We were lucky to catch up with Ali Tso-Longo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ali, thanks for joining us today. Do you take vacations? How do you keep things going – any advice for entrepreneurs who feel like they can’t step away from their business for a short vacation?

I highly recommend taking vacations! As a productive business owner, it’s so easy to run myself to the ground and feel like I can’t step away from my work. But what I’ve learned is that rest and relaxation is what fuels my creativity! I feel like my best self when I am fully rested. I love to experience new places and environments that flood my mind with new thoughts and perspectives. I notice that when I am rested then I come up with so many new ideas and inspirations. I believe that taking vacations is very important for my mental health and for my business. It allows me to show up fully present, joyful, and energized for my clients.

Work will always be there. Your clients are still going to want to use you as their photographer. They know your work and they will wait. Take your breaks! You owe it to yourself, and you owe it to your clients to be your best self. We are in this business serving people with the best experience!

Ali, 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?

I am an Arizona native photographer, specializing in portraits, fashion, commercial, brand, and lifestyle photography. I have a passion for people and seeing the beauty in life, while helping others look and feel their absolute best. I’m easily inspired by joyful moments, and I love capturing beautiful, timeless, and unique photographs.

People ask me if I’ve always loved photography, but the truth is I didn’t pick up my first camera until after college! I grew up doing gymnastics and competed through college. Once I completed my bachelor’s in psychology, I went on to graduate school with a sports psychology career in mind. I had expressed an interest in photography, but I had no idea that I would fall in love with it!

So I ditched the program and went all in on my love and passion of this creative outlet. My absolute favorite part of photography is capturing beauty, joy, color, and those candid in-between moments.

I think it’s SO incredible that I get to celebrate and document tangible moments that people can cherish for a lifetime. Photography is becoming the most rewarding career I’ve ever experienced. I get to meet so many people and hear their stories, and there are always new things that I learn from the people I meet.

I keep my photoshoots very playful and light-hearted. It should be fun!! And I want everyone to leave feeling confident and inspired.

I feel so blessed to have discovered this love for photography and to have the freedom to shape my life. I want my gifts and talents to bring joy to God and others. I’m so grateful to be on this journey and I can’t wait to create stunning photos and memories with the people I meet.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Yes it did! I was working at a chiropractic clinic when I picked up photography as a hobby. I instantly fell in love with it and thought, “What if I could do this as a career?” I kept practicing photography on my family and friends, posting my work on social media, and continually growing my skills and passion for it.

As my experience grew, so did my career. I began photographing models and building my portfolio until my work got noticed by modeling agencies and other future clients. It was such a milestone and great feeling that fueled me to keep going!

I eventually got too busy with my business to continue working another job. That’s when I knew it was time to take the leap of faith and go full-time as a portrait photographer. I have no regrets!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I love feeling excited by an idea or spark of inspiration! To be honest, I rarely walk into a photo shoot with a clear idea or objective. I like to connect with my subject first, get a feel of their personality, then create from there. It’s so fun that way! Every shoot feels so different and unique, but it still has my artistic style to it.

Photography is rewarding because I get to freeze a moment in time that captures a story, an emotion, and pure essence of someone’s soul. It has the power to tell a story, spark conversation, and capture beauty and joy.

Photography is a creative’s playground! I get to play with light, color, composition, unique perspectives, different personalities, and then paint it all into a final photograph. Seeing the impact it has on other people is incredible. Clients tell me how fun and easy the experience was, and then show me photos hung up in their homes. They are memories that they cherish them for a lifetime. It is deeply fulfilling and I am so thankful!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.alitsophoto.com
• Instagram: @alitsophoto
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/alitsophoto
• Linkedin: Ali Tso

Image Credits
Ali Tso Photography, LLC