fan. HOWEVER, this opened my eyes somewhat to the nostalgic quality it creates. Point and shoot cameras don’t boast great motion capturing, which made working with kids really tricky. But one of the most pleasant surprises was that some of the slightly out of focus images still felt right. Can’t explain it, but I liked it.
• Point and shoot cameras aren’t as quick on the shutter as DSLRs, so the timing isn’t always precisely what you intended. And honestly? This was a pleasant surprise, too. Some of the unintentional layering that happened as people came in and out of a frame made for more interesting images that the ones I intended to make. Safe to say, I’ll be working on making them on purpose now.

4. Presence matters

Challenging myself with a more basic photography tool forced me to prioritize presence and noticing, and really, isn’t that what photography is all about? It’s really easy to get bogged down with settings and tools and gear, but when you strip that all away, you can either take a great image or a bad image with any tool.

Using the point and shoot camera for our family vacation photos made the whole experience more fun, but also opened my eyes to little delights, not taking it too seriously, and enjoying the act of freezing a moment for exactly what it is.

Should you try point and shoot for your next family vacation?

If your goal is super high-quality, professional looking photographs – by all means, bring your professional gear! Creating beautiful family vacation photos isn’t about the gear so much as it’s about the goal. If your goal is super high-quality, professional looking photographs – bring your professional gear! If you’re looking to practice with your professional gear in personal context or want to make personal work that feels like your professional work to use in portfolios and submissions or just because you love it, that’s great!!

But this experiment reminded me of my photography foundations and brought me back to the fun of it —and that was my goal. Going simpler with my gear helped me feel excited about capturing moments on the fly without expectations or technicalities. It helped me focus on the moment.

Whether you’re a parent looking for vacation photography tips that prioritize presence over perfection, or a fellow photographer curious about stepping outside your comfort zone, there’s something liberating about embracing simpler tools.

The point and shoot camera experiment taught me that when we focus less on having the “right” gear and more on seeing beautiful moments as they unfold, we often end up with exactly the kind of family vacation photos we were hoping for all along.

Featured in these photos:

House rental by Wander

Chef for several of our prepared dinners (including the gorg bbq setup!) : My Mike Cooks

You might also like:

Personal: The Future of Parenting (essay)

For Photographers: Tips for Extended Family Photos

Podcast: Photographing the Holidays and Making Personal Work More Fun

In this episode, I’m joined by the incredibly talented Lyndsay McNiff of Lyndsay Hannah Photography. This one’s packed with the kind of perspective that only comes from learning through the doing (for a very long time!) and so much knowledge about creative growth in family photography.

We talk about what it really looks like to fill a calendar season by season—not just chasing bookings, but shaping a business that fits your life. Lyndsay shares so many real-life insights about the early years of running a family photography business, from finding her footing with marketing to figuring out her offers, and how she has grown a reputation and repeatable business in her local area.

We also get into ideas around creative evolution—like how your style shifts over time. Lyndsay shares how learning off-camera flash changed the game for her in-home sessions and the horrible session experience story that set the whole thing off. Since then, Lyndsay has also grown from family photography into adding brand photography as well, and working with associates to support her demand.

Whenever we’re talking about sustainability and growth in family photography, we obviously have to touch on boundaries, too. Lyndsay’s tactical perspective on scheduling sessions with flexibily for both her clients and her own family is so insightful and might offer an alternative to the classic advice you’ve heard before.

If you’re somewhere in the middle of building your business—or honestly, just figuring it out season by season—this one’s going to meet you right where you are.

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple

// LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE //

Connect with Lyndsay:
Website: https://lyndsayhannahphotography.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lyndsayhannahphotography/
Off-camera Flash for Beginners Course: https://lyndsayhannahphotography.com/off-camera-flash-for-photographers

Connect with Leah:

Mentoring: https://www.leahoconnell.com/mentoring
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell_photo
Free Resources: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

You may also like:

Episode 82: Growth, Redefining Risk, and Betting on Yourself with Annemie Tonken

Episode 39: My History of Pricing as a Family Photographer

Episode 26: Seasons of Business, Marketing with Intention, & Choosing Education Wisely with Sabrina Gebhardt

Fall busy photography season is almost here here, and if you’re a family photographer, you know what that means for your calendar. While fall can be your most profitable season, it can also become your most overwhelming if you’re not prepared.

Let’s break down the four biggest pitfalls when it comes to the fall season and more importantly, how to prepare for fall busy season as a family photographer for a smoother, more rewarding time overall.

Listen on Apple | Listen on Spotify

Links mentioned in this episode:
Ep 28: 4 Ways to Build Momentum when you’re *NOT* busy in the fall

The Complete Guide to Flodesk for Family Photographers: https://leahoconnell.com/the-complete-guide-to-flodesk-for-family-photographers/

Try Flodesk for 50% off – https://flodesk.com/c/PHOTOFUEL

Try Honeybook: https://share.honeybook.com/leah9738526

Other CRM’s options for photographers:
Iris Works

Cloudspot
Dubsado
Sprout Studio

Shootproof

The four fall family photography pitfalls:

Pitfall #1: The Overbooking Trap

The Problem: You say yes to every inquiry because it’s money and shooting – but the fallout is complete burnout.

The Solution: Set a firm session goal and stick to it. I know it’s tempting to squeeze in “just one more,” but your sanity (and creativity) will thank you for boundaries. Your clients will, too!

Here’s some tips for how to manage your fall bookings strategically:

• Set flags throughout your calendar for dates and weekends you won’t work. Block them out now before inquiries start coming in.
• Target a specific number of shoots rather than filling every available date on your calendar.
• Create a waitlist to capture overflow business for less popular seasons or early booking next year without overcommitting. This also creates valuable scarcity for future seasons.
• Build in buffer dates for rain, snow, and processing your sessions.
• Develop a referral network in your area to recommend when you’re fully booked.

Remember: Overbooking doesn’t just hurt you—it affects the quality of service you can provide to every client and can often bleed out into your personal life as well. It’s worth it to make a plan in advance for how you’ll handle incoming work so you don’t find yourself making emotional decisions.

Pitfall #2: Forgetting About Marketing

The Problem: You completely neglect marketing in the moment when you’re deep into client work, but then you find yourself in the winter with inbox crickets. You begin posting desperately on social media, and making decisions that take time and energy, but don’t really work all that well.

The Solution: Be proactive with your marketing strategy.

• Focus on serving your current clients. Marketing is about sharing the transformation you provide and your unique perspective. Don’t worry about over curating or production value – just share the journey!
• Consistency beats perfection every time. This is especially true on social media, where people are craving authentic, raw content.
• Talk to your audience in your marketing like you would talk to them in a session. How would you educate them? How would you share your expertise? How would you answer their questions? What do you wish they knew?
• Drive people to your email list and prep fall content during slower summer months to prime the pump. This will keep you in the act of marketing without having to actually be in the act of marketing in real time.

The key is being proactive rather than reactive. When you’re marketing from a place of desperation, it shows.

Pitfall #3: Systems Chaos

The Problem: You’re manually handling every inquiry, scrambling to remember client details, and your workflow is a mess. It’s too late to do much about it because you’re already knee deep into just keeping things going.

The Solution: Remember that systems aren’t restrictive—they allow for freedom and consistency.

Good systems help you offer a smooth client experience without having to think through every step when you’re in creative flow mode. Start with these few steps for starters:

• Create templates for common FAQs and parts of your process
• Think through scenarios you might encounter, knowing you can tweak templates per client as you go.
• Choose a CRM that makes sense for your brain (options like HoneyBook, Iris Works, Dubsado, Sprout Studio, or Shootproof). But don’t try to do this in the thick of the fall. Get ahead of your systems when workflows are lighter and you have more space for this deeper type of work.

Setting up these foundations now will pay off tenfold when you don’t have mental bandwidth for administrative things. Trust me.

Pitfall #4: Creative Blocks and Cookie-Cutter Work

The Problem: It’s November, you’ve been creating non-stop, you’re tired, and everything starts looking the same.

The Solution: Accept that every session doesn’t need to be the most creative thing you’ve ever done, but take small action to keep yourself fresh.

Your unique perspective is what your clients hired you for, so don’t try to copy Pinterest or other photographers simply because you’re bored with yourself. Instead:

• Schedule personal time and preemptively block “fully off” weekends
• Play games with yourself: Try one new technique per session, bring different props to experiment with, or explore new locations
• Step out of your comfort zone for just 10 minutes per session—practice getting unusually close, try a new lens, or experiment with slow shutter movement. Whatever feels different will invigorate your senses to new ideas and make you excited to work on the images and make more of them.

Also, remember: Creativity thrives through constraints. Use your business structure to bring out your inner creative rebel.

Last but not least: Your Pre-Fall Pep Talk

Going into fall as a family photographer, here’s what I want you to remember most: You get to decide how much is too much. You choose where and when you shoot, whether or not you offer mini sessions, what gear to use, and if you work weeknights.

There’s always give and take with these decisions, but there’s incredible power in having the choice.

Not many jobs offer that kind of control.

When you feel like you can’t set a boundary because of income concerns or client expectations, remember that you’re in charge.

Every yes to something is a no to something else. Trust yourself—doors will open in exactly the way that’s needed when you listen to your gut.

Which Fall Pitfall hits home the most? How will you prepare for fall busy season as a family photographer this time around?

Take a moment to honestly assess: Which of these four pitfalls do you usually fall into? Are you an overbooked burnout case, a last-minute marketer, a systems chaos creator, or a creative block victim?

Identifying your pattern is the first step to breaking it. This fall, choose to be proactive instead of reactive. Your future self will thank you.

Ready to tackle fall season like a boss? Start by picking just one of these areas to focus on this week. Small, consistent actions now will set you up for your most successful (and sustainable) fall season yet.

You might also like:

The 4 Stages of Client Experience

What every photographer needs to know about creating “value”

Episode 26: Seasons of Business, Marketing with Intention, & Choosing Education Wisely with Sabrina Gebhardt

In this podcast episode of Photo Fuel, I sit down with Annemie Tonken—photographer, educator, and host of the This Can’t Be That Hard podcast—for a thoughtful, no-fluff (but metaphor filled!) conversation about what it really takes to run a sustainable photography business in a changing world.

This conversation goes beyond productivity hacks or pricing formulas, because while all those logistics are so important, they are secondary to the heart and brains of your business. In this episode, we talk about things like how handle discomfort and failure, the parallels between business and parenting, and how to find peace and momentum even when things feel hard.

Inside this Podcast Episode with Annemie Tonken

We also go deeper into the real (and perceived) risk at stake with starting a creative business a

• Addressing risk and ego in entrepreneurship
• The difference between recognizing misalignment and quitting
• Uncovering your strengths and leaning into opportunity despite changes in your style, season of life, the market, and more
• How to raise your prices or shift your editing style without blowing up your business
• Building predictability with your income in a seasonal or uncertain market
• How to find peace, empowerment, and creative fuel in tough times

Connect with Annemie:

• Annemie’s Website: thiscantbethathard.com
• Revenue on Repeat: https://www.thiscantbethathard.com/revenue

Connect with Leah:

• Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com
• Education + *NEW* Voxer Coaching https://www.leahoconnell.com/education
• Instagram: @leahoconnell.com

You may also like:

Episode 46: Why I switched from Sprout Studio to Honeybook: How it’s going so far

Episode 35: Big Picture Questions to Guide your Business Goals

Episode 29: Discovering your strengths, why client love isn’t enough, and the impact of support with Lydia Fine

Email marketing is a fundamental must-have for family photographers who want to build lasting relationships with clients beyond the photoshoot. But it’s also key for connecting with potential clients to foster trust that leads to amazing, personalized imagery. Unlike one-off social media posts, email creates an intimate space where you can nurture connections with families who will ultimately trust you with capturing their most precious moments. In other words – trust is kindof a big deal. That’s why using Flodesk for family photographers is such a game-changer.

Flodesk has emerged as a popular platform among photographers specifically because it blends beautiful design with being super user friendly. Many email marketing platforms feel almost clinical and give dashboard-overwhelm from the start – but Flodesk allows imagery to shine while making the technical aspects of email marketing surprisingly simple.

I used Mailchimp for years because, well it was free and my list was small. But eventually, I realized that the interface was making me dread writing emails at all, making it completely irrelevant. Because I was dying to spend less time marking on Instagram, I finally decided to try Flodesk and realized almost instantly that I would happily pay the difference in cost because of how much easier it was to use.

Flodesk made writing emails both quicker and more visually appealing, right from the start. I’ve since developed my own email marketing strategy that’s turned into the #1 way I book clients.

This post will address some of the biggest questions and hangups I hear around email marketing from family photographers, including comparing and contrasting tools, my favorite Flodesk features, tips for building the list to begin with and, how to create a consistent structure that makes sense for your time and goals.

I truly believe that a tool like Flodesk can help transform your photography business by helping you communicate more effectively and consistently, showcase your work, and market in a way that feels natural to the heart of your business.

What Makes Flodesk Perfect for Family Photographers

Flodesk was clearly designed with visual creatives in mind. Every template is beautifully customizable while maintaining a professional look that elevates your photography rather than competing with it. Unlike other platforms that penalize you for growing your subscriber list, Flodesk’s flat-rate pricing structure means your costs remain predictable as your photography business expands.

Re: you don’t get punished for doing the thing email marketing is supposed to help you do.

The idea of building “funnels” felt really intimidating to me at first, but Flodesk makes workflows and automations for onboarding new subscribers incredibly intuitive. I also love that I can easily segment people based on the opt-ins they sign up for, which lends itself to more targeted follow-ups and communication for specific groups.

Because the tool is so seamless to design in, photographers can use Flodesk to create professional-looking campaigns in minutes rather than hours. Less pixel-pushing = more creating words and images that are the actual meat of the sale! Flodesk is simply the vessel for bringing people in- like a window display for your incredible work.

The Power of Emails for Your Photography Business

As family photographers, a lot of our marketing rests on building a personal brand and connecting with families over shared values. At the same time, we have to strike a balance between authenticity and values-driven copy with actual converting sales and showing the work.

Email – when done well – provides the opportunity to share storytelling images with words that complement them. This creates an emotional punch that can motivate potential clients to book in a way that doesn’t typically hit as clearly over social media.

I love that email is more effective with quality over quantity, too.

Think about it – what feels like a better use of your efforts: content that has a 2% reach and engagement rate for an audience of 2000 or content that has a 65% open rate for an audience of 650?

The connection factor is so much higher value via email.

How to Start: Beginning a regular email marketing practice with Flodesk for family photographers

Set a cadence for when you’ll deliver emails

Whether you decide to send emails 1x a week or 1x a month is up to you, but if you want to utilize the power of email marketing, the more regularly to can commit to showing up, the better results you’ll find. Before using Flodesk, my email cadence was sporadic and I usually only sent something when I needed to launch a new offer or book a particular season. When writing and sending emails got easier, I realized I could probably handle sending them every week, and that’s when The Firefly Letters was born.

Over time, your audience will self-select – meaning that if they don’t like getting your emails, they’ll just unsubscribe! This is actually a good thing, because it means you’ll be left with a really strong, engage segment of people who want what you’re putting down.

(Pro tip: Flodesk analytics lets you filter by audience activity status, meaning you can see who’s regularly engaging and who hasn’t opened an email from you in over a year. If you see zombie subscribers like that, you can clean them from your list manually, which supports a healthier campaign; higher open rates signal to email providers that you’re not spam and increases deliverability even more!)

Don’t forget the ask

While connection is the key goal of your email newsletter, don’t forget to make the ask, too. This means including a “call-to-action” of some kind with every email. A call to action doesn’t have to be hard selling a full session every time, though; they can include anything from directing readers to a particular post you published on instagram to a podcast episode you listened to recently that hits on topics relevant to your audience. You can introduce them to your favorite photo or keepsake related products for parents that might trigger a sense of nostalgia and a desire to print their family photos (or get them made to begin with!). You could link readers to a new blog post of featured work or an organization where you’re volunteering in your community.

Calls to action can be anything that reiterates the values of your brand and bridges connection with your audience so readers learn to value an ongoing relationship with you. This long-term effect of trust building leads to a reputation of expertise and the high likelihood that when the desire strikes to hire a professional for family photos, you’re the first (and maybe only!) photographer who comes to mind.

Design and formatting

Keep in mind that mobile optimization is a non-negotiable now, since many parents view emails on their phones. Flodesk’s responsive templates ensure your messages look perfect on any device without needed to do any extra formatting (hooray!). Because the platform gives lots of template options alongside the ability to drag/drop and customize, you can be sure that your emails won’t crash and burn in an old-schoold-email graveyard.

I love that Flodesk lets you create custom templates from your specific design preferences, too, you when it’s time to make a new email, you’re never starting from scratch.

It can take some time to land what feels like a style that is on-brand and functional with personalized elements, so don’t worry if you fumble around trying different things for a while.

My newsletter – The Firefly Letters – went through several formatting iterations in the early days (check out this one: “Caring Small” and this one : “Mean Girls and Morning Pages,” to see what I mean! That early header? Yikes. But hey, I kept sending emails, right?).

You have to test things out to see what sticks, and to test, you have to start.

Building Your Email List: Strategies with Flodesk for Family Photographers

The passion approach

It used to be that opt-ins like “what to wear for your family photos” and “how to take better pictures of your kids at home” were appealing resources for parents to download and get plugged into your email list. But now? Parents are resource-d out. They don’t want another pdf they’ll likely scan and forget about. Think about your own behavior – what makes you hand over your email address these days?

For me, it’s usually either content that’s super resonant or a discount on something I’m already considering purchasing.

Because The Firefly Letters focusses on storytelling and topics with high relevance for parents who align with my photography style and general vibe, I’ve found that simply talking about what I’m going to share in my newsletter that week tends to convert well. I invite people into a trusted circle that goes deeper than social media, and I present it with passion.

By regularly sharing these invitations, I know that people who are signing up are highly invested, not just casual browsers who want something for free.

The freebie approach

For my photography education audience, lead magnets from my podcast and free resources are more effective because there are direct results for people who are engaging with me to answer specific questions. They’re usually signing up for that list because they liked something I said or need a tool I’m offering; often they want to get a taste for how I teach or how I may be able to help them from a mentoring capacity.

But for local services and attracting family photography clients, authentic passion and perspective as a artist, parent, local-business owner, etc wins every time.

The discount / bonus offer approach

While I don’t offer mini-sessions on a regular basis, this can be a great incentive for visitors to join your email list if that is part of your business model.

The scarcity of “getting a spot” for something limited that they’re already curious or potentially waiting for. A reduced rate is always appealing. And people love to feel exclusive – like they’re getting something early or with first dibs before the general public.

Signup forms (everywhere)

How do you take someone from interested browser to subscriber? Signup forms.

Add sign-up forms or “opt-ins” throughout your photography website in strategic places to continually reiterate the next step of value for a potential customer – even if they’re not ready to book right now. Sometimes people end up being on your list for months or years before booking. Email is the long game. Thankfully, Flodesk makes signup forms really easy to embed in your website, especially if you use Showit as a companion tool for your website.

I’ve gotten results from inserting inline forms within blog posts, in my footer, as a pop-up, and strategically placed throughout other pages on my website.

So I have forms to invite people into my email list in all those places. Yes, all of them.

Flodesk vs. Other Email Marketing Platforms for Photographers

Flodesk vs. Mailchimp

Flodesk’s templates offer significantly more design flexibility for visual businesses like family photographers. The drag-and-drop functionality is leaps and bounds better than Mailchimp’s more rigid structure that always felt clunky to me.

The learning curve is also really intuitive, given that they were designed for visual thinkers rather than marketers or coders. When I switched from Mailchimp, I was surprised by how much faster I could create professional-looking emails and how much more positive feedback (and conversions!) I received from clients about my newsletters and promotions on a regular basis.

While there is a price jump for Flodesk from the free Mailchimp tier, Flodesk is at least a predictable business cost that won’t penalize you with fees as your audience grows.

When I realized I could pay for my entire subscription for the whole year if I booked just one family photography client from email – (which I did in the first month!) the cost became a no-brainer.

Flodesk vs. Email Tools in Squarespace

While Squarespace offers basic email marketing capabilities, they have significant design limitations for photographers—particularly in image handling, layout flexibility, and the ability to create sophisticated automation sequences that respond to client behavior.

Flodesk is specifically built for email marketing, so that’s where it thrives. Squarespace is primarily a website builder – so by nature, it’s not primarily focussed on creating the best user experience for email marketing on the back or client-facing sides.

Flodesk vs. CRM-Based Email (Sprout Studio, etc.)

With CRMs like Sprout Studio beginning to integrate email marketing into their platforms, you may wonder if you need a separate tool. If you’re just starting and are only sending emails specifically tied to booking calls-to-action or particular event campaigns, a CRM tool might be enough.

But if you’re wanting to build a streamlined, efficient approach that will scale, you’re better off with a separate tool designed with email list growth in mind.

Your CRM is perfect for 1:1 client communications, lead and session workflow tracking, and billing automations. But for marketing, a separate email marketing tool will have so much more to offer.

CRM email marketing tools typically lack the design finesse and marketing capabilities that make Flodesk stand out when it comes to nurturing potential clients and staying top-of-mind between sessions.

I recommend taking a hybrid approach to communications so you can maximize the strengths of both systems.

I use Honeybook for automated, session-specific communications like planning details with my clients, sending auto-responses after filling out my contact form, and prompting me for emails to send throughout the client journey.

Meanwhile, I leverage Flodesk for all things marketing – like sending priority booking access for weekend dates in high-demand seasons (cough, fall) to past clients, my weekly story-based newsletter, and sending updates about the Photo Fuel podcast to my audience of photographers.

My Favorite Flodesk Features & How I Use Them

Flodesk’s analytics dashboard is straight gold. I love the way it lets me keep a pulse on reader clickthroughs, open rates, and more without any overwhelming complexity. I can quickly identify which content resonates with my audience and adjust topics accordingly.

I also love using Flodesk segments to create waitlists for testing new offer ideas with low lift, which has revolutionized how I launch limited-availability offerings like group coaching and gauge interest before committing to development.

The segmentation features have also transformed my client experience by allowing me to send highly relevant content without spending hours sorting client lists manually. I particularly use this to filter out people who have already hired me from the wider list of general interest.

For example – a couple times a year – especially right before the big booking push in the fall – I’ll email just my “Clients” segment with a “first dibs” announcement and a let them easily reserve spots on my calendar first with priority selection of weekend dates.

Legal Considerations for Email Marketing as a Photographer

It may seem daunting to navigate email marketing regulations like GDPR and CAN-SPAM, but the principles are pretty straightforward:

1. only email people who have opt-ed in to hear from you
2. make unsubscribing simple, and
3. be transparent about how you’ll use their information.

Flodesk makes all of those things standard operation in their templates (whew). This is called “permission marketing” and leads to even more quality over quantity. When you get explicit consent from everyone on your list, you’re not only staying legally compliant, but you’ll find the results lean towared higher engagement rates and fewer spam complaints.

Again, quality over quantity.

Bottom Line…

Consistent, thoughtful email marketing has transformed my photography business from constantly chasing leads and making disconnected marketing grabs, to learning and implementing purposeful outreach and nurturing. I will advocate all day long for the power of Flodesk for family photographers.

It’s become a natural referral engine that expands my reach without the need for outright self-promotion or tons of time on social media.

The long-term value of an engaged email list for family photographers cannot be overstated, particularly in competitive markets where social media visibility continues to decline without paid advertising. My email marketing calendar follows a rhythm that keeps me consistent without becoming overwhelming—focusing on real-time conversations, client education, and occasional promotions that align with particular offers or popular booking seasons.

If you’re considering implementing Flodesk in your family photography business, you can use my referral code here to get your entire first year for 50% off (are you kidding?! Amazing right?)

Resources for Family Photographers

If you’re really itching to get started with Flodesk but all of the info feels a little much when you actually get your hands in there – I’ve got you.

I created a streamlined checklist for family photographers switching to Flodesk that will take you from zero to cruising through your first automated sequences, signup forms, and segments. This checklist will break down the steps to make it all a little more manageable.

You can also learn more about the resources and tools I use to run my business, check out this podcast episode 16 of Photo Fuel: What’s In My Bag where I go into my lean approach to both shooting and operating.

Last, I want to recommend filling out The Big Picture Workbook is a great free resource for digging into your internal goals and reflecting on the course of your business.

Sometimes the hardest part about starting an email list is figuring out what you really want to say – and this helps you get to the bottom of that.

Questions abut using Flodesk as a family photographer? Send me an email anytime at leah@leahoconnell.com or connect with me in the DM’s on Insta.

You may also like:

Newsletters: What I Learned from 1 Year of The Firefly Letters

The Four Stages of Client Experience

A Pre-Shoot Pep Talk for Family Photographers

One of the biggest questions that comes up for clients when preparing for their session is “what do I wear?” As the photographer, it’s good service to help them with that! But that doesn’t mean you have to become a full-on stylist, stock a client closet, or put them in a cookie cutter formula of “what looks good.”

Of course, full styling is an option that serves some photographers and clients very well! It’s all about your goals and the type of images you’re marketing.

But if you want to empower your clients to make clothing choices that feel natural and genuine to their actual style and make them feel great just being themselves… this episode is for you.

Listen on Apple | Listen on Spotify

It’s totally possible to help your clients decide what to wear without a client closet! I’m coming in with 6 tips to help your clients decide what to wear without *TELLING* them what to wear. This episode is quick and actionable to encourage you that providing great customer experience can look a lot of different ways (and so can your clients!).

See how my clients dress themselves with the tips I mention in this episode! (they look great right? ;-P)

// LINKS MENTIONED //

connect with Leah: www.leahoconnell.com

1:1 mentoring: https://www.leahoconnell.com/mentoring

THE SHOP: https://www.leahoconnell.com/shop

IG: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell.photo

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Tips for extended family photos

Should you incorporate a phone call in your client experience?

What every photographer should know about “conveying value”

Photographing extended family sessions can feel like a whole different ballgame compared to a standard family session—more people, more personalities, and often more chaos. These sessions can be a love/hate experience for photographers. Either you thrive on the challenge and enjoy capturing the beautiful connections between generations, or you’ve been burned before and feel tempted to swear them off completely. But with these tips for extended family photos, the experience can be just as rewarding and heartfelt as any other family session.

In this post, I’m sharing why I love photographing extended families and how I structure my sessions to keep them enjoyable, natural, and drama-free.

Listen on Apple | Listen on Spotify

My Best Tips for Extended Family Photos

1. Stay home.

When it comes to extended family sessions, I always advocate for doing the session at home or wherever everyone is staying if at all possible. Sometimes that means an Air B&B or a local Inn, but it still works in the same way. This instantly helps set a relaxed tone and eases the stress before the session that comes with trying to get a large group anywhere at the same time. If you have kids, you know that even being somewhere on time with 2 kids is a gamble, so make it a family of 14 with 3 generations and that’s a lot of pressure.

Plus, the home environment naturally offers opportunities for meaningful activities and and details that are unique to their time together. It’s one of the most crucial tips I can recommend for successful extended family photos.

If an at-home session isn’t possible, I look for a natural space with plenty of room for large group arrangements, like a grassy field or park with interesting features for posing in levels (think fences, low tree branches, or stone walls).

2. My Pricing Philosophy

I believe family is family no matter the size. That’s why I don’t charge extra per person or per family group. Instead, I focus on the session time and the overall experience. For larger groups, I often recommend my top package, which includes two hours of shooting, because it gives us more flexible time to capture all the breakdowns and candid play without feeling rushed.

Since extended family sessions are usually split among multiple parties, they’re often more than willing to invest in the longer session or higher price points, but require simplicity and convenience in terms of coordination and booking. With several families involved in the decision making process, the less decisions and tweaks I offer, the smoother the whole booking and planning process goes.

3. Balancing Posed and Candid Moments

A common challenge with extended family sessions is striking the right balance between posed group shots and candid, emotional moments. I try to start with classic group portraits and breakdowns of each family, along with other groupings like cousins together, core siblings together, kids with grandparents, etc. These are expected and valuable pieces of an extended family session, even if you’re known and being hired for the more candid, in between type of shots.

While I’m doing more posed portraits, I still keep the mood light and playful for a relaxed energy and expressions. There are intricate details of relationship going on all the time in these sessions, so I’m always noticing what’s happening in front of my camera, as well as around me in the waiting and transitions.

Once we’ve moved on from those more classic shots, for a majority of the session I encourage families to engage in familiar activities that we’ve talked about or planned beforehand. Families in my sessions have chosen to do things like yard games, preparing a meal together, or hang around a campfire. These activities help break the stiffness and lead to spontaneous, genuine interactions that are especially meaningful for families.

4. Navigating Group Dynamics

Extended families can come with complex dynamics, and sometimes tension is unavoidable. It’s key to approach these situations with empathy and maintain a calm, positive energy. I aim to keep the focus on the love, even when some members may be more reserved or hesitant, because everyone shows love differently.

If tension does arise, I do my best to gently guide the session – whether through conversation or activity – and keep the atmosphere circling around gratitude and joy.

Extended family sessions are inherently a bit unpredictable, but that’s where all the magic is! My approach is always to embrace the chaos rather than fight it. I focus on capturing timeless and genuine portraits alongside the small, intimate interactions. I feel like the more you can lean into the uniqueness of each session, the more memorable and heartfelt the final results become.

// Links mentioned //

If you’d like to see examples of extended family sessions I’ve photographed, check out the links below:

• A backyard large extended family session
• Extended family photos at home with all adults
• An extended family session at home (with Thanksgiving dinner + backyard baseball!)

You may also like:

Should you include a client phone call?

What every photographer needs to know about “conveying value”

The 5 Most Influential Books for my Photography Business

Creating a standout brand and providing an exceptional client experience are key to growing a successful family photography business. In this episode of Photo Fuel, I chat with Christine Dammann about how she’s built a bold, playful brand that attracts her dream clients and keeps her sessions focussed on the fun.

From detailed prep guides to surprise gifts and heartfelt follow-ups, Christine’s client experience strategies go the extra mile. In this episode she gives us all the details for her process from start to finish.

LISTEN ON APPLE | LISTEN ON SPOTIFY

How to Create a Bold & Playful Brand

Christine’s brand is a direct reflection of her personality—bold, fun, and approachable. She believes that when she embraced her unique style and invested in support to bring it to life in her online presence, she naturally began attracting more of the right clients. Some of her tips for building a strong brand include:

• Showcasing the type of work you want to attract
• Using consistent colors, fonts, and messaging across all platforms
• Leaning into your personality and the goals of your sessions to create a brand that connects.

A strong brand not only helps clients find you, but it also supports what they can expect from you throughout the rest of their experience.

Building a Family Photography Client Experience: Tips for Stress-Free & Memorable Sessions

Christine has mastered the art of guiding clients through a seamless, stress-free experience. Here’s how she ensures every session goes above and beyond:

1. Client Preparation

• Provides detailed prep guides with styling tips, location maps, and session expectations
• Over-communicates clearly before the session so clients feel confident and ready

2. During the session

• Think ahead about any pain points they might experience during the session that you can prepare them to avoid. For example – are they going to get wet during a session at the beach? Recommend bring a change of clothes for a more comfortable drive home.
• Use your personal experiences both from photography and other service experiences to provide solutions to their problems before they’re problems.
• Christine shares the ONE THING she always brings to a session that comes in handy for dozens of different use cases no matter what.

3. After the session

• Sends sneak peeks within 24 hours to build excitement
• Surprises clients with handwritten notes and small, personalized gifts
• Creates emotional client slideshows with music to enhance their experience
• Provides clear directions about how to view, download, and order from their photos

4. Follow-up

• Ask for google reviews about the experience
• • Check out Christine’s free resource called “Glowing google reviews” here: https://christinedammann.com/google-freebie
• Connect 1:1 with great clients to offer them priority booking

Business Growth Through Mentorship & Community

Christine attributes much of her success to learning from mentors and being part of a supportive photography community. We talk about how valuable it is to have outside eyes on your work and showing you opportunities that you may not have considered from inside your own bubble.

Staying Creatively Inspired as a Family Photographer after 16 years

To foster her own photo fuel, Christine shares about how one of her favorite things to do is take a leisurly walk around her town and the beach with a film camera, making pictures just for fun. keep her passion for photography alive, Christine incorporates creative projects into her routine.

Client experience should be personal, and it changes depending on who you are, the goals of your work, and they type of art you’re creating. But I hope these examples and learning how one family photographer does it can be helpful in brainstorming touchpoints that will take your client experience from basic to memorable.

// Links & Resources Mentioned //

Here are links mentioned in the episode for easy access:

// CONNECT WITH CHRISTINE //

www.christinedammann.com

IG: @christinedammannphotography

Christine’s freebie for glowing google reviews: https://christinedammann.com/google-freebie

// OTHER LINKS MENTIONED //

Christine’s Brand design by Bella Maven: https://bellamavenstudio.com/

// CONNECT WITH LEAH //

Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com/education

Learn for free: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

IG: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell.photo

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Should you incorporate a phone call in your client experience?

The 4 Stages of Client Experience

My History of Pricing as a Family Photographer

It’s been officially ONE YEAR since I launched the Photo Fuel Podcast for family photographers! What started as a bi-weekly show has grown by over 600%, and now I’m releasing new episodes every week. I’ve found my groove with the whole process, and I’m loving every bit of create a podcast for family photographers.

Side note: If you’ve been listening and haven’t left a review yet, it would mean so much if you paused and clicked over to Apple Podcasts to leave some kind words about your experience with the show!

To celebrate this milestone, I’m doing special Q&A episode. I asked my email list to submit questions on anything—business, personal life, motherhood, art, growth, podcasting—and wow, you all delivered! Let’s dive into some of your questions.

You can join the list for family photographers here for updates on the show, collaboration opportunities, new offers, and more.

Podcast Q&A on Family Photography

1. Handling Tricky Toddler Photo Sessions

Q from Ali Latimer in Denver: “What are your best tips for dealing with tricky toddlers? Lately, I’ve had a lot of kids that aren’t all that willing to participate fully in the session. The shoot continues, and we make it work, but I’d love to get them to smile and engage a bit more!”

A:

• Set the Tone: One of the most nuanced parts of our job is balancing control and flexibility. I first learn about this from Brooke Schultz’s LoveSoaked Photography Course about both reading the temperature and setting it within the session. There’s a fine line between being demonstrative and gracious, and I try to walk it carefully.
• Prep Parents Ahead of Time: Example – include a section in your prep guide called – “What if my toddler is having a MOMENT?” and reassure parents that it’s all about the overall session flow. Prep goes beyond one item though – you need to assert your style and approach for handling behavior and expectations at all touchpoints.
• Engage Playfully: If a toddler doesn’t want to wear shoes, I might say, “I LOVE BAREFEET, let’s go for it!” This helps keep the energy positive while subtly guiding the session.
• Use Your Voice & Body Language: Sometimes, putting my camera down and playing with the child is all it takes to help reset the vibe.

If you haven’t checked out my free audio training, 3 Tips for Endless Posing Variety, I share all kinds of prompts and tricks to keep sessions light and playful. Grab that if you’re interested in digging deeper into this topic!

2. How was The Reset Conference?!

I received several questions from folks who wanted to know more about the Reset Conference! Here’s a brief recap:

This was my first Conference Experience: I went in with an open mind, and it did not disappoint. The breakout sessions were well-planned, and the depth of topics covered was impressive for all levels of business. I was skeptical about whether sessions would feel like extended podcast episodes or webinars, but the speakers truly delivered. Some were hands-on workshops, and others included great Q&A sessions, but the focussed attention to going deeper on specific topics was super valuable.

The Real Gold = The Downtime.

The casual moments—lobby chats, cocktail hours, shared meals—were where I made the best connections and conversations.

I led a sunset beach session and an in-home family session as part of the conference, and both were incredible experiences where (I’m hoping) students learned a lot from being hands on in real family photography situations. See the photos from one of those sessions here!

If you’re curious, the next Reset Conference is happening in Chattanooga, TN, and tickets are already on sale! Check it out here.

3. My Biggest Business Accomplishment

Question from Allison Patel in Richmond: “What would you say has been your biggest accomplishment in business so far? Not necessarily the most lucrative, but the one that you have the most pride in.”

A: Honestly? Sticking with it.

A lot of my feelings of success come from financial affirmation—after all, making an income is a real need for my family. I felt immense pride when I surpassed what I could have made as a teacher while working from home. I felt it again when my husband was able to quit his job and pursue his own entrepreneurial dreams, knowing my income gave us that flexibility.

But most of all, I’m proud that I didn’t quit. There were moments when I wondered if I should switch paths to something “easier,” but my heart knew I wouldn’t be content. Building this business has given me the freedom to work creatively, on my own terms, with people I love. It’s allowed me to be there for my kids, take them to the playground, and build a life that balances work and family in a way that feels right for us.

Success to me isn’t just about income, though—it’s about how I earn it. And I’m proud of the way I work and continue to work.

It is such a treat to make this podcast for family photographers each week and pour into the industry with free content. If you want to catch up on all the episodes, be sure to check out more featured episodes on art, business, and vision on the podcast homepage here.

For more Q&A’s, listen to the full episode here:

Listen on Apple | Listen on Spotify

LINKS:

Lovesoaked affiliate link: https://zu0lt76rfy8gberi.krtra.com/t/WrDFokgXR19c

https://theresetconference.com

Ali Latimer – https://www.alilatimerphotography.com/

Allison Patel – https://www.allisonpatelphoto.com/family-photography

Book a free 20-minute discovery call for 1:1 Mentoring – leahoconnell.com/call

Right Track Audits – leahoconnell.com/righttrack

Around Black Friday last year, I made a big decision and switched my CRM from Sprout Studio to HoneyBook. After nearly five years with Sprout Studio, this was a major move, and I knew it was going to take some time to get everything set up just the way I wanted. One of my main goals for Q1 was managing this migration, so I wanted to share how it’s going so far, what I love about HoneyBook as a new user, and what the transition has been like.

Why I Made the Switch from Sprout Studio to HoneyBook

First, this is not a takedown of Sprout Studio—I loved working with them for years! Their customer support was fantastic, and I appreciated that they were a true all-in-one platform, handling everything from contact forms to client galleries and ordering. Sprout Studio is truly built specifically for photographers. However, as my business evolves to include more education and coaching, I needed a CRM that could handle more than just photography sessions while keeping things organized all in one platform.

HoneyBook stood out because it’s designed for creative professionals – not just photographers – making it easier to integrate coaching offers, mentoring calls, and other services. However, even if your business is solely geared around photography services, it’s helpful to have a tool that allows you to think outside the box.

For example, it could open the door for other streams of revenue if you are selling anything other than sessions, like time at your studio space, yearbook-creation services, etc.

image by Madalyn Yates Creative

Behind the Scenes of My HoneyBook Migration

Migration Was Manual (But valuable!)

HoneyBook does include migration services from some platforms, but at this time, Sprout Studio wasn’t one of those. I could have paid a Honeybook pro to do this (another great feature of Honeybook!) but I opted to handle it myself so I could weed out unnecessary data, get a fresh take on my client workflows, emails, etc. along the way. Plus, I believe that to recommend a tool, I need to fully understand how it works—and that meant learning the ins and outs myself.

My Three Favorite Things About HoneyBook as a New User

1. Tailored for More Than Just Photography Services

With HoneyBook, I can seamlessly manage multiple revenue streams. Sprout was more focused on photography services, making it harder to incorporate other offers into my workflow.

2. Beautiful, Dynamic Booking Proposals

The visual booking proposals in HoneyBook are gorgeous and so customizable! Mine includes:

• A brand-centered quote and introduction with a photo of me to connect with the client at point of purchase
• Testimonials to build trust
• Collection selection, contract signing, and payment—all in one place
• A built-in questionnaire for onboarding

The Visual Pipeline Makes Workflow Management Easier

I love how HoneyBook structures clients as projects rather than just sessions. This makes it easier to manage various types of work, from family sessions to podcast interviews to mentoring calls. The drag-and-drop pipeline allows me to see where each project stands and sort by type or stage in the process.

The Learning Curve

Like any new system, there’s a learning curve. Even though I consider myself pretty savvy with workflows, I had to take my time learning where everything is and how it all fits together. It can be frustrating to go from a system that you’re very familiar with to a brand new platfrom, language, and structure. That said, I can already see the long-term benefits, especially with HoneyBook’s finance tools and reporting features (which I haven’t even fully explored yet!).

Some photographers were frustrated by HoneyBook’s recent price increase, but when comparing it to what I was paying for Sprout, the cost isn’t drastically different—especially considering the additional features and seamless client experience HoneyBook provides.

If you’re curious about trying honeyBook…

If you’re considering making the switch, you can get 30% off your first year with my referral link right here.

And if you’re also in the process of refining your client workflows and need some guidance, I’d love to help! Book a free (no strings attached) 20-minute mentoring call at leahoconnell.com/call, and let’s talk through your business action plan.

Links from this Epsiode

(this is my new software power trio!!)

• TRY HONEYBOOK (first month free + 30% off your new plan)
• TRY PICTIME – First month free
• TRY SHOWIT – first month free

Need more help getting on a track that feels exciting and sustainable? Grab coffee with me! Schedule a free 20 minute call to talk business and see if/how I can help: https://www.leahoconnell.com/call

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Back to School Reboot | A Family Photography Business Q&A

The photography client experience begins long before the session itself—it starts from the very first interaction a potential client has with your business. One of the most debated aspects of this experience is whether to require a phone call before booking. Some photographers swear by it as the best way to convert leads, while others find it unnecessary or even a barrier to securing clients.

So, should you require a phone call before booking? In this post, we’ll break down the pros and cons of booking calls and explore alternative ways to provide an amazing client experience—without the extra step.

What Is a Photography Booking Call?

A client booking call (sometimes called a discovery call, inquiry call, or sales call) is a phone conversation with a potential client before they book a session. Instead of listing full pricing details on your website, you might provide a starting rate or average spend and encourage interested clients to schedule a call.

The purpose of this call is to:

• Build rapport and trust with the client.
• Answer their questions about pricing, locations, or logistics.
• Help them select the best package or collection for their needs.
• Confirm dates and details without endless email back-and-forth.
• Address any concerns about the session.

At the end of the call, the goal is to send over a booking proposal, allowing the client to finalize their session.

In this episode, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of this approach to booking in you photography client experience, how to decide if it’s a good fit for you, and talk about alternatives as well to still get really aligned clients, minimize confusion, and create an quality client experience.

Listen on Apple Podcasts | Listen on Spotify

The Pros of Requiring a Client Phone Call

Many photographers believe phone calls are one of the most effective ways to convert leads into bookings, and there’s a good reason.

1. It Builds Connection and Trust

Clients who get on a call with you are more likely to feel personally connected to your brand. Hearing your voice, answering their questions in real time, and providing reassurance can go a long way in establishing trust and confidence. I need to add the fact that pretty much every single time I get on the phone with a client they convert. And that’s worth something.

2. Simplifies Planning

A call allows you to handle multiple details at once—session type, date, location, and concerns—without the delay of back-and-forth emails. It streamlines the process and reduces confusion.

3. Creates a High-Touch Experience

For photographers who want a luxury, high-end feel, personal interaction is key. A call elevates the photography client experience by making them feel valued and taken care of from the start.

The Cons of Requiring a Client Phone Call

While phone calls work well for some, they can also create barriers that prevent clients from booking. Here’s why some photographers skip them:

1. Scheduling / Your personal availability Challenges for you

For 9 years of my story growing a family photography business, I’ve had either an infant or toddler at home with me. Childcare has been sporadic and unpredictable, sometimes changing season to season, or week by week. I knew that to make phone calls part of my process that worked well, I needed to have my attention and focus fully on my client in that moment – and there was rarely a time when I felt I could confidently guarentee that. My ability to plan on specific times to coordinate calls was – in most cases – not an option – and maybe that’s the boat you’re in, too.

2. Your level of comfort / personality

If you hate being on the phone or feel incredibly nervous communicating this way, OR if it takes you a lot of prep to pump yourself up for this kind of call – that’s a major con. Like anything, it’s a skill you can get better at, but also, it generally serves you to lean into your strengths and what naturally feels good. If you’re not confident when speaking in a client call, the chances of it converting well go way down.

3. Scheduling / Availability for your clients.

Not everyone has the flexibility to schedule a call—especially busy parents, who make up a large portion of our family photography clients. They’re working around their own work schedules or have little ones afoot demanding their attention, so getting on a planning phone call feels like a big barrier to entry.

If they can’t find a time that works, they may give up and move on to another photographer.

3. Hiding Information Behind a Curtain

Many clients are hesitant to inquire if they don’t know the cost upfront or at least have a general sense for what to expect. If they have to book a call just to get pricing details, they may assume it’s out of their budget and never reach out in the first place.

Alternatives to the Client Booking Call

If you want the benefits of a phone call without the downsides, here are a few ways to create a great photography client experience without requiring calls:

1. Give Clients the Choice

Instead of requiring calls, let clients opt-in. On your contact form, include a question like:
✔️ Would you prefer to chat by phone?

• “Yes! Call me.”
• “Email is better for me.”

This allows clients who prefer phone calls to opt-in, while those who don’t can still easily move forward.

2. Develop your brand

Build familiarity through a newsletter, clear copy, and elements that allow potential customers to connect with you well and understand your angle well upfront.

You can also use video to create a connection with your face and voice through behind the scenes video of you at work or things like a welcome video that they see on your contact page.

This way, when they do reach out, it’s simply to get on your calendar – they’re already sold.

3. Simplify your client experience overall

If you feel like a phone call is necessary to walk potential clients through all their options, you probably have too many options.

Refine your website and workflow so clients can confidently book without needing all that extra clarification. This can relate to your pricing structure, the types of sessions you offer in general, and any other choice that you’re putting on your client.

Learn more: Episode 39 – My History of Pricing as a Family Photographer

4. Develop your Blog Content

Blog content can support your client experience by giving your potential clients ways to engage deeper with your work and process. Beyond what exists in your portfolio, they can see more about what a session with you may look like through featured sessions, find examples of potential locations, get advice about styling, and more. All of these can be helpful resources that ease their concerns and eliminate questions or issues to booking you, thereby also eliminating the need for a phone call.

I use Showit for my website and blog and have been so impressed with how much easier it makes blogging with the Yoast plugin. I switched from Squarespace years ago and it was one of the best decisions I made for boosting my SEO. I can see a clear difference both in the results of my blogging efforts and the ease with which I produce blog content.

You can try out Showit for a month for free with my bonus code here.

5. Gather needed information via a questionnaire instead

Rather than require your clients to provide a slew of information and “tell you their story” upfront, work on the problem of eliminating the barrier to book first. Then, once they have determined for themselves whether they’re a good fit for your work or not, you can move them through the booking process in a quick and streamlined manner. From there you dig in deeper, knowing that you’re going to be collaborating for these photos and are fully invested in that process from both sides.

Any questions you feel are essential for understanding them, their needs, etc. to create beautiful photos, you can ask in a questionnaire.

It’s true that people tend to open up over the phone in a more candid manner, but you weigh how much that matters in your process or if you can manage with their more brief versions and simply elaborate in person when you meet if needed.

I use Honeybook for managing my client booking and questionnaires through the client experience and have found it super helpful for keeping communication streamlined and maintaining my brand presence.

If you want to try it out, use my referral code here for a free first month and 30% off your first year.

What about those aiming for a high-touch, luxury experience?

If the goal is creating a high touch photography client experience, a call probably is a good bet.

So how can you make it work for you if you’ve decided the phone call really is the best option for you?

1. Anticipate some phone tag – you may have to coordinate a bit to get someone one the phone, but if it matters to your process, that’s okay.
2. Accept doing these phone calls on the fly – maybe that’s okay, too! Decide whether it supports your brand to be “in it” with them, having these conversations with kids around or in the car, for example. If you feel you can still confidently share and communicate in this context, then allow that to be acceptable.
3. If you’re dealing with a high volume of leads, consider ways to filter and have clients self select a little more before they get to the contact page so you’re not wasting time with really cold and unlikely to convert leads
4. Build yourself consistent working hours. If you need to have these phone calls on a regular basis in a quiet, full concentrated environment, then setting a predictable schedule (and possibly even a booking calendar for clients to schedule their calls themselves) is essential.

Final Thoughts: Should You Require a Client Phone Call?

Most importantly : Do what works logistically for you.

Don’t try to make something happen that’s going to stress you out. This isn’t an excuse to not try the calls, but simply to encourage you to build the structure of your workflow to align with what feels natural to you. You’re the boss, after all.

At the end of the day, the best photography client experience is one that works for both you and your clients. If a high-touch, personal approach is important to you, phone calls may be a great fit. If you prefer a streamlined and accessible booking process, offering clear pricing and alternative ways to communicate might be the better route.

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. The key is to find a workflow that feels natural, aligns with your brand, and makes booking effortless for your clients—whether that includes a phone call or not.

Do you want some extra support working on your client experience, finding your unique voice and strengths, and developing a business structure you love all around?

Learn more about 1:1 mentoring with me here and sign up for a no-strings-attached call to get to know each other.

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Creating a positive, memorable client experience for family photography is one of the most powerful ways to build a sustainable photography business. It’s not just about delivering beautiful photos—though that’s an essential piece. It’s about how clients feel at every stage of working with you. There are four key stages of client experience to consider when crafting your process so you can attract right-fit clients, build trust, serve them well, and keep working together as you (and they!) grow.

Listen on Apple Podcasts | Listen on Spotify

1. Attracting: Setting the Tone

Building your client experience for family photography begins long before someone inquires. The way you present yourself through branding, messaging, and marketing plays a huge role in attracting the right clients. In order to do that well, you have to know yourself. Your strengths, your purpose, what you truly offer that’s different from the next person. This informs everything from your brand colors to the sprinkles of care in your client experience to decisions around your processes.

If you need support clarifying your brand and client experience, the Homestyle Accelerator could be a great fit for you. This is my small group coaching program that helps photographers develop their skills as family photographers with a specific focus on in-home family photography and business.

2. Nurturing: Building Trust Before They Book

Unlike traditional services, photography is a collaborative experience—you need clients to not just buy something you made, but to engage in the making of it. It’s about them. You can’t make family photos without the family. So how you do build trust with them to instigate that very intimate collaboration?

You have to go first so they can catch the vision.

Nurturing includes sharing the tone and vision. It’s about warming up those interested hearts and minds so that when the time is right, they know just who to go to.

If you’re hesitant to show up to market or talk about your business – consider why that may be. When you feel confident and excited about the value you’re bringing – selling is just an way of extending that beauty for others to grab.

Email newsletters can be key for this kind of thing and help you go beyond the more surface-level engagements of social media. My weekly newsletter, The Firefly Letters , is a great example of how consistent, intentional storytelling nurtures relationships with clients before they even book. (You can hop on that list here for my long-form stories about creativity, simple joys, and family here.)

Go deeper: For more ideas on nurturing your clients – check out Episode #22: 6 Unique Ways to Nurture Your Photography Clients.

3. Serving: Delivering on Your Promises

This is the stage most of us think about when we consider client experience for family photography. It’s the actual meat and potatoes – from the time they hire you to the when you deliver the photos. But great service isn’t about “luxury.”

It can be, but most importantly, it’s about intentionality.

Whatever tone you set and promises you made in that first stage – the Attracting stage – this is when you get to show up and deliver.

For example, most people think excellent client experience has to include a prep phone call or an in person consultation. But it can just as easily be a prerecorded welcome video or detailed and image-heavy prep guide. It can be well thought out FAQ blog posts you link your clients to in the week before their session that answers all their last minute questions before they ask them.

Serving well could be none of those things and instead, a really bare bones, deliverable if that is your promise! Sometimes that’s what it needs to be at certain price points.

Regardless of how you craft your client experience, the best way to elevate your brand reputation and is to treat the people who do come your way – whether it’s one family or 100 families – with attention to detail and forethought.

4. Continued Connection: Staying Top of Mind

Once you’ve worked with a client and served them really well by executing on your promises and going above and beyond, you’ve already crossed the biggest hurdle. The best thing you can do to continue building on that snowball is to keep the relationship alive!

Use a client management system like Honeybook to keep track of client details, session notes, and important dates. This gives you a really searchable and organized way to capture valuable and memorable information about the experience so you can follow-up and stay connected from a genuine place of interest with cool people in your community.

Try Honeybook with my discount link here.

You can use this info to follow up with personalized touches like emails around birthday milestones, handwritten notes, or small gifts for the holidays.

This step isn’t about typical marketing—it’s about kindness and simply being a thoughtful human. However, it does tend to have the added bonus of coming back around in good will and good business.

The bottom line about building your photography client experience

A seamless client experience isn’t about grand gestures—it’s about showing up intentionally at every stage.

Quick Recap:
1. Attracting – Set the tone and align with your values to draw in the right clients.
2. Nurturing – Build trust by sharing your personality, process, and expertise.
3. Serving – Deliver a thoughtful, seamless experience from booking to gallery delivery.
4. Continued Connection – Stay in touch to create lifelong clients and steady referrals.

Want to refine your client experience and business strategy?

Explore 1:1 mentoring or join the waitlist for Homestyle Accelerator.

You may also like:

What I’m working on in slow season as a family photographer

The 5 Most Influential Books for my Photography Business Journey

Crafting a Client Experience No Matter Where You Are with Natasha Sewell

What happens when you have to rebuild your photography business in a brand-new location? Whether you’re relocating, shifting your style, or refining your client experience, starting fresh comes with challenges—but also opportunities. In this episode of Photo Fuel, we’re diving into what it takes to pivot your business successfully while crafting a client experience that feels seamless and intentional.

Reinventing Your Business from the Ground Up

Our guest shares her journey from a well-established photography business in North Carolina to starting over in a new market. We discuss:

• The before and after of her business—how her style, experience, and client base changed
• What inspired the shift from posed newborn sessions to an in-home, lifestyle approach
• The logistical steps she took to successfully transition her brand and book clients again

Designing a Client Experience That Fits Your Business Model

Creating a great client experience looks different for every photographer. Natasha shares how she did market research in her new city, practiced her new style by integrating it into the last part of her already booked newborn and family sessions before moving, and make decisions based on the questions she was getting from her market.

She also shares some specific ideas for getting feedback and reviews in the nurturing process after a session, including how to gauge the balance between offering a personal touch and serving your clients in a way that makes sense for their lives.

Listen to the full episode : Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Links mentioned:

Connect with Natasha:
IG: instagram.com/npsphotography

Website: npsphotography.com

The Client Experience Blueprint: https://npsphotography.com/the-client-experience-blueprint-waitlist

Contact Pages That Serve: Create Connection and Confidence: https://npsphotography.com/contact-pages-that-serve

The Focussed Path Retreat: https://npsphotography.com/the-focused-path-retreat/


Connect with Leah:

IG: @leahoconnell.photo
Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

The Homestyle Accelerator Info + Waitlist: https://www.leahoconnell.com/homestyle

You might also like:

What every photographer should know about “conveying value”

My history of pricing as a family photographer

What I’m working on in the slow season as a family photographer

When it comes to pricing, the topic of shooting for free often sparks debate among photographers. Should you ever work for free? Will it devalue your brand? While conventional wisdom often warns against it, there are some times when offering a free session can really benefit your business and creativity. In this episode, I’m sharing 3 times when I think it’s a GREAT idea to shoot for free, no matter how long you’ve been in business. And don’t miss the quick-fire tips at the end for how to do it effectively – without drama, without a ton of undue stress, and with a surge of creativity and fun.

1. Shoot for free to gain practice and build confidence

If you’re just starting out or exploring a new style, shooting for free allows you to practice without the pressure of delivering a paid product. Set a goal for a certain number of free sessions, then once you feel confident in providing a consistent quality of results, begin booking at a competitive, sustainable rate. This can mean several months of free shoots, sometimes, but it will be worth it vs gradually increasing in small increments and rebuilding your client base every time.

2. Shoot for free to fill gaps in your portfolio

If you want to attract more clients for a specific type of session but don’t have the work to showcase it, free sessions are your ticket to quickly speak to that part of the market and build a diverse portfolio that demonstrates what’s possible.

Example: Imagine you want to book more winter family sessions outdoors, but potential clients are hesitant because they can’t visualize what it looks like all bundled up or how things can look beautiful with the bare trees and mud. If you want to prove it’s possible, create a free portfolio-building session to use as marketing material and give them that option.

Think of this as an investment in your business – just like purchasing equipment or printed marketing materials – except that this will go so much further.

3. Shoot for free to pursue personal or passion projects

Free sessions are a fantastic way to explore creative ideas without the constraints of client expectations. Personal projects often lead to breakthroughs in style and storytelling.

Example: My Big Feelings, Little Houses project allowed me to experiment with shooting in small environments and share behind-the-scenes content I don’t typically capture during client sessions. This allowed me lots of content to use when educating future clients about how things like the size of their house don’t matter and what I can do in any environment!

Read more: About the Big Feelings Little Houses project

A Case for Generosity

Generosity breaks all the rules. Free sessions often garner more positive attention, grateful clients, and stronger relationships than complex discount structures or broad giveaways. Clients tend to appreciate the value of a free session more than a heavily discounted one. They’re also more likely to generously share and review with rave results in return because of the generosity shown to them first.

Not to mention, free sessions are simpler to manage without the red tape of discounts or special conditions. It’s either free or full rate.

How to Handle Free Sessions Professionally:

• Send clients through your regular booking process, including contracts that outline how you’ll use the photos.
• Maintain a professional experience and give them your best, just as you would a paid client session.
• Clearly communicate your expectations and the requirements of sharing for marketing purposes with free sessions.

Final Tips for Free Sessions

• Tap into your existing network: Reach out 1:1 or through your newsletter and personal connections first, before making a big public announcement or model call. Not only will you save time by not creating all that marketing content for a free session, but in avoiding the time spent sorting through applicants and communicating with them as well.
• Be specific with your criteria: Choose families or scenarios that align with your creative or business goals. Free sessions are for your own purposes, unlike a real client who is coming to you for a particular wish or look or milestone. Specific criteria also leads to people more readily recommending specific people who come to mind and resharing it with them!
• Never stop learning: Even experienced photographers can benefit from the creative freedom and growth of setting up free sessions.

Free sessions can be a powerful tool for growth, creativity, and connection. Don’t be afraid to break the rules and lean into generosity as you grow your family photography business!

// LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE //

Connect on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leahoconnell.photo

Mentoring / book a free discovery call – https://www.leahoconnell.com/mentoring

You may also like:

What every photographer needs to know about “conveying value”

A meditation for family photographers (on the way to a shoot!)

Simple copy tips to elevate your family photography website

As family photographers, one of the biggest challenges is pricing our work and clearly communicating its value to clients. It’s easy to get wrapped up in tons of advice and education for family photographers and suddenly realize things have gotten way too complicated. Recently, I received a question from a photographer in the Photo Fuel Facebook Group a with this exact struggle.

“My question has to do with conveying value. I recently expanded my package offering to include access to my client closet, a print credit, and a print product. Because of this, I had to raise my family session price. How do I convey the value of what I offer and elevate my brand? Or should I reduce my package back down?

In this episode, I’ll go into detail about how to structure your packages by wrestling with your personal values and getting clear on your business mission. You want your pricing and collections to make sense deep in your gut and be an actually sustainable business model for profitability and longevity.

I have 3 main points to consider when thinking about your package structure and conveying value. If pricing is giving you a headache and you feel torn between following trends and advice and wrestling with your own ideas among all that, this episode is your next best thing.

Learn more about the podcast and recent episodes

Education for family photographers: 3 Points to consider around pricing for value

1. Don’t Approach Pricing Backward

Many photographers set a high price first, then pile in the extras to justify it. This can lead to bloated collections and misalignment with the market. The photos should always be the main thing that converts your client. Start with the most important thing.

Show them what you do has more value because YOU did it. Your experience, your heart, your skill, your perspective, your craft – that is the real ticket item.

Anything else you add into your experience has to be weighed with an opportunity cost. Ask yourself if it the work and investment for you to add this thing– a print credit, a client wardrobe etc. — in line with

1. Your values
2. Your vision for the messaging and style you want to bring to the market
3. Your life and availability
4. Your profit goals.

NOTE: If your photos do not feel like they’re up to a standard of excellence that could demand the price you’re charging or if you’re not sure – you neeeeed to get trusted eyes on your work. From a mentor, from industry peers, from people who you trust but who are not going to sugar coat for the sake of you ego, but who will help you get better. And because “better” is subjective, let me clarify by saying that by better, I mean more aligned with the kind of work you want to and can be making.

Logistically, you need to make back not just what it costs you to include that thing, but with profit as well. Otherwise you’re just boosting your price to the consumer for no reason because you’re not actually making any more money when you consider the additional cost of goods.

Get more info: Details on 1:1 Mentoring with Leah

2. Clarify What You’re Actually Selling (it’s not just pretty pictures)

Everyone can take pictures now; that’s not the only reason they’re hiring you. WHen you know the greater purpose, again, the clarity in your packages, in your workflow, and in your marketing comes rolling.

Are you selling simplicity and ease? Are you selling the concept of a finished wall gallery with meaningful, high-end art work? Are you selling a sense of confidence or peace about a lifestyle or a reminder of joy and vibrance?

Value does not have to correlate with tangibles. Sometimes “extras” are just more stuff in the name of “service” and can actually backfire in terms of clarity.

When your greater purpose is clear, it becomes easier to communicate the value of your packages and pricing.

3. Align Your Offerings with Your Personal Values

One of the most transformative lessons I’ve learned is that pricing and selling becomes easier when it aligns with your own beliefs and values.

In my early days, I followed industry advice to sell luxury products and experiences even though I was a broke 23-year-old with no formal training. I felt like I was putting on a performance, and it didn’t resonate with me or my clients.

Now, I’ve learned that authenticity creates magnetism. When your packages reflect your genuine beliefs and approach, clients will naturally connect with you.

Tip: Research Your Own Buying Behavior

Why do you invest in some things but budget on others? Use this insight to craft messaging that resonates with your ideal clients.

For example, many people love thrift shopping but still appreciate high-quality, long-lasting artwork. Draw those connections in your storytelling.

Recap: Key Takeaways

1. Don’t build packages backward. Start with the photos and YOU as the primary value driver.
2. Clarify your transformation. What are clients really hiring you for?
3. Align pricing with your personal values. Authenticity is magnetic.

When you’re aligned and confident in your prices, marketing becomes fun and natural—and clients will believe in your value because you do.

// LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE //

TONIC templates: https://tonicsiteshop.com/showcase/?_showcase_collection=add-on-templates

TONIC newsletter: https://tonicsiteshop.com/tonic-vip/

Right Track Audits : https://www.leahoconnell.com/righttrack

FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photofuel/

Original question by Susannah Treadway: https://www.instagram.com/susannahrayephotography/

Want more education for family photographers?

My History of Pricing as a Family Photographer

The 5 Most Influential Books for my Photography Business

Ways to build momentum when you’re NOT busy

If you’ve ever felt stuck with your pricing, unsure of how to align your value with your rates, or worried about scaling your photography business sustainably, this post is for you. Over the past decade, my pricing structure has gone through some significant shifts. In Part 1 of this conversation, I walked through the early years of my business and the decisions I made around pricing and workflow as a beginner. In Part II, we dive into things like:

• Why my pricing and created a bottleneck for growth and how I overcame confidence hurdles to change it
• How major life changes pushed me to refine my process.
• The systems and strategies I implemented to increase revenue while keeping my business lean and family-focused.
• My recent shift to an all-inclusive model that’s simplified my workflow and delighted my clients.

Learn about the evolution of my pricing as a family photographer, why and how I’ve made the changes that I have, and more.

Read more: MY STORY : the roots, experience, failures, and inspirations that shaped my photography business

The Session Fee + Collections Pricing Model

As I began to grow and switched to a virtual sales approach for delivery, I also adopted a session fee + collections model for booking. Clients paid a $250 session fee upfront and could then choose from options like $325 for all digital files or tiered print collections. While this worked well for a time, it required a lot of backend communication, making the process cumbersome despite being virtual.

Adding outdoor school photography to my offers helped stabilize my income during this phase, but I soon realized I had hit a ceiling with both my pricing and my confidence to change yet again.

Experimentation and Overcomplicating Everything (2019)

In an effort to increase sales per session, I tried to create bundled packages of print options to support clients purchasing quality art of their session images through me. My hope was to simplify decisions for my clients while increasing sales, but the collections ended up feeling too rigid and didn’t offer the customization clients wanted. Most reverted to a la carte purchases, leaving me back where I started.

At this point, I had hired my first employee – a studio manager – and had decided that instead of increasing my prices, I would pursue my serving my growing quantity at a lower price point.

The Crossroads of 2020

Like many photographers in 2020, I had to learn to adjust. With a newborn at home and the world in flux, I began offering petite sessions, school portrait days, and brand sessions to supplement income. Even with around 30% revenue dip, I felt proud to have maintained stability while paying a second part time salary alongside my own during such a tumultuous year.

But I knew I couldn’t stay at this level forever. My confidence in my work was growing, and so were my ambitions. I wanted to work with fewer clients, but do it better, so I knew that I would need to raise my rates and start getting even clearer about what I was bringing to the table.

The Price Jump (2021)

In 2021, I raised my session fee to $300 and introduced collections that included both digitals and print credits.

Also for the first time, clients chose their collection at the time of booking instead of after viewing their collections.

This shift guaranteed a minimum investment upfront, which boosted my average session revenue to $725. However, I quickly realized that the increase, while seemingly significant, didn’t actually tally up to that much of a raise after cost of goods and taxes.

Incremental changes weren’t cutting it—it was time to think bigger.

My first Mastermind and going all in (2022)

Joining a mastermind in 2022 was transformative. In our personal lives, my husband was about to leave his steady job to start a business and we needed my income to help fund that leap and support our family more heavily than ever before. I discovered I was pregnant for with our third baby and the gloves came off – it was time to stop messing around.

For the first time, I received constructive feedback on my work and brand, which gave me the confidence to make improvements and raise my prices significantly. My new collections included the session fee, digitals, and varying print credits:

• $750: 10 digital files + $100 print credit
• $1,200: 30 digital files + $200 print credit
• $1,800: All digital files + $300 print credit

This was the first year I made six figures in gross income for the first time, which was a huge milestone. More importantly, my confidence soared as I saw clients eagerly booking at these rates. For the first time, my pricing, image quality, and client experience felt fully aligned.

Read more: Planning maternity leave as a family photographer

Streamlining for Simplicity and Impact with Pricing (2023-2024)

In 2023, I simplified my workflow even further and began including all the final, edited digital images in the gallery as part of the session rate upfront. The new pricing structure was straightforward:

• 30-minute session: $700, 30 images, $50 print credit (specific location only)
• 1-hour session: $1,400, all images, $100 print credit
• 2-hour session: $2,000, all images, $200 print credit

This change resonated so well with clients, who appreciated the simplicity and value. By eliminating the need to select images, I emphasized the storytelling aspect of my work and ensured clients received a complete, high quality gallery.

Key Takeaways

1. You can change at any time – with your family’s needs, the market demand, and as your why changes. Your personal interests or styles will change so remember that your workflow and pricing is not stuck. HOWEVER, changing a ton is also a ton of work and can introduce confusion and really whip your clients around. By being more consistent year over year or by changing small variables at a time 1. The better data you’ll have 2. The less explaining you have to do about your changes 3. the less rebuilding time you’ll experience with client turnaround every time. It’s worth it early on to really get clear about your goals, your needs, your values, and craft a process that you feel really excited about.

Read more: Check out The Big Picture Workbook to help with this!

2. You have to make big changes to see big results. It feels risky but go back to episode 38 about adopting a ‘why not’ mindset – what do you have to lose vs. what do you have to gain? If you’re feeling like you’re hitting a personal or professional ceiling and you want to see what’s on the other side, you’re going to have to change something.

If you want to work together on a pricing model and execution workflow that feels exciting, aligned, profitable, and sustainable, reach out here to chat about 1:1 mentoring.

We’ll work through all the roadblocks together and pave a path specific to your business.

// LINKS MENTIONED //

Episode 38: History of Pricing Part 1

Big picture workbook : leahoconnell.com/bigpicture

Right track audits: leahoconnell.com/righttrack

1:1 mentoring : leahoconnell.com/mentoring

You may also like;

Planning maternity leave as a family photographer

How (and Why) I changed my business name

What’s in my bag

Pricing is one of the most complex and personal topics in the world of photography businesses, and for years, I’ve avoided talking about my decisions and journey with it. It’s complicated, nuanced, and requires so much context. But today, I’m sharing my experience with pricing as a family photographer – because even though it’s very windy and full of confusing choices, I believe that sharing stories is one of the best ways to teach and learn.

In Part 1 of this conversation, I’ll walk through the early years of my business and the decisions I made around pricing and workflow. Whether you’re new to pricing your photography or looking to refine your approach, I hope you’ll find inspiration and actionable advice here.

Read more: MY STORY : the roots, experience, failures, and inspirations that shaped my photography business

How I Started Pricing as a Family Photographer

I officially launched my photography business in early 2013. Back then, I was a true beginner, offering sessions for $50–$100, over-editing the photos, burning 30 images to a CD, and hand-delivering them in a plastic case with a Sharpie label. Eventually, I upgraded to USB drives with a clip-art logo, feeling like I was reaaaally leveling up. Needless to say, it was as bare-bones as it could get.

I was building the plane as I flew – excited about the possibility but lacking confidence, experience, and profitability.

Transition to In Person Sales

Within the first year, I shifted to a session fee + In-Person Sales (IPS) model. Clients would pay a session fee for the shoot, come to my tiny apartment to view their images, and select their prints and products from a laminated clip-art menu. I’d offer homemade lemonade and try to make the experience feel special, but looking back, it was all a bit awkward.

My prices at the time were very low—$150 for the session fee, $100 or less for the CD of images, and a modest markup on prints and products. While this model allowed me to learn about client interactions and sales psychology, I didn’t yet have the refinement or quality to truly make IPS work. It felt like I was trying to force a luxury experience that didn’t align with my personality or the quality of the images.

Refining the Process

Around 2015, after moving stateside and having our first baby, I reevaluated my priorities and knew my workflow needed to shift. Oddly, I thought that adding more must be the answer to appearing more professional, so I began doing in-person consultations and became even more hands-on with the client experience. But balancing this high-touch process with a growing family became quickly overwhelming.

Over time, I learned that some parts of IPS—like seeing clients’ reactions to their photos in real time—were really more about my own ego than serving my clients. I also found that selling big wall art didn’t feel aligned with my strengths or my clients’ actual needs.

I knew I needed to simplify.

The Move to Virtual Sales

In 2018, I transitioned to a virtual sales model. Clients would pay a $250 session fee upfront and could upgrade to all digital files for $325. They also had the option to purchase prints and products from an online gallery after viewing their images. This streamlined process saved me tons of time, reduced my stress, and aligned so much better with both my personality and my clients’ lifestyles.

This shift allowed me to focus on creating a simpler experience overall and become more relevant in my market for the price-point I was at. While I wasn’t making significant print sales, my profit margins improved, and I attracted more relaxed, like-minded families who valued the simplicity of my process.

With increased demand and the introduction of schools to my offers, I began to see a fork in the road with meeting demand and pricing as a family photographer. I decided that rather than raise my prices, I would scale into an associate model to continue serving more families in my area.

But then that decision was met with some unexpected curveballs and its own slew of lessons.

Key Takeaways from Part One

1. Trial and Error Is Essential: Setting your pricing as a family photographer and refining your process takes time. Don’t let the details paralyze you—focus on improving your skills and learning from every step.
2. Experiment Before Niching Down: While finding a niche is important, it’s okay to explore different types of sessions early on. These experiences help you discover what resonates most.
3. Follow Your Gut: If a process or pricing model doesn’t feel right, trust your instincts. Craft a workflow that aligns with your personality, strengths, and circumstances and sets profitability as a must.

What’s Next?

In Part Two, I’ll share the biggest changes I’ve made in the past five years with pricing as a family photographer, including how I invested in education to uplevel my skills and pricing in tandum, navigated the pandemic, shifted away from an associate photography/team model, and continued to adapt my pricing as my business and family grew.

Join the Photo Fuel Facebook Group to share your pricing journey, ask questions, or get feedback on your current pricing model!

// LINKS MENTIONED //

Episode 30: MY STORY – https://leahoconnell.com/ep-30-my-story-the-roots-experience-failures-inspirations-that-shaped-my-photography-business-paying-it-forward/

Homestyle Accelerator Group: https://www.leahoconnell.com/homestyle

The LEARN page with free resources – https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

Photo Fuel Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photofuel/

Q1 is known in the family photography world as kindof a dead zone for bookings and shoots. No matter how I slice it, things tend to slow way down. But just because there’s not as much momentum with shooting, doesn’t mean there’s not a ton to do to get your business in a great place that will support those busier seasons. Instead of giving you a list of things you *could* work on, I wanted to show you an example of what i’m working on during the slow season as a family photographer.

If you’ve listened to the last few episodes of Photo Fuel, you’ve probably noticed it’s been heavy on the reflections and questions – the noticing and vision setting part of creative business. If you’re doing that kindof work in January, please go back and listen to those episodes – the Big Picture Workbook is there for you to download with a ton of great business questions, episode 33 has my whole end of year review process with a meeting agenda for yourself that you can download and copy to get you started – those are going to be great resources for that vision casting stage that’s so difficult but so crucial.

The planning part is where we see the vision begin to tie to specific actions. Rather than a giant rambling to-do list, you can organize tasks into projects that support bigger goals around the way you want to work, market, shoot, etc.

Getting Organized in the Slow Season as a Family Photographer

How I Use Trello to organize my tasks and projects

I use Trello for my daily, weekly, monthly, and big picture work as a family photographer. This is different than a CRM, which helps with the logistics and organization of client information and workflow.

Task managers like Trello, Asana, Clickup, and Notion all do the job of helping you orient your day to day work and stay on top of doing the things you say you want to do in your business. Trello is free, and it’s working really well for me for now so If you want to see how I set up my trello boards, I have a really in-depth blog post all about it here.

Interested in going deeper with Trello? Check out my $35 mini course on Trello For Photographers here.

In Trello, I have a board called “All the things” for all the big picture and logistical things that need to happen every year. Things like tax prep, a portfolio review and update, and some kind of spring session launch.

In that All the Things board, I also have several different lists to organize all this info and and one of them is called To do/Projects.

This is where we’re getting into the stuff I pull from to decide what gets worked on this month or this quarter. I am always adding to this list and another list called “ideas” throughout the year. When things pop up that I just don’t have time for now but want to think about or work on at a later time, I just add them as cards in those places. Every quarter and especially at the end of the year, I’ll go through and refine those brain dumps into categories, combine things that are similar, delete ideas that are just hard no’s, etc.

In the To do/Projects list, I’ve broken things into 5 headings – and really, everything in your business can pretty much be broken down into one of these categories: Client Workflow, Website, Admin, Education, and Marketing.

Now, what I find every year – this year included – is that when I step back and look at all these ideas, all these things I want to do to support these big dreams and goals – and then I look at the time I have available with part time childcare hours and three young kids, my gut reaction is… crap. How in the world. There’s no way. This is so much.

But maybe you’ve heard the phrase – “there’s only one way to eat an elephant – one bite at a time.”

And that’s what prioritizing is about. I can look at that list of “shoulds” or “wants” and think crap, it’s so much -and yes, of course, all of it could be things that are good and helpful for my business. But it can NOT all happen at once.

So I take it one bite at a time.

It’s taking all the big things you could possibly do, and choosing what’s most important next. And then once that’s done, you choose what’s next after that. One bite at a time.

What I’m Working on in the Slow Season as a Family Photographer

The maintenance and deliverables

Every month – slow or not – I have a standard operating baseline. These are things I’m committed to as core, integral pieces no matter what.

1. The Firefly Letters

If you’re not on that I’d love to have you, it’s a storybased letter that goes out every wednesday night about simply joys, family, and creativity from the lens of my own personal life and work, it’s the real gold of my marketing efforts and how I just generally connect with people. I love writing it and it’s served me so well, so that’s not going anywhere.

2. A weekly Photo Fuel podcast episode!

I am 37 episodes in and so far, have done every single piece of the creation, production, publishing and marketing myself. Now that I am getting more comfortable with it, a major goal this quarter is to better systematize the process and figure out where I can outsource some of that more logistical work each week like graphics, publishing, blogging show notes, etc.

I need to be able to work ahead more and all those little pieces are adding up and filling more time than I’m comfortable with in the grand scheme of things, but I love podcasting and want to keep at it! I plan on creating a better groundwork for gaining support to help it continue and grow.

3. Mentoring

I’m going to be mentoring a lot in January which I’m so stoked about. The first round of the Homestyle Accelerator, my small group coaching program, is starting this week so I’ll be really digging in with those ladies as well as a couple new 1:1 students.

4. Photo sessions!

In terms of my client work and photoshoots, I’ll be managing leads that come in and hopefully getting some sessions on the books for next few months! In the slow season as a family photographer, I mostly see inquiries for newborn sessions and execute a few of those sessions as well.

I also plan to set up at least 1 model call session this month, hopefully in the snow if I can swing it! I have yet to be able to do a family session in the snow and would love to have that dynamic and seasonal variation in my portfolio and skillset.

Interested in working together? Whether you’re local or across the country, let’s talk about making it happen! I often travel for sessions if I can get 2-3 families from the same area!

Growth and education

I’ve hired a coach of my own for Q1 to help me focus on learning more about business strategy, creating aligned channels for visibility and conversion, and refining my offers around education for photographers. The calls for that will take time, as well as the implementation of the work and decisions we come to.

I’ve learned over the years as a family photographer how crucial accountability is for me, especially in these cold dark months of the Q1 slow season. I knew that if I was going to be pouring so much into other people’s businesses, I was going to need my own support to make sure I didn’t leave my own business in the dust but to keep growing and nurturing that as well.

I also purchased a small online course in podcasting at the end of last year and am hoping to work through more of that to help with my podcasting goals.

Foundational / Strategic Improvements

The main big project I’m prioritizing first and foremost this month is setting up my new CRM and gallery provider. I recently switched from Sprout Studio to Honeybook and Pictime and that’s going to be a beast to migrate.

I have been with Sprout Studio for years and have really loved it – I am familiar with it like the back of my hand, so starting back at square on with a new software was daunting. Still, I felt pretty strongly that it was time and that Honeybook was going to be a better fit for where my business is now.

Refining my client experience with more heartfelt, personal touches is a top focus for the year and I know this part is crucial in laying that groundwork.

I also was really eager to jump into the PicTIme bandwagon because I’ve heard so much praise about their automations for print sales. I love the idea of their shop integrations with multiple labs and giving customers more control without having to go back and forth with me to boost the print sales portion of my business.

I just knew that this combination was the next level up for me but as anyone who has started or switched CRM’s knows, it’s a major undertaking.

Marketing

This may come as a surprise, but I’m challenging myself to experiment with marketing on Instagram a little more this quarter and just come at it in a different way. I’ve done a couple episodes on instagram marketing – particularly episode 7 with Morgan Miles about privacy. I also wrote about my fraught experience with instagram and pulling back from it with stronger boundaries in this blog post.

At the same time, I’m aware that it doesn’t do me or my future clients any good for me to hibernate in behind the scenes stuff for months. I need to force myself to creatively engage in more visible marketing avenues in order to increase visibility – it makes sense, right?!

Admin

The last thing I have on my agenda for this month is in the admin category. I feel like it’s important to do early, though it will still come after the honeybook/pictime project. I plan on doing an overhaul on my Google Drive organization. I use Google drive for writing so often and even though I have things somewhat organized, but it’s been a system that’s been piled on and piled on as needed, including with the addition of the educational branch of my business.

I know this organization step is important for laying a strong groundwork for scaling and outsourcing, as well as repurposing words from pieces I’ve already poured into.

A reminder about plans

The caveat here is always open hands on all plans.

If 2020 taught me anything, it’s flexibility. There will be snowdays that force calls to get rescheduled. There will be sick days. There will be pieces that take way longer than I expect and surprise things that come up and need worked into the schedule.

Goals are something to challenge me and push me, but not to kill me.

At the end of the day, you are the boss and any deadlines you set are your own to meet or move if you need to.

Of course I want to make adjustments and additions to my website. I want to do work on my SEO that’s still suffering a little after my business name change. I want to blog more sessions and I want to get Pinterest rolling better and blah blah blah there’s always so much I can and want to do.

But it CAN NOT all happen at once.

Prioritizing and working steadily and efficiently on projects will help you (and me!) take better, clearer advantage of these slow seasons as a family photographer.

Quick links for this episode:

LINKS DISCUSSED //

Big picture workbook: https://leahoconnell.com/bigpicture

Episode 33: My 3-Part Process for EOY Goal Setting and Reflection (*free download for a personal meeting agenda)

Trello For Photographers course: https://leahoconnell.com/trello-for-photographers

How I use Trello in my business blog post: https://leahoconnell.com/how-i-use-trello-for-my-photography-business-2/

Kat Schmoyer – Trello for Beginners

The Firefly Letters (my weekly newsletter)

Photographers only email list: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

Homestyle accelerator waitlist: https://leahoconnell.com/homestyle

Episode 7 with Morgan Miles: Marketing, Privacy, and Social Media

Blog post: Do i need instagram for my photography business?

All my free resources to support you: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

You may also like:

Ep 36: 3 Methods for Journaling to Increase your Noticing Power

Ep 35: Big Picture Questions to Guide your Photography Business Goals

In this episode of the Photo Fuel Podcast, I’m sharing 3 methods for journaling that I’ve tried and loved, depending on how much time I have and what I’m trying to accomplish. Journaling and photography are so intertwined. Establishing a regular journaling practice can increase your noticing power which inherently makes you a better photographer, but also brings clarity to your business and your life.

The best thing you can do to become more tuned in and capable of noticing is to record and reflect, so whether that’s with a camera or a pencil, the goal is the same.

I have gone through seasons of journaling in each of the three ways I’m going to share with you today. No matter which way is working for me in any given season, I’ve noticed that when I’m not journaling, I’m not as content in my life.

I have less material to think on and to share with others and I forget what I’ve just listened to or what I’ve experienced in a day.

It’s kindof what we build our whole careers upon as family photographers – this idea that the small moments matter, that we want people to experience their lives fully and deeply and with appreciation and joy.

And while I can’t always have a camera out around me, I do believe I need to walk the walk.

I am more readily able to help others with that if I’m experiencing it myself first.

How Journalling Makes Writing for your Business Easier

Maybe you’re like me and simply want the words you put into the world to be intentional, not noisy.

But you also don’t want to spend hours of your work a week agonizing over captions for the sake of captions.

The solution I came up with as to how writing directly influences my work, is that when I journal, it’s often that the thoughts that come up and the stories that I write down can easily spark a topic for a newsletter and make that whole brainstorming process go away.

When I journal, I’m also first-drafting ideas for captions.

I’m getting to the heart of copy for my website or a blog post.

I’m connecting the dots between the things I do for myself and my family and the things I am making for other families.

So if you need more of a “reason” to journal, if you need to believe it’s more efficient or it’s not wasting time or it’s tied to your work in some way, that’s the way.

It will cut the mind junk and help you tune into yourself, your values, your desires, your gratitude – and all of those things directly influence the quality of the work you make from the images to the marketing to the client care and more.

3 Methods of Journaling

1. Morning pages

The first method of journaling is a longform practice by Julia Cameron made famous in her book The Artists’ Way – this is probably the most similar to the typical concept of journaling or a “brain dump” with a few stipulations, mainly that it’s a stream-of-consciousness thoughts, it’s longhand pen to paper, and it happens first thing in the morning.

You can write about your thoughts, feelings, ideas, worries, plans, or even mundane details. Everything is fair game.

There are no rules about grammar, punctuation, or structure. You simply write whatever comes to mind without overthinking or censoring yourself. No one ever sees it.

The reason this method is recommended for first thing in the morning is because It helps you capture your unfiltered thoughts and sets the tone for the rest of the day.

The main purpose is to clear the fog and free up mental space for creative and productive work. It can also help you reveal patterns in your thoughts that are red flags or perhaps even green flags for things you should pursue.

2. Bullet journaling

The second method of journaling is a concept developed by Ryder Carroll (watch the overview of the original process here).

It’s the opposite of Morning pages in that it’s a quick, shorthand system for recording tasks, events, and notes using bullets or lists. Unlike pre-made planners, you design your layouts (spreads) to suit your needs.

My favorite notebook for bullet journaling: Paperage dotted notebook:

In my bullet journal, I start with a page at the front for birthdays, then get right into headings for the month. Sometimes I will make heading pages for things like “Delight” or other lists. On the heading page for each month, I make a list of the books I’m reading that month and another for the TV or films I’ve watched. This helps me see at a glance what kind of media I’ve consumed through the year, which is really fun.

After that, I make 3 pages after each month’s heading-

“these are the days,” “what I learned” and “Notes.”

Then throughout the month I add bullet point notes to those pages. Every day I try to write something in These are the days but I always miss days and sometimes it’s more of a general overview of the week.

Sometimes it’s things my kids say. Sometimes it’s things about our current routines.

This is an example segment of these are the days from June:

• K’s first trip in the kayak – she wanted to go with me because she “just wanted to relax”
• G’s endless questions and desire to talk to everyone //
• going to the library with just the boys on a rainy morning //
• crying because I accidentally bought hot dog buns instead of hamburger buns and realizing that it wasn’t about the buns at all //
• not shooting much and feeling the urge to make pictures //
• a chick fila picnic outside in the yard in our bathing suits //
• anniversary dinner date at Fitzroy //
• code names, skulls and coronas with my brother and sister in law //
• living room campout and the Lego Movie //

In the What Learned page, I’ll include things I hear and remember from podcasts that month, things I unpack from conversations I’ve had, business lessons from things that worked or didn’t work, ah-ha moments, etc.

Lastly, in the Notes page, I’ll include anything from dinner ideas that went over well, to random ideas, to things I overhear or witness that are funny or interesting and more.

Read more: A meditation for family photographers (recenter yourself for your best work)

3. Homework for life

This last method of journaling comes from the book Storyworthy and a process developed by the author, Matthew Dicks. In this method, the goal is to end of each day by asking yourself,

“What’s the most storyworthy moment of my day?” and to keep or record of those moments.

A moment is “storyworthy” if there’s some shift in perspective, mood, or understanding – maybe a moment that evoked a strong feeling at some point during the day.

The moment doesn’t need to be dramatic—it can be something small, ordinary, or seemingly insignificant but the idea is to take that moment and determine the larger emotional resonance or realization from it. This can be done in a spreadsheet, which makes it easy to search for moments in the future if you want to develop any of those “storyworthy” moments into deeper reflections or content.

Create a format with three columns – the date, a brief description of the moment, and the key takeaway or insight.

Here’s an example from the book:

Date: [Day in the past]
Entry: My daughter grabs my finger as we walk through the grocery store. She doesn’t say anything. Just grabs it, holds tight, and keeps walking. It’s such a simple gesture, but it fills me with the kind of love that is almost painful.

Takeaway: A tiny, quiet moment that reminds me how fleeting her childhood is—and how much I need to savor it.

This entry captures:

2. The moment: Clara holding his finger in the grocery store.
3. Emotion: The overwhelming love and awareness of time’s passage.
4. Takeaway: The realization of how important it is to cherish small, everyday moments with loved ones.

I hope these ideas give you a place to start with incorporating journaling into your artistic practice in the new year!

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Podcasts

Links Mentioned in this episode:

The Artists Way by Julia Cameron

My favorite notebook for bullet journaling

Video introducing the original form of Bullet Journaling

1:1 Mentoring

Storyworthy book

Storyworthy video intro

As you’re taking some time over the next month to think big and set your photography business goals, I want propose a temporary pause to think past your gut reactions for what you “need” to do and how you’re going to “get back on the horse.”

Whether you’re feeling burnt out on social media or wanting to utilize it more, start an email newsletter or change your pricing, or redesign your website, or insert any lofty goals for your potential photography business growth – it’s imperative to get clear on a few things first.

In this episode of the Photo Fuel Podcast, I’m sharing 3 overarching questions to guide your goal-setting as a family photographer in the new year. You may have noticed I’m big on questions when it comes to teaching style because rather than just telling you more information, questions help guide you internally to explore what you already know deep down first.

Read more: My 3 part process for holding an end-of-year meeting with myself | reflection, goal-setting, metrics and more

Not every question is going to pull a thread for you, but the right questions just might lead you down a path of discovery that you’ve been waiting for. These 3 questions come straight from my Big Picture Workbook – they’re 3 of the 10 questions that I use in that resource to help instigate discovery for your photography business. But even if you’ve already downloaded and worked through that, I think these three questions in particular are worth revisiting regularly.

3 big questions to guide your photography business goals

1. Why do I want a photography business? (vs a hobby)

Running a business requires different skills, commitment, and passion than being a photographer. Even if you love photography, that is not enough of a reason to start a business.

This is the place where you get to really consider – why am I doing this?

If you’re choosing to dedicate your time and effort into making this the thing that brings in money for your family and helps you impact people in a positive way, then it is going to take more than “I like pictures” to get you to that point. Dig deeper.

There’s a process called ‘the 5 why’s’ where you challenge yourself like a 4 year old asking ‘why’ – with every answer you give, ask why? And then answer again.

For example, if your first answer to the question “why do I want to be a photographer” is “i like making photos,” follow up with another question – why?

You may respond with something like – “I love family connection,” to which you can continue to push with why?

Maybe the next piece is something like “i feel like the relationship between parents and kids can be so beautiful but so tenuous, too, and I want to make pictures that help parents feel understood in that and less alone.”

And now you’re getting somewhere. There’s more purpose behind what you’re actually trying to communicate – not just here are these people look at their faces.”

With that detail in mind, you can begin to formulate the way you shoot to accomplish that goal, along with things like your communication style, your culling, and so much more, It can all support the underlying desire of not just making a beautiful gallery of photos, but making a gallery (or even just one photo every session) that really says something different about that relationship between parents and kids.

If you don’t want to dig into that and you truly just want to make nice, basic family photos at a cheap price with clean smiling families, that is FINE! There’s a market for that.

But knowing that truth about your motives is going to help you align your expectations and help you adjust both the time you put into it and what you get out of it.

Of course there’s a ton of grey area in between those two extremes, but if you’re going to go down this road of building a photography business, you should at least make sure that you really do want have a photography business.

If you find that you do, that there’s depth to wanting to make this particular medium part of your work and your time and energy, then the next question is even more important.

2. What do I bring to the table for families as a whole and/or individuals within a family that makes me uniquely gifted for this work?

It is really really easy to give yourself all the reasons why you’re not cut out for this. I’m introverted, I’m awkward, I’m not edgy, I’m too old, I’m too young, I don’t have kids of my own or my kids are grown and I”m unrelateable to young families – blah.

Really consider why you are perfectly cut out for this. Because if your heart is pulling for it , there’s a reason.

If you need help, ask your friends and family. Send a group email if you want. Just ask – what are 3 qualities you like best about me? What do you think I’m good at? When you think about me, what are the things that come to mind?

I have done this, and it was really enlightening because I was not seeing myself the way other people were seeing me.

I needed that confirmation that I had it in me.

Think about the art, the behind the scenes business stuff, the people stuff, the coordination, the styling – think about your life experiences, your demeanor, the way you see the world.

What do you bring to the table that makes you uniquely gifted or uniquely positioned for this work?

Read more: The Key Ingredient to your Success

3. What do I value outside of photography? What inspires me, angers me, makes me feel alive or excited? What do I wish people talked more about?

Again, this is for the purpose of thinking big picture and it’s really easy to set ourselves in a vacuum when we’re thinking about the goals for our photography business. But so much of how you do business should be influenced by the way you want to live your life and the kind of person you are or want to be. It’s really common to go the other way around and then wonder why it feels hard or off.

It’s because you created someone else’ s business, not the one or the way that feels really exciting to you.

What do you like to talk to your friends about, or where do you like to shop. What causes are important to you? What experiences from your childhood impact the way or they why behind your shooting.

The bonus here is this is great fodder for captions, newsletters, copy of any kind that can be story-based. It’s the umbrella for connections you can make with people that go beyond the photos and reach to a different part.

It builds a bridge of communication or relevance before any kind of ask is on the table.

I’m willing to bet if you start to connect the dots you’ll realize it’s kindof all related and that can be the true core of your messaging.

As you’re setting goals for your photography business in the next year, think about these big picture questions first and I hope they help guide your work to new levels!

If you’d like to dig into your answers together and make a plan for putting them into action, reach out about 1:1 mentoring. I’d love to support your growth towards this aligned big picture for your family photography business.

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Podcasts

Links mentioned in this episode:

Episode 33: EOY meeting

Times article about thinking in the shower

The Big Picture Workbook

1:1 Mentoring

Right Track Audits

Group Coaching (The Homestyle Accelerator) Waitlist

As we’re approaching the end of the year, maybe you’re looking for a good book to kick back within the new year. So today I’m sharing 5 of the most influential books that have shaped my photography business, art, and life.

Most of them are not even classified as “business books,” but somehow, they top the list of books that have shaped the way I do business, how I think, and how I aspire to grow as a person. All of those things influence how I show up with and for people, + the art I create and how I bring it into the world.

// Links mentioned //

Episode 21: 4 simple copy tips to elevate your website

Free resources – leahoconnell.com/learn

Blog posts with book recommendations:

• favorite books of 2023
• favorite books for creatives and small business owners
• my 2024 book list
• what I read in 2022 and my 2023 book list

Connect with Leah :
IG: @leahoconnell.photo
Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

Free Photo Fuel FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photofuel/

You might also like:

Episode 19: Back to School Reboot

Episode 16: What’s in my Bag

Episode 2: Uncover your mission and values as a family photographer

It’s time to start winding down your business from 2024 and whew, that’s an exciting time right? But before you can move onto goal-setting and projects, this last month of the year is a beautiful time to take the pulse of your business. It’s the imperative FIRST STEP to any kind of planning for the future. In this episode, I’m sharing my process of holding an end-of-year meeting with myself for reflection and goal setting as a family photographer.

I’ll take you behind the scenes of that process, the agenda, the questions i ask, and the metrics I tackle – so if you’ve never done this before you have a place to start and if you have you may find that you can pull some ideas from this to add in or tweak your current process.

Making time for this process of reflection and study of what the heck actually happened this year in your business – and it can also be really fun, too!

Listen on Apple Podcasts | Listen on Spotify

Other links mentioned:

episode 26 with Sabrina Gebhardt

RIGHT TRACK AUDITS: https://www.leahoconnell.com/righttrack

You may also like:

Ep 32: Photographing the holidays and making personal work fun

Ep 30: My Story

Episode 26: Seasons of Business and marketing with intention with Sabrina Gebhardt

How do you find joy in photographing the holidays for your personal memories when your work is as a family photographer? How can you distinguish photographing in your regular life as fun, creative fuel vs obligation or “work?” (even if you love your work!)

I hear a lot of guilt from photographers around not making photos at home “enough.” In this episode, I want to dispel that and bring back the fun, ease the guilt, and just give a friendly reminder about the big picture.

Get ready for 5 tips for photographing and honoring your holidays with intention and joy.

// Timestamps //

00:00:22: Recognizing the blur of personal photography and photography ‘work’

00:01:01: Addressing guilt with not doing “enough”

00:03:12: Reevaluating what makes a photo “worthy”

00:04:00: Disrupting visual influences

00:05:47: Tip 1 – Distinguish personal photography from work

00:06:42: Tip 2 – Name what matters

00:08:09: Tip 3 – Play with different gear

00:12:15: Tip 4 – Try a timed approach

00:13:53: Tip 5 – Be a memory-keeper with other mediums

// Links mentioned //

episode 12 with Rachel Larson Weaver

episode 8: Resetting inspiration in your personal life

Photography and Play – Erin C. Garcia // photographs drawn from the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, https://a.co/d/dBbD8tM

Jessica Todd Harper’s Here: https://a.co/d/eareauL

Sierra Madre Photography – website | instagram

Free resources to connect and learn with me: https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn

You might also like:

Ep 30: My Story – The roots, experience, failures, & inspirations that shaped my photography business + paying it forward

Episode 23: How (and why) I Changed My Business Name

Episode 15: If you’re nervous about light, try this! (in home photography series)

The end of the year is a great time for photographers to look ahead and get intentional about the resources they need to focus on to make improvements and productive changes in the year ahead. In this episode, I’m sharing a run-down of the 4 categories of investments that serve as umbrellas for all the things you *could* purchase to support your business growth.

1. Software

2. Brand

3. Gear

4. Education

Each has several subcategories, too, so we’ll walk through how to determine what end of the year investments will serve your business best as you’re looking ahead, along with my top recommendations for products and services.

Of course, I also want to share a little more about The Homestyle Accelerator as well because I am so excited about the potential of this program and our conversations to support you in a direct way with the growth of your art and business. Enrollment opens TODAY (Nov. 25 2004) so you can check out all the details and enroll (or get on the waitlist for next time) here!

// Links mentioned //

Software:

• Honeybook: https://www.honeybook.com
• Sprout Studio: https://www.sproutstudio.com
• Pic-time: https://www.pic-time.com
• Pixieset: https://www.pixieset.com
• Cloudspot: https://www.cloudspot.io
• Kartra: https://www.kartra.com
• Mailchimp: https://www.mailchimp.com
• Flodesk: https://flodesk.com/c/O75MQU

Brand:

• Tonic: https://www.tonic.site
• Davy and Krista: https://daveyandkrista.com/home
• Elizabeth McCravey: https://www.elizabethmccravey.com
• Carly Schematic Design: https://schematicdesign.co/
• Greenchair Stories: https://www.greenchairstories.com
• Moo: https://www.moo.com

Gear:

• B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com
• Adorama: https://www.adorama.com
• KEH: https://www.keh.com (secondhand)
• MBP: https://www.mbp.com (secondhand)

Education:

(check out the wonderful offers from these former guests on Photo Fuel)

• Rachel Larsen Weaver: https://www.rachellarsenweaver.com
• Morgan Williams: https://morganwilliamsphoto.com/
• Sabrina Gebhardt: https://www.sabrinagebhardt.com

In person retreat/conference for 2025

• The Reset Conference: https://www.theresetconference.com

Small group coaching for family photographers: The Homestyle Accelerator!

• my 6 week small group coaching program – all the details here: https://www.leahoconnell.com/homestyle

As the person in your earbuds each week bringing you photography education and industry stories, I felt it was time to give you a little more context. In this episode, I’m sharing about my history and experience getting to this place in my photography business and as an educator.

I don’t have a fancy background or any official qualifications or a wild job history. My photography business has grown slowly and humbly – but maybe that’s exactly the kind of realness you need?

Failure after failure ultimately revealed something hidden and beautiful – a career that I love, that supports my family, and allows me to live in my purpose of creating light to the world.

Get ready for a touch of nostalgia as I share about my early inspiration and training in mall portrait studios along with –

• the setbacks that left me jobless and wandering after college
• the random people i met along the way who sparked my fire for photography business
• how I taught myself alongside the mentors and courses I’ve learned from
• the life circumstances that influence my style with both lifestyle and documentary approaches
• how I’ve grown my photography business over the course of having 3 babies
• the plateaus and breakthroughs I’ve experienced in my work
• what accountability and feedback has done for my business and why I believe it’s the true secret sauce to success

If you’re interested in joining the Homestyle Accelerator small group coaching program for family photographers with a focus on in-home photography and simplified, warm businesses – get on the waitlist at https://leahoconnell.com/homestyle

Enrollment opens Nov. 25-29, 2024 or until spots are filled!

If enrollment is full or closed, make sure to get on the waitlist for when the next round opens up:

// Other resources mentioned //

Emily lucarez course: https://www.creativelive.com/class/lifestyle-family-photography-emily-lucarz

Kirstin lewis class on Creativelive: https://www.creativelive.com/class/family-photography-creating-a-successful-business-kirsten-lewis

Brooke shultz: https://brookebschultz.com/love-soaked

Rachel Larsen Weaver : https://www.rachellarsenweaver.com/

You likely have passion and excitement to create beautiful photos, but have you ever found yourself working behind the computer and thinking what the heck am I doing? Imposter syndrome is so real in the world of entrepreneurship and creativity, and the impact of a supportive guide goes totally underrated – till you’ve seen what it does for yourself.

Today’s guest is Lydia Fine. Our conversation circles around this idea of imposter syndrome with a sprinkle of support and the value of education and mentorship. Lydia is actually a student of mine and we’ve worked together in mentoring several times, so she shares a little bit about that experience and the unique gap that one-to-one mentoring filled for her in her personal and professional growth.

Lydia grew up as a farm girl, she earned a marketing degree and an MBA, and she has two kiddos with her husband. She runs Apollo and Ivy Photography focused on families, seniors and newborns.

// Topics we discuss : Impostor syndrome, mentoring, and more //

• The difference between affirmation in the formal workplace vs entrepreneurship
• How affirmation and lack thereof affects us (and clients loving their photos isn’t the same thing!)
• The reasons Lydia reached out to me for coaching and how it was the missing link in her growth
• Different types of education she recommends looking to for specific problems
• The role of coaching in confidence building through risk assessment
• The questions that helped Lydia uncover her strengths
• When it’s time to invest in one to one or group coaching and when you’re better served with things like courses
• The value of slow growth
• How to choose the right coach for you

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

// CONNECT WITH LYDIA //

Website: www.apolloandivy.com

Instagram: @lydia_apolloandivy

Lydia’s freebies:

• How to get clients with google reviews: https://apolloandivy.myflodesk.com/google-reviews
• The 3 client emails you’re not sending yet: https://apolloandivy.myflodesk.com/3-emails
• Instagram Reel Series: Google Business Profile Tips for Photographers: https://instagram.com/lydia_apolloandivy

// CONNECT WITH LEAH //

Homestyle Accelerator Group Coaching : https://leahoconnell.com/group

Leah’s website: https://leahoconnell.com

Leah on Instagram: @leahoconnell_photo

You may also like:

Ep 21: 4 Simple Copy Tips to Elevate your Family Photography Website

Ep: 17: Tips to shoot in any home (family photography series part 3)

Ep 6: The Key Ingredient to your Success

Not *everyone* experiences that “busy fall” photographers like to talk about. Maybe you’re reflecting on what this fall looked like for you and instead of being filled with clients sessions, it was kind of stale. If that’s you, you’re probably finding yourself wondering if there’s a way you can still capitalize on all the fall energy around photography when you’re not busy in the fall.

Maybe you’ve moved to a new city, or you’re on maternity leave, or just going through a lull. Whatever the reason, when you’re in that space and when you go to Instagram, you see everyone doing sessions and sharing fall work and editing cues and it can be discouraging. So instead of sitting around feeling terrible, let’s consider all the potential at your fingertips, instead!

In this episode I’m sharing four things that you can do to capitalize on the fall energy and build momentum, even when your work que is slow.

Through personal stories and advice, we’ll create excitement around the slower seasons to use them well with the big picture in mind.

// LINKS DISCUSSED //

Ultimate list of freebies : https://leahoconnell.com/learn

The Firefly Letters: https://leahoconnell.com/newsletter

Episode 5: 6 shifts that helped me grow my photography business

You may also like:

Seasons of Business, Marketing with Intention, & Choosing Education Wisely with Sabrina Gebhardt

Get Discovered and Grow your Business in a New Place Using SEO with Melissa Arlena

4 Simple Copy Tips to Elevate Your Family Photography Website

Ever had a heart-stopping moment when you realize your camera is dangling too close to the ocean or you check your camera back 100 times on the way to a session because you irrationally think you forgot all your gear? Or show up to the wrong house? Or loose images from a session? Photography business fears are ever present when you’re starting out, but also, they never go away.

As a family photographer with over 15 years of experience, I’ve had my share of irrational fears and horrifying experiences, too. In this episode, I’m candidly sharing not just my personal stories of mishaps and embarrassing moments, but the invaluable lessons learned from these experiences.

This spooky season, let’s acknowledge that fear is an inherent part of our creative journey and so is facing that sometimes those fears come true. Can you show yourself you’ll be alright, even if you mess up? This episode is a humorous twist on the ideas that keep us up at night, and hopefully will lead all of us into feeling a little less alone.

Timestamps

(00:01) Facing Photography Business Fears

Fear is an inherent part of photography and business, from tax season to potential accidents, forgetting gear, and more. We discuss how we can learn from these experiences – even the cringe-worthy ones – and let them inform our growth.

(04:40) Lessons Learned in Photography Business

I’m sharing specific examples of the fears – both rational and irrational – that I’ve experienced over the years. Some of them have even come true! But in this conversation, I’m also sharing what I took away from those experiences with very practical tips to bring into your work and process.

(14:46) Community input – what are your biggest fears?!

I asked the Photo Fuel Facebook community about some of their biggest fears and they showed up with the gold! Laugh along with me and leave this episode feeling like if you’re scared, you’re probably doing it right.

// connect with Leah //

• Photo Fuel facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photofuel/
• https://www.leahoconnell.com/learn (free resources to help you grow)
• https://www.leahoconnell.com/mentoring (1:1 mentoring)
• https://www.leahoconnell.com/group (group coaching + course interest list)

You may also like:

Episode 26: Seasons of Business, Marketing with Intention, & Choosing Education Wisely with Sabrina Gebhardt

Episode 23: How (and why) I changed my business name

Episode 20: 6 Ways to Nurture your family photography clients

Sabrina Gebhardt is a long time photographer who’s made it her mission to coach family photographers through bettering themselves and building thriving photography businesses. Sabrina is doing all kinds of work in the education space for photographers right now, but she is also photographing families and has been for 14 years. In this episode, we talk about

-the ebb and flow of business and balance

-the art of hustling in a healthy way and keeping that big picture view of the whole year

– the pitfalls of a scarcity mindset during slower seasons

– and continuing education and choosing the container and coach wisely to suit your needs

Sabrina is an expert on business, marketing, and choosing education because she’s not only participated in all the types of education herself, but she’s now created opportunities from free guides, to online courses, to 1:1 mentoring, to small group support, and of course the Root to Rise Retreat and Mastermind.

(00:00) Navigating Family Photography as a Career

(05:16) Balancing Hustle and Rest in Photography

(09:59) Strategic Planning for Both Busy Seasons and Slow Seasons

(20:06) Investing in Education – free material, courses, coaching, and masterminds

// connect with Sabrina //

Website: https://www.sabrinagebhardt.com

Instagram: @sabrinagebhardtphotography

// connect with Leah //

Website: https://www.leahoconnell.com

Instagram: @leahoconnell.photo

Mentoring: https://www.leahoconnll.com/bigpicture

The Firefly Letters: https://www.leahoconnell.com/newsletter

You may also like:

Ep 25: Navigating Black Friday as a Family Photographer

Ep 23: Why (and how) I changed my business name

Ep 20: 6 Ways to Nurture Family Photography Clients