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

Brittany, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I had always been interested in photography, and I took many graphic design and marketing classes during college that allowed me to explore this interest. Once I had my own children and wanted to document every moment of their lives, this interest really became a passion. In September 2020, I bought a really nice, professional camera to take pictures of my boys and learn more about the photo editing process. After editing the first set of photos taken with my new camera, my husband asked why I had never considered professional photography as a side hustle. To be honest, it was something I had considered before, but my own self-doubt always kept me from pursuing it further. After a few weeks of encouragement on his part and feeling more confident with each photo I took, I finally relented to my husband, who to me to “just give it until the end of the year.” I started a photography Facebook page and advertised my services in my local neighborhood. I booked my first client, a senior photo session, and it exploded from there, primarily through word-of-mouth and social media. Little did I know between October and December of 2020, I would have multiple photoshoots each weekend and clients booking into 2021. It’s been thrilling, stressful, challenging, but most of all, overwhelmingly fulfilling.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a natural light, lifestyle photographer based in Hall Co., Georgia, serving the Northeast GA area. I focus on family, couples, maternity, & newborn photography. I am a wife and mom turned photographer, mostly because of the ‘mom’ part. Soon after having my own sons, I realized my love for capturing life on camera. I am married to my high school sweetheart, and we have two rambunctious, brave, loving little boys– and another on the way! By day, I teach 8th graders proper English and grammar (quite a task!), and I just finished my Educational Specialists degree in Secondary English Education. In my downtime (moments few and far between), I love reading thrillers, DIY-ing, and traveling with my family.

I am a big believer in the beauty of unplanned moments and the simplicity of lifestyle photography. I focus on storytelling through photography, and my photo sessions are a mix between unposed and effortless with a sprinkle of crafted moments. This balance allows me to capture a variety of images that you will fall in love with. I thrive off of the essence of the moment and the warmth of others, & I bounce that energy right back to you. My ultimate goal is to provide a relaxed, special photography experience and resulting photographs that my clients truly adore.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Since I started my business, I have always been a “yes” person. I will literally bend over backwards, making next to nothing in some instances, to photograph some clients. I took on every single session request and compromised on price and time, just to build my clientele. I thought this was how to build a business. And, in some ways, it did help build my business. However, it also backfired in a lot of ways. I began missing out on time with my own family in order to work, work, work and spend time with other families.

This changed this year around fall. I finally realized I needed to say “no” sometimes. For me, that little two letter word was extremely difficult to say. But when I finally did this, I learned that those clients that really value my work will still be there when I’m available. Setting those boundaries around my time, energy, and ultimately, my own family time, ended up being the best decision for my business. It’s built a clientele that is kind and understanding, yet committed to my work, while also allowing me the time to enjoy my own family and invest in the creative process for each photo session.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

As a full-time middle school teacher, even with three degrees, my salary was stretched thin. So when I first started my photography business, my intention was to make enough money to pay my student loan payment every month. With this idea in mind, I took on almost every client I could, for whatever amount, in order to build my business, but also bring in enough money to make that loan payment every month. Once I realized I had potential clients approaching me for photo sessions, instead of actively looking for families to shoot, I turned my attention to structuring my business. This included creating different photo packages with set pricing, building a website, and working to increase my presence on social media. For exactly two years, September 2020 to September 2022, I would teach all day and then shoot after work and on weekends.

Starting in July 2022, I was coming off maternity leave with my 3rd child, and I was feeling very down about returning to teaching in August. My husband and I sat down and really looked at the financials– the first time I really had since starting my photography business. This sounds crazy– I know. Two years into a business, and I JUST analyzed what I was bringing in and looking at how far I was booking out. But to be honest, I had never even considered quitting teaching and taking on photography full-time until I thought about leaving my littlest baby in daycare. After sitting down, taking a hard look at the numbers, and a lot of praying, we decided to take a leap of faith on my business, but also myself.

Making this decision was incredibly difficult for me. I absolutely love teaching. However, at this point in my life, I had the opportunity to stay home and raise my own children, something I never imagined I would be able to do. However, the hardest part of the decision was deciding to give up a guaranteed income and solely rely on myself and my business to provide. I’ve now been at home with my babies for 5 months, and the past 5 months have been the most successful months in the history of my business.

Contact Info:

• Website: photosbybmb.com
• Instagram: @photosbybmb
• Facebook: Facebook.com/photosbybmb