Daily Inspiration: Meet Sarah Bailey

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Bailey.

Hi Sarah, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My photography journey began completely by accident. I used to have an Etsy shop where I knit and sold newborn photography props and my sister Rachel was the photographer. I wanted to start offering more items for children and toddlers in my Etsy shop. I knit a little beanie for my daughter, dressed her up in it along with some fancy coordinating items, and took some pictures of her in the snow. When I posted them, people started inquiring about booking photo sessions much to my surprise. I decided to try out this new unexpected opportunity and fell in love with photography. My own children were my inspiration and most challenging subjects. They trained me well for all of the adventures, emotions, and candid moments that every session holds. In the beginning, I only wanted to photograph children. Then I decided to do families and senior sessions. Next, I added on weddings and newborns. I was very stubborn about not wanting to expand my sessions past children and families, but my husband strongly encouraged me. Without him pushing me out of my comfort zone, I would have been missing out on so many amazing opportunities and people. I am very blessed to be able to incorporate art, memories, and friendship into my work. Now Rachel and I work together which is such a blessing to spend time with her!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I believe if the road had been smooth, I never would have grown as a photographer. The first step was trying to learn how to operate my camera. I was a complete ‘manual’ setting mode kind of girl. I watched tutorials, read books, called photographer friends, and even flew to Texas to meet with one so I could figure out what in the world my camera was capable of. Next…Photoshop. I am a completely creative brain and a program like Photoshop is highly technical. It was like trying to learn college algebra as a second grader. I started with ‘Photoshop for Dummies’ and again took online classes, watched every tutorial possible, and messed up a lot of things along the way to become proficient in the areas I need. I have not even scratched the surface of what the program is capable of which is crazy! Session pricing, clients that are not a good fit, work-life balance (does that actually exist?) and finding ‘my style’ are all things that have taken years of cultivating. I am actually still constantly working on them!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
There are three top priorities for me when it comes to running my business;
1. Superior product
2. Excellent customer service
3. Follow-through and accountability

I have worked very hard to gain as much knowledge as I can about photography and apply it to my own personal style. I am constantly training and learning to ‘sharpen my axe’. I don’t want to become complacent and unwilling to try new things. Part of what keeps me intrigued are all of the amazing creative opportunities within photography. I work to understand posing, connection, lighting, editing…it is endless!

Train as I may, if I fail at customer service then I am wasting my own time. I thrive on building relationships with my clients and forming friendships with them. I want them to have an incredible experience with each and every session. I try to relieve as much stress from the sessions as possible (most people don’t just love getting pictures done) and bring the laughter. Once the session is done, it is very important to me that I have images complete within the given timeframe. There are a lot of creative people that are amazing artists, but not perhaps the best at the business side. I try to balance both to make myself stand out. This is what I value when I am in a service setting so it is what I strive to offer!

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I think one of the riskiest – or perhaps scariest things that photographers and business people do in general is….pricing. It is terrifying to raise prices. When I started, my sessions were so low that I could now have stayed in business longer than a year if I still did not have my Etsy shop going. I learned quickly that time is money, and photography equipment is expensive. I was so nervous to raise my prices but it was absolutely the correct decision. I would have run myself into the ground trying to keep up and my creativity would have been at a zero. I feel like the correct pricing also attracts the right client and creates a great fit overall.

Pricing:

• Family Sessions $450
• Senior Sessions $475
• Newborn Sessions $400
• Maternity Sessions $250
• Weddings $2500

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: http://www.dandelionsanddumptrucksphotography.com
• Instagram: dandelionsanddumptrucks
• Facebook: Dandelions and Dumptrucks Photography by Sarah Bailey

Image Credits:
Sarah Bailey Rachel Loder