We recently connected with Lynn Kile and have shared our conversation below.

Lynn, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

While I actually never had any intentions of doing so, I am very happy being a business owner.

It is unquestionably hard work. When you work for yourself (and work from home!), it’s easy to blur the lines between personal and business time. It’s easy to find yourself answering an email at the dinner table with family, replying to a text at a concert, or lying in bed creating new content for your socials at midnight. It’s also easy to feel guilt when you are out doing personal things, and letting your business be on the back burner for a few hours.

I would say though, that it’s also incredibly rewarding. I am fortunate enough to have had a “regular job” – so I know that it is definitely not for me. I enjoy working with the clients my business attracts, I very much enjoy creating beautiful works of art with them – and seeing their excitement when they see their images come to life. I love making my own schedule and having the flexibility to be there with my husband, our kids and families when I want, and when they need me. Both my mother and my youngest brother passed away in the last two months – and both services required out of state travel – it was a relief to not have to worry about taking more bereavement time off 3 short weeks after taking time off the first time. I love that I don’t have to punch a clock and be a slave to someone else’s business. I love that I never had to miss a school performance, dance competition/recital or ball game.

All that being said, at the beginning of the pandemic, when we were unsure of how things were going to go – and what the shutdowns were going to mean to small businesses, I did have that panicked “Oh no, what if I have to get a job” conversation in my head. It just made me more determined to keep my business up and running and not ever have to work for someone else again!

Lynn, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was born and raised in Connecticut. I got my first camera when I was 10 years old – when my baby brother was born. I loved taking pictures of him! My first photography job came when I was 18 years old. Over the years, I worked at several retail portrait studios – including Glamour Shots, Picture People and Sears. After my son was born, I took a position with a local photography studio as an assistant wedding photographer. Within a couple of months, I went from being an assistant, to a second shooter and to the main photographer. I continued to photograph weddings for several years until I realized that it wasn’t as fulfilling for me as I anticipated it would be – I missed photographing babies! By this time it was 2009, and I had some friends who had new babies, so I had them come over to my house and I started practicing away – with a bed sheet, a table, some baskets, headbands and hats! From there, my business grew organically – and quickly! In the beginning of LPP, I photographed just about any and everything from babies to big kids to seniors to weddings, engagements, events, maternity and families! Soon I realized that it’s babies and maternity that is most satisfying for me to capture.

In 2017, my family relocated to Rapid City, South Dakota. I didn’t have as much success with photography there – but it was mostly due to some changes in my personal life that were happening at that time. While I did have a full-time 9-5 job during the time (which was torture!), I was also able to photograph many babies and mamas in my spare time while I lived there, though!

In 2019, we relocated again back to the East Coast – this time to Fayetteville, Ga. At first, I had a part time job here while I was working on launching my business. But I quickly decided that I just needed to put 100% into the business! So I did just that! In May of 2019, I did a Starbucks themed cake smash session that went viral. While it didn’t really bring BOOKINGS and clients my way, it did bring a good bit of brand awareness to LPP – which of course, having only been here for 2 months, I definitely needed!

Since moving to the Atlanta area, I have focused my brand on luxury portrait sessions for maternity, newborns and cake smashes. I am a full-service studio, so I provide everything needed for the clients full experience. Maternity sessions include hair, makeup and full access to our wardrobe selection that includes dozens of couture gowns, bodysuits, fabrics and jewelry. Newborn sessions include all of the backdrops, props and accessories needed. Cake smash sessions include the set designed to my clients request, a matching outfit for the baby to wear and the cake. I like to make it as easy for my clients as I can! I always provide snacks/drinks as well. I offer my clients gorgeous heirloom quality products that are not available to the general public – including beautiful acrylic covered album sets, matted print collections and wall art. (and digitals are always included with those options – so it’s the best of both worlds!)

Over the years, I have taken dozens of training classes, workshops, online courses and 1:1 mentoring with some of the best photographers in the industry – and from around the world. Being the best at what I do is important – and with babies especially, being safe and educated on babies and thier posing is a top priority.

My clients are always commenting on how much they enjoyed their experience with me, how easy and convenient it is to just be able to show up, and let me take care of all the details for them. They always feel pampered and taken care of, as if they are the only client I have. And they RAVE over their amazing printed products!

P R I N T S are so so so important – especially in the quick-changing world of digital media. I have a storage unit FULL of mini-camcorder movies, floppy disks and CDs full of pictures – and no way to view them. Computers aren’t made with CD drives anymore – and USB ports are phasing out as well. (My new MacBook doesn’t have any already!) Losing a hard drive full of precious memories is always one wrong click away! But a gorgeous album full of the beautiful memories of your pregnancy and newborn – those are forever. You can enjoy them every single day – and pass them down to your children and grandchildren – who will LOVE to look through them. You never have to worry about them not working, being obsolete or accidentally getting erased! Beautiful wall art brings a smile to your face and heart every time you walk in the room. Memories are so important – and it’s even more important to enjoy them every day – rather than store them in a desk drawer – or storage unit!

When I take off my LPP hat, I enjoy spending my time with my husband and our blended family of 5 amazing children – 4 of which live with us. Much like owning your own business, having 3 teenagers at home is challenging and rewarding all at the same time!

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

There’s no better referral source than word-of-mouth recommendations from current clients! Additionally, maintaining an active and up-to-date website and SEO (search engine optimization) is majorly important to business health as well!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Back in the day, social media growth was easy and organic. Now, it is another full-time job! I think the best advice is : don’t put all of your eggs into one basket. While it is seriously so much work to maintain several social media channels, it’s imperative. Regularly posted content relevant to your brand and audience is important – and so is interacting with your followers.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lynnpuzzo.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/lynnpuzzophoto
• Facebook: Facebook.com/lynnpuzzophotography
• Twitter: twitter.com/lynnpuzzophoto
• Other: TikTok : tiktok.com/lynnpuzzophoto

Image Credits
Headshot : Bianca Hubble The rest were taken by me, of course