We recently connected with Brittany Herd and have shared our conversation below.

Brittany, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, let’s jump into one of the most exciting parts of starting a new venture – how did you get your first client who was not a friend or family?

In 2017 my husband and I were living over 720 miles from the place we called home and he lost his job. We needed something to fill in the gap before we could move back. Since I had a background in photography, I thought it might be a way to make some extra money.

I found a man on Facebook, a police officer, who was willing to trade his Canon 40D DSLR for my Canon G11 point and shoot. The trade made no sense if you were to examine it from his perspective. But that simple but unexpected exchange was the diving board in launching my business almost 8 year ago. I have no idea why he wanted to make that trade, but I am so glad he did. It was truly life changing for me, I don’t know where I would be today without that.

That trade gave me the chance to post an ad on Facebook for $25 photo shoots. I did one family session, and it was an absolutely miserable experience, but I jumped in head first when we moved back home and just never lost the momentum from that moment on.

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?

Hi, I’m Brittany. I’m a Photographer/Videographer specializing in Weddings, Engagements, and Seniors.
Growing up with a Professional Photographer Mom and Professional Videographer Dad, both photography and videography were something that came so natural to me that I never really considered it as a business.

I knew my whole life that I would end up in a creative field and that I wasn’t cut out for a traditional job. However, I was a natural entrepreneur all the way back to age 5 when I bought and sold antiques in my own booth at my parent’s antique mall.

When an unexpected financial situation caused my husband and I to have to have to rethink everything, I fell back on what came naturally. Photography. I had been doing it off and on for friends for a few years without ever considering it as a career choice.

It’s really silly to think about how oblivious I was to that possibility for so long. But it just really all happened in God’s timing that the idea came to me when I needed it most.

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

The type of marketing that works for other Photographers and Videographers has never been true for me. I have never had a lot of success with word of mouth or vendor referrals. Often times my couples are older, 30s to 60s, so they may not have a lot of other friends getting married at the same time. I tend to attract a lot of more introverted clients. And I am often the big splurge for my couples, rather than working with dozens of other vendors on the day of. I love backyard weddings and elopements that tend to be on the smaller side.

Since Day 1, my primary source of advertising has been Facebook. I am in as many Wedding groups and other local Facebook groups as possible. And I’ve created two local Wedding groups of my own. This gives me the opportunity to send a welcome message to new members where I share a casual introduction of myself and my services. This has led to a surprising number of bookings.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

My dad, as a Professional Videographer, had always told me he would never do Weddings, because of Bridezillas. That was what I always assumed Weddings were like. High pressure, and angry people, and big, difficult personalities.

However, when I decided to take a chance and start offering weddings myself, not long after launching my business (don’t recommend taking weddings without a lot of experience but it did work out for me), I quickly realized that real Brides weren’t like the stereotype.

I am sure there are some difficult to work with Brides out there. But I have been absolutely blessed with the best clientele possible and have only had a few hiccups, which were easily resolved.

Weddings have been nothing like what I expected before I experienced them for myself. I am someone who typically strictly avoids anything with the slightest amount of pressure, but photographing and filming weddings just works for me. It’s something I never would have predicted. I absolutely love every minute of it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://resonateweddingsphotofilm.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/resonateweddings
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/resonateweddings/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@resonateweddingsphotofilm

Image Credits

Resonate Weddings Photo & Film