We recently connected with Zaravia Loyd and have shared our conversation below.
Zaravia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’ve all been there before where things are tight financially and we start asking ourselves in the small/simple joys like a cup of coffee is worth it. Have you had an experience like this and if so how did you think about this sort of spending?
So there was a time where I was offered the opportunity to be a vendor for the first time. I saw this as an amazing opening to network and reach potential clients of course, however with this being my first time as a vendor, I HAD NOTHING FOR A SET UP. So it was either show up with just myself and my iPad or invest in myself and my business and take a leap of faith and go for it. So I bought everything, more business cards, decor, an acrylic sign, booklets, treats, EVERYTHING. Of course it hurt my pockets because having to buy so much at one time racks up but I saw it as an amazing opportunity and preparation for the next vendor event. On this entrepreneurship journey I’ve realized it’s not easy and sometimes you fail, sometimes you go in debt and it’s an emotional rollercoaster, but I’m embracing and loving the journey that I’m on. I continued to pray, stay faithful, work hard and be my authentic self.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
First things first, my name is Zaravia but I tell those that I woke with to call me Rai. I like to think of my clients as more than just clients, I want them to have an experience. I present my best self, to make them laugh, make them feel seen, have relatable conversations and of course take the best photos. My style of photography, I would consider it controlled candid, and documentary. I love to just be a fly on the wall during weddings and just capture authentic moments as they happen. However, for those who feel awkward in front of a camera that’s where the controlled candid aspect comes in. I’ll pose my clients, then tell them to do something or say something and catch their authentic reactions. My editing style would be romantic, warm and true to tone, but it honestly depends on the setting and the mood from the picture or session.
I also do logos and illustrations on the side which sort of happened by accident hahaha but my main source of business has been photography.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
When starting a business in photography, getting inquiries is exciting and I was use to the flow of things, but once I entered the wedding business I realized you get a lot more inquiries and back and forth than you do bookings. So in the beginning of this journey a new inquiry would get me super excited and I’d start moving 4 steps ahead in my head then I would get turned down or ghosted and I started to take it personal and would get discouraged. It took prayer and learning from other experienced wedding photographers that that’s part of this career, people price shop, and people ghost for numerous reasons, eventually I learned to not let that dictate my worth or my skills. I had to learn to not have expectations so that I don’t get disappointed, take every step for what it is, and enjoy the journey.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Honestly Facebook. I joined a lot of groups and I post my work and family and friends share. So something word of mouth brings business but joining groups definitely help. I did partner with The Knot and it’s brought in additional business.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.raiphotographyanddesign.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/raiphotographyanddesign?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/raiphotographs?mibextid=LQQJ4d