We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gabriela Maldonado. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gabriela below.

Gabriela, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the best thing you’ve ever seen (or done yourself) to show a customer that you appreciate them?

Client experience and appreciation ranks very high in my business. The relationships I build with my clients are something I value deeply. My goal is to never make my couples feel like I am a random someone who shows up to their wedding day (one of the biggest days of their lives) with a fancy camera only because I am getting paid for it.

My client experience starts from the initial email where I respond back to their inquiry thanking them for reaching out and asking them about their love story, the proposal, what they love to do on date nights, etc.

From then on we book a zoom consultation because connections are everything. I want to get to talk to my couples and make sure we both feel a chemistry!

A couple of emails back and forth to start ironing out the details of the wedding and they then receive a care package from me. I love gifting my couples a welcome package because it shows how much I appreciate them for trusting me to photograph their love story. It’s an honor to be chosen to document someone’s life and I don’t take that lightly. I try to switch up what I include in every couple’s care package but for the most part I add a personalized thank you card, one of my favorite marriage-positive books, a ring dish and more!

Showing appreciation is not just about gifting but also about being available to answer any questions along the way. Because of this, I try to keep my response time between 24-48 hours whenever possible.

As we get closer to the wedding I start emailing wedding planning tips that can help streamline the photography aspect of their wedding. I also like to check in with them every 3 months or so leading up to the wedding then monthly, and then every two weeks and so on.

For me, client appreciation is more than gifting. It’s letting them know I am there every step of the way. I am available to guide them and help make their wedding experience with me a positive one.

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

I’m Gabriela but you can call me Gaby! I started my photography business in 2018 focusing on families, maternity, birthday sessions and couples. I found myself gravitating towards couples and then eventually weddings.

I LOVE love stories! I noticed I felt happy connecting with in-love couples that didn’t necessarily know how to pose in front of the camera but trusted me to help their vision become a reality. I consider myself a warm, approachable and welcoming person and that is what has helped me stand out to my clients. It’s certainly not natural to have a camera pointed at you for an hour let alone an 8-hour day. I like using my strength of making others feel comfortable around me and my positive attitude to bring out that natural awesomeness that my clients have.

My photography style is light and vibrant. My main focus is to make a wedding day look exactly how it looked like in person but with a slight pop of color and more brightness. I love bringing in a mix of both posed and candid photos to a wedding gallery that adds variety to the day.

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

People connect with people, not with a business necessarily. I’ve chosen to show a lot of my face on social media especially with my line of business which can be very personal. I’m asking couples to kiss in front of me and to share their personal stories. Because of this, it’s important that they feel comfortable and feel like they know me in order to have that type of natural relationship blossom.

My advice to those starting out if to show your face more often. Get on your “stories” and talk to your audience. Get a professional branding session done with a variety of photos you can post throughout the season. Create “Get To Know Me” posts regularly. Especially if your following continues to grow.

You will start to see that more people will begin reaching out to you because they feel a connection with you. I’ve had clients tell me they booked with me because they felt like they already knew me from social media. That is the biggest compliment because that has always been my goal. Is more than a business for me. It’s about creating genuine connections.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I’d be lying if I said I have a specific goal in mind or just one mission driving my creative journey. I have so many in mind that I don’t know which one will actually be the one that happens.

That being said, I really enjoy building others up and encouraging. The same way I encourage my couples and create a positive experience for them, I eventually want to do the same for up and coming wedding photographers to thrive in their own businesses.

One of my goals is to establish an educational side to my business that can teach and inspire photographers. Whether that be one-on-one mentoring sessions, digital courses or digital products. It’s still something that for now is just a thought but I would evently like to shift my business’ focus to in the future.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://snapshotsbygabriela.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/snapshotsbygabriela/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/snapshotsbygabriela

Image Credits
Snapshots By Gabriela