We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vivek Narula a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Vivek, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Often the greatest growth and the biggest wins come right after a defeat. Other times the failure serves as a lesson that’s helpful later in your journey. We’d appreciate if you could open up about a time you’ve failed.

I had just started out as a portrait photographer, and I was going to do a portrait session for a business woman who I had met through a networking group. As a thank you, she’d get complimentary hair and make-up, as well as a complimentary portrait from the session. If she wanted to purchase any additional photos, she could, but there was pressure to do so.

She was excited and said, “Yes, let’s do the session!”

Before she came into the studio, I did a pre-shoot consultation with her to walk her through my process and go over my price list if she decided to purchase any additional images. She was fine with everything.

We did the shoot, had a great time and everything went smoothly! When I showed her the images at her reveal session, she liked a lot of them. When she asked how much it would cost, I went over my price list again and told her the amount.

She immediately said out of anger, “I’m not paying that!”

I was shocked. I told her the reason I go over my price list prior to a shoot is solely for this reason: So there are no surprises!

She wasn’t having any of it. She started saying my work wasn’t that good and that she wouldn’t pay me more than $250 for all the images she wanted. She was trying to guilt me into lowering my prices for her!

Later, she called her husband and made me talk to him too. There were like a tag team! It totally blindsided me.

If she had been my first client, I would have caved in and given all her favorite images for free just to avoid the shame and guilt.

Fortunately, I stood my ground! I didn’t cave. It just so happens that a few weeks before this upset client, I had photographed another woman who not only paid me in full, but told me she got way more value from her portraits than what I was charging her! In other words, I should charge people more!

So what did I learn from this so-called bad experience? It was a blessing in disguise! It taught me that just because one person does not see the value in what you do, it does not mean others won’t. The right clients will see it and gladly pay for it! And those that aren’t won’t!

Vivek, 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 love making people feel beautiful! That’s my WHY! While I shoot portraits for both men and women, I particularly love to photograph women (especially women who haven’t been professionally photographed before) and make them feel beautiful and empowered. We’ll capture a day of laughter and transformation to be treasured for the rest of your life! And for anyone who tells me they don’t look good in photos, I like to challenge them and say: “Let me change the way you see yourself.”

I was born to East Indian parents in a small town called Chatham, about 3 hours west of Toronto, Canada. Though I am a Canadian by birth, my name definitely is not! It’s a Sanskrit word that means “wise discernment of the mind” and is pronounced Vee-vake.

I am a creative at heart. I spend my days as a portrait photographer in my natural light studio in Northeast Minneapolis creating legacy portraits for individuals and couples, as well as headshots and personal branding for business professionals, real estate agents and entrepreneurs from all walks of life. I am passionate about my craft and love getting my clients excited about having a portrait session with me! It can be a life-changing experience!

Though my first love is portraiture, I have a range of skills in my creative repertoire. I have worked as an illustrator, writer, videographer and an experienced real estate photographer for retail, commercial and residential properties.

Prior to my current role as a portrait photographer, I worked as a copywriter, a marketing manager and the director of an environmental non-profit.

When I’m not photographing clients, you can find me doing yoga, doodling, enrolling in online classes, hanging out with friends or family, or curling up with a good book on Eastern philosophy, thinking about my place in the cosmos.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Networking has been the most effective strategy for me. Building long-term business relationships with influential and connected people in my community has been vital.

Unless you meet people, they won’t know what you do, and unless people know you and trust you, they probably won’t want to get photos taken by you. Being in front of a camera can be a very vulnerable process!

And people have to know and trust you to take that leap!

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yes, you have to learn the art of photography AND the business of photography. As an artist, it can feel hard to get excited about taxes, spreadsheets, networking, marketing, in other words, the business side of your art.

But it’s important. Art and business are two wings of the same bird. Without them both, your business can’t fly!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.viveknarula.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/viveknarulaportrait
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/viveknarulaphoto
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivek-narula-6b215622/