We recently connected with Abigail Saalfrank and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Abigail , thanks for joining us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

I actually have a degree in secondary education as well as a master’s in English, so having a regular job is something I could easily do, and actually have done in the past! I opened my business in 2014, and when COVID hit in 2020, there was a lot of unknown. I had just bought a house, and knew I had bills to pay, so I actually went back and taught for a year until business picked back up! I actually really loved teaching when I recieved my degree, and debated heavily on whether doing photography full-time was the right move for me, so Covid gave me the chance to go back and see what my life would be like if I did work a normal job.

I ended up teaching for only the one school year, and then immediately went back to full-time photography. While having a consistent income is nice, and working for someone else, meaning you can actually close out, and not have everything on your shoulders, was also nice, being a business owner is just the perfect fit for me. I love setting my own hours, working when I want to, and how much I want to. It is just so much better for me!

This choice was also heavily reiterated last year when I had my daughter. I took 4 months off from work, and it was so nice to be able to fully soak in my newborn. All of my friends and family who work a regular job were lucky to take six weeks, while I enjoyed my 4 months. I was also able to take fewer weddings and do less business last year, too, to give myself time to adjust to being a mom and a business owner, and I was so thankful for this! Being a business owner is the perfect fit for me, but also is the perfect fit for my family.

Abigail , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

You are probably assuming my about me section will have a story about how I always wanted to be a photographer, I came out of the womb holding a camera, but that couldn’t be me. I stumbled into it, literally. I had no plans to become a wedding photographer. I was either going to follow my dad’s path and go to dental school or become a social worker. But as a freshman in college decided to shoot a few photos for fun, and now, over twelve years and 250+ weddings later, I could not imagine myself doing anything else. This was the best stumble ever!

Some of the things that set me apart from other photographers come down to not only what I offer my clients, but who I am. As far as what I offer my clients, the biggest thing that sets me apart is that I offer Client for Life Mini sessions. Every spring and fall I do a day of mini sessions for my past wedding clients to get updated photos. It is so much fun to catch up and meet all the littles my clients are adding.

As far as other things, I also offer a ton of planning resources to my brides. I am hands-on in timeline help and making sure they maximize their photography coverage, and I have a super quick turnaround so my clients aren’t waiting for their photos!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Your former clients will speak about you, and it is your job to make it positive! My biggest referral is past clients, which is why I go so above and beyond for them, as well as do everything I can to make sure they have a great experience!

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I have found that people who work normal jobs tend not to really grasp my job and all that comes with it. While my life may look like I work fewer hours because I took a target run at noon on a Monday, they don’t see the long, crazy hours I am putting in. The times I am staying up till 2 am to finish a gallery, or the hours I am spending culling and editing photos. Being self-employed looks so glamorous to everyone on the outside, but it is seriously so hard! Everything is on you; I am a total one-man show, so it means I have to work my butt off to make things happen. It also means I have to work my butt off to make an income since it is just me. If I don’t work, I don’t make money, so it means taking weddings and missing family gatherings to pay your bills. It can be really hard, but it is also so rewarding.

Contact Info:

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