Meet Grace Greenlee of Gracefully You Photography

Today we’d like to introduce you to Grace Greenlee

Hi Grace, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
There are two major contributions in my decision to pursue photography. One being that I’ve always grown up around it, my grandma would take professional photos all the time and I was her only grandchild at the time therefore, I was the main subject of her photos. The second reason, and a bit of a deeper reason, I wanted to pursue photography was because my sister passed away when I was 12 and when I went searching for photos to look back on I only had a handful. When photos are all you have to remember someone by it really does make an impact. So when I was gifted a camera for my birthday in 2020 I made sure to the make the most out of it. From there, my passion for creativity blossomed through photography. Once I started my journey with photography I found another passion. Making people feel confident about themselves. How just complimenting them during a shoot and showing them how they look from others perspective can change their confidence in themselves so quickly.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s been a smooth or rocky road. I went into the NCAPS digital media and design program while I was in my senior year of high school. This helped me network a lot and got me a lot of experience in this field. But the second half of the program was an internship we had to complete. This, I would say was probably my biggest challenge in my photography journey because it was a contribution to me losing some of my motivation in this field. I had a mentor who did not respect my time, energy and talents which somewhat discouraged me from photography for a while. Although this wasn’t what I had expected for my internship experience, nor did it excel my career in photography, I am grateful for the experience. It taught me a lot of valuable lessons about how I do not want to run my business, it taught me sometimes you do have to deal with people you don’t meet eye to eye with and how to cope with that process. Finally, it taught me I need to value the people who work for me because however successful I may become, that does not belittle other peoples capabilities.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Gracefully You Photography?
I enjoy capturing all moments on camera but I specialize in portraits. Something to know about my business is that I make sure to prioritize body positivity over anything else. Not only during typical shoots, but I also enjoy doing shoots to specifically promote body positivity as well. For example, while I was in NCAPS, we had a passion project that we had to complete. For this project I reached out to a local wedding dress designer, Liz Spencer, to showcase five different women with ranging body types. Liz was born with a paralyzed arm so her business is based on a platform of inclusivity so when I reached out with my idea, she was more than thrilled to help me. This was an amazing experience for me because it brought many different women together who were just as passionate about body positivity as I am. This helped me to see that my photography could not only be a passion in and of itself but I could also express other passions through photography. On top of my passion project, I also captured photos for a company in the mental health industry who wanted posters to put up in schools. I would say I am proud of that photoshoot because I captured some very vulnerable moments of the models that I hope helps others to be more comfortable feeling those similar emotions.

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Valuing the client. They are there to feel confident and taking the time out of their day to go and do this. Yes, at the end of the day they also get the photos back but they’re not just there for you to make money. Making sure to value their time and money. Not only valuing them but also once you get to know them, being able to portray their real personality through their photos. Anyone can pose for a camera and fake a smile or click a shutter button but getting your subject to show those real and raw emotions is so very important. I cherish candid photos, they are probably my favorite because genuinely, it does show who they truly are because they aren’t trying to look a certain way. They’re no longer focused on their insecurities or anything else going on. Sometimes being goofy during a photoshoot and just joking around with each other turns out to be the best shoots for two main reasons: It leaves the model feeling good about themselves and remembering the enjoyable experience they had, it also gives a reality to the photos. It leaves the person who is viewing the photos wondering the story behind it. Almost getting to know the person without actually knowing them. Whether we want to admit it or not, we all make assumptions about people before meeting them, especially with social media now. So why not capture those raw moments when someone is being so real and show others that exact thing.

Pricing:

• $50 per person – 1 hour & 1 location
• $100 per hour – $25 per location
• $130 per hour – Event Shoot
• $150 per hour – Family Shoot (6 people + $20 per extra person)

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gracefullyyou.photography/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracefullyyou.photo/