We recently connected with Laura Wallace and have shared our conversation below.
Laura, appreciate you joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
I currently make a full time living from being a professional photographer. It hasn’t always been that way as I used to work other jobs and do my photography on evenings and weekends. I decided to officially go out on my own in January of 2020, not knowing what was in store for us with COVID-19 coming. I had some trepidation as things began to unfold, but I told myself if I can make it through during a pandemic, I could make it through anything! I kept asking and searching for more to do. It felt like I was only getting a little here or a little there, but when it came time to file my taxes, I realized that I had made more than I expected and it was in the realm of a living wage. I found a niche market in college commencement photography and that led to more work and needing to find people to help me do the work that I had lined up. As I reflect on what I know now, I would continue to encourage the me that started out to keep searching and don’t give up. No job is too small to take on and do well at it. More could be over the next hill and being faithful with a small job can lead to a bigger job next time!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Hello, my name is Laura Wallace and I am a wife, mother and Professional Photographer who specializes in taking images of people that reflect who they are and what they want to say. I was “recruited” to take photos of a wrestling tournament when I was in high school by the photographer who was covering the event. He knew my Dad and told me I looked bored. He handed me a camera, gave me a few tips and sent me to take some photos. When the film came back, yes, I said the film, he told me he saw a real eye and talent for photography and he offered me a job working for him as a wedding photographer for the summer. My photography services are all about the people in the photos! I get the statement from many people, “I don’t smile very well.” or “I look terrible in photos.” I love to take these statements as a personal challenge to get you to enjoy yourself so that your natural smile is visible and you feel good when you are done, not like a smile has been wrung out of you and now you need a bath and a glass of wine to recover. I make friends with my clients, simply because that is how I feel about the people I meet. I want to know you because I see your face through my camera and it is interesting, lovely and unique!
My company is not huge, but what we lack in size, we make up for in delivering a beautiful product, in a timely fashion that celebrates YOU!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
In 2023, due to factors beyond my control, I lost out on a contract that was my biggest and made me a fairly large portion of my annual income. I was devastated. I had myself a little cry and I then I decided I would just do my best to add in something else, maybe not the same size, but something else to help ease the sting. I tried to add more, but I struck out in every direction I turned. It was frustrating and I felt I had done something wrong to be stuck in the position I was in. Being a creative, I decided to make sure that the products I was offering the clients I had, were the absolute best I had to offer. I plugged away each and every event I had and gave it everything I got. I paused at the end of my busy season and reflected on the numbers I was putting up on the board. My sales across all my other contracts were up from the previous year. I counted it all up and what should have been a 25% loss in revenue, only totaled roughly 5% in loss! I was over the moon. And I set back out on my goal to fill that spot that was left vacant. I have now added 3 additional contracts, including gaining back the one that left since their choices were opened up again. I was thrilled and am excited to see the creativity come to life once more for 2024!!
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
My office manager and right hand woman, Elizabeth Urlaub, and I met through a previous dating relationship I had. That gentleman was a bit older than I and had friends from a variety of places. Elizabeth was invited to a Christmas party that he was hosting and as the girlfriend, I played hostess. Elizabeth and I are opposite in many ways and those different characteristics make our friendship the strong and beautiful business partnership that we enjoy. She is the peanut butter to my jelly!! And as not every relationship works out, when the gentleman and I stopped dating, she and I stayed close in our friendship and I would pose that I got the best end of the deal!
Contact Info:
- Website: legaciesbylaura.com
- Instagram: @legaciesbylaura
- Facebook: facebook.com/legaciesbylaura/