We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anita McLeod. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anita below.

Anita, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?

We definitely take vacations. I wouldn’t really call them vacations though. More like adventures. I have this bug in me that just loves adventures. Aside from wedding photography, I love to get out in nature, and I have a small obsession with history and ghost towns, and abandoned anything. And Wild horses. My father in law doesn’t call me bucket list for no reason.

Although, I do have to say my mother has been a huge influence in my love of photography and going on adventures. She has her BFA in photography and is a huge nature buff as well. Being from Arizona, we definitely aren’t short of beautiful landscapes around here.

We have gone on a few adventures to Cabo, I finally got to see El Arco (the arch). We saw humpback whales while out fishing, and so much more! My husband is and has always been so supportive of my photography and adventuring. Our most recent trip was to Yosemite. I was just in awe of how beautiful it is there. One day I hope to make it back to photograph horsetail falls when the sun hits it just right and it looks like it’s on fire. Another reason I’m called bucket list.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a traveler, thrill seeker and nature enthusiast. I take that part of my soul and mix it with the passion for photographing people and those unique moments that are priceless and eternal. I promise you a unique experience, and treasured photographs, with an emphasis on you.
I am originally from Tucson, Az. Born and raised! I love nature and all of it’s beauty! I definitely love showcasing that beauty in my sessions! I also love the old film and classic look and portray that in much of my art. The deep tones, the dark and moody feel, the film grain, the gritty black and whites. I just love it all! I take my time and edit every session with a feel for the moment and the lighting. Because every session is so unique, every edit is unique to that session.

I began my love affair with the camera in 2009 when my mother was going to school for landscape architecture with her BFA in Photography. I would go with her on her assignments and she would help me with lighting, angles and all of the little details which are oh so important! I’m not going to lie, the amount of buttons and options compared to my little point and shoot model overwhelmed me when I dove into a real professional camera. But eager to learn, I read the manual from front to back, read books, and with my mothers help and some amazing groups of other professionals I joined, the more I became acquainted with my camera and learned how to manipulate it, the more I fell in love with the art of taking photographs. The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree because my grandfather was a first lieutenant in the Air Force and During WWII he took black and white photos from the airplanes during that time. And my paternal grandfather was an amazing artist whos art is hanging on my walls decorating my home. Spending time with him in his studio growing up has definitely been a big influence to my love of art. Today, I’m proud to say that I’ve had hundreds of fabulous human beings step in front of my lens. I do take a more stylized approach to my photography. Helping with outfit ideas to the perfect location. I think things through from start to finish, head to toe, foreground to background.

Why so thorough? Because I believe details are exceedingly important. For that reason, I work closely with my clients to ensure they look and feel amazing the day of our shoot. I love receiving texts and emails of what you plan to wear and bounce ideas off of each other. I also love hearing about all of the details of your wedding day, and love capturing those special candid moments. I love coordinating color schemes with clients that look amazing wherever you choose to shoot! Whether it be a local spot, or on a cliff somewhere in nature!

My specialties are Weddings, Elopements and Engagements. I also do Families, Seniors, Portrait sessions and Boudoir, I do spend my free time out in nature doing Landscape and Wild horse photography, and sell my fine art photos of them.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Just recently, I have had to pivot business and life. I’m still getting used to it, as I’ve had my business in the same area since I’ve started it.

I do have to say, I am very talkative and like to network, must be the hairdresser in me, and I have already met some people and started to network. I feel that you need to put yourself out there and don’t be scared to take the leap in!

The first person I met, led me to joining the Chamber here. I’m also already getting leads from using SEO and hashtags on social media. There’s also a festival coming up that I will have a booth at as well.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

I would have to say SEO from google search and Instagram have been my biggest source. As well as my hair clients when I did hair.

It’s important to blog as regularly as you can. And use verbiage all over your website relevant to your area. I also think a google business listing helps tremendously as well. They say the key is to blog at least once a month.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.anitamcleodphotography.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/anitamcleodphotography
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/anitamcleodphotography
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/AnitaMcPhoto
• Other: Tik tok I don’t post too often @anitamcleodphotography

Image Credits
Headshot credit Ali Tso Photo Instagram: @alitsophoto