You know that moment when you’ve lost a noticeable amount of weight and your pants just don’t fit right anymore? Or when your current fashion goes out of style? You just know. I’ve re-branded before, more significantly and I’m re-branding again. It’s the right time! It has become more clear to me what Frizz Studio Photography has become, who the client is and what type of work I will be focusing on.
I’ve been in the business of photography for the past 7-years. I started officially as Raggbaby Photography (anyone remember those days?). I have always liked fun names, it makes remembering someone’s business a little easier. When I was Raggbaby Photography, I was focusing on Newborns and Family. It fit and was a fun expression of what I was doing then. After some time getting established, I started taking on High school Seniors and dabbling in sports photography. I could feel myself telling people my business name in relation to some shoot about sports and it just wasn’t a good feeling or fit. I started to cringe when the mediums didn’t feel right. So I re-branded to Frizz Studio.
Why Frizz Studio? Here’s a funny little thing about me. At the time I still had medium-length, Irish-Girl curls (aka “frizzy hair”) and dually, I have what I would describe as a — “frizzy personality” — As I said, I like fun names, and after brainstorming I landed with “Frizz Studio.” The domain name was available and that was that. I still love the name, it’s funky and fits me. I chose “studio” because it allows me to stretch the possibilities of what I offer and if I ever grow a team I’m not locked into re-branding or re-naming my business again. The only confusing part I decided did not matter as much, is that I don’t actually have a physical studio (at this point in time)… I work from home. Most of my shoots are outside of my house, however, I do shoot product and individual headshots in my home-studio space. Working from a home studio doesn’t seem to be a negative thing in our small town area.
So that’s a little of my photography business brand history in a nutshell. Prior to photography, I was in graphic design and marketing for around 8-10 years. I still utilize those skillsets in my business today.
Fast forward to the present. For the past two years (2018 and 2019), I have been more hyper-focused on gaining a presence in the commercial photography field of work. This largely entails:
- Editorial
- Storytelling
- Headshots
- Brand image
- Events
- Sports & Fitness
- Product (Lifestyle & Amazon White)
- Compositing (green screen)
It feels good to have such a solid focus! I am taking a VERY MINIMAL amount of repeat, longtime family clients and high school seniors throughout the year… most of which I have already talked to about this change.
“Why go away from family photography when I’m so good at it?” I want to express that it is a tough decision to announce such a dramatic change in who I am taking on for work. But I do want to explain that it can be difficult to JUST BE a Family Photographer around this area and bring in a full-time income. The business of photography has changed dramatically. There are platforms you can adopt to produce larger income off family photography but I found it distasteful and just not my style. At the same time, I was falling in love with commercial business photography. I absolutely love and found my strong points in storytelling photography at events and brand shoots. It’s important to realize where your energy level is better suited. At the end of the day, family photography was a stepping stone to where I am at today. Realizing my strengths and making actionable steps going forward. I felt that I was good at family photography, but I am even better at commercial photography.
Photography is my career. I dabbled in it when my kids were younger as a side-hustle, cheap photographer because it helped me do art in some light. However, being a photographer in Southern Oregon can be tough! Not because of the competition or people don’t want photos, but because of our crazy Oregon seasons combined with in my opinion the value scale locally. Now that my kids are older, less reliant on me and in school during the day, I have more opportunities to grow my business. I had decided 2-years ago that if I am going to continue photography, I wanted to be a full-time photographer. I also wanted to streamline my focus of work and be the best of what I offer.
Family Photography is a very seasonal, unpredictable job. Commercial Photography is a very FULL-TIME job anywhere there are businesses. Businesses NEED photography, families WANT photography.
Personally, I feel that it’s very difficult to fulfill full-time family photography for a decent wage in Southern Oregon. Family Photography is a very seasonal, unpredictable job. I realized that Commercial Photography is a very FULL-TIME job anywhere there are businesses. Businesses NEED photography, families WANT photography — and won’t or can’t always justify paying what it takes to make it happen. The value scale is very different! I can’t tell you how many photographers I know in the wedding and family industries who are over-worked, stressed-out, under-paid, depressed and going crazy (especially in the fall)! This year alone, I know five professionals have left their seemingly successful family and wedding photography businesses to go back to school or take a full-time 9-5 “real” job, selling all their equipment. These ladies, and some gentlemen, may LOOK like they’ve got a successful business, but behind the scenes, they struggle with giving attention to their personal health, family time, spouse time, etc. I don’t want that. Overworked and underpaid is not my goal.
Photography can be a full-time business if you work smarter! So that’s what I’m doing!
In conclusion, I’ve changed my logo to portray a sharper, more edgy look with a more solid and loud appearance. I’ve removed any and all personal family photography from my website and I’m focusing more heavily on local networking opportunities. I’ve been solidifying brand colors and fonts. I’m looking forward to my growth in business locally and via travel. Cheers to growth! See you out there!
