Nothing beats a supportive spouse.
When I first ventured into photography – as is the story with many other photographers – I was met with resistance from a few area professionals who were less than stoked that “another mom with a DSLR is trying out photography.” And that’s okay. Yes, there are *tons* of “moms out there who are trying out photography.” So what? Now, I don’t care to write an entire post about the pros and cons of new photographers flooding the industry. To each his own. When I first started, I can’t say that I was a fantastic photographer, I wasn’t. And I knew that. But truly – no one comes out of the womb knowing how to shoot manually or knows how to enhance your images in Photoshop. It’s a learned profession. Like all professionals, I had to start somewhere. And I’m *still* learning! Aren’t we all? Anyways…I digress.
The only reason I mentioned the above is to let you know that I did not come into the industry with a bunch of open arms welcoming me! However, thankfully there were a few helpful photographers who were more than willing to share a few insights, and to them I am forever grateful. But even with the help of those photographer friends, I still needed support. At home. The last few years were what I called my “building years.” For the most part, everything I made in my business went back to my business! Thousands upon thousands of dollars have been invested in my business and it stretched our family, both financially and time-wise. Any time you’re building a business from the ground up, it’s going to be that way.
And through it all, my husband supported me. He didn’t always understand why I was making some of my decisions – and to be honest, I did make a few mistakes early on – but he knew that I was passionate about pursuing my photography business and stood by me through the whole process. Thank you, Tobe. Your support and love has been felt and appreciated.
This past Christmas, Tobe gave me a present that has meant more to me than any other gift I’ve received. By giving me this gift, I knew I had his blessing to continue to pursue my love for photography. I cried. He videotaped. 😉
A Lisa Leonard necklace. Love.
To other photographer mamas: It’s so important that you’re not throwing yourself into building your business – at the expense of your marriage and children. Something that I have found these last few years is that without Tobe’s support, I wouldn’t be able to have this business.
Much love, jaci