We recently connected with Cara Pencak and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Cara thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

When I first started my business, I was doing a lot of free photo sessions with my friends and family, just to gain more experience and build my portfolio. I was posting on instagram, my website was built, and I joined several facebook groups.

My first official client was a young couple that was getting married the following year. It was such a big deal for me! I was so excited and honored that this couple chose me to document their special day. Since then, my level of excitement for each new booking matches that of my first booking every time. It never gets old.

Cara, 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’m an Arizona portrait photographer. While I might be new to the business side of things, I’m not new to photography. Growing up, I practiced photography from high school and into college. It was only recently that I decided to make it official and start my business. When I created my business, I was looking for a creative outlet from my job in the medical field. So far, my business has given me just that and much more!

There are a ton of great photographers out there, so it’s incredibly important to stand out from the crowd. It may sound a little cheesy, but what makes my business unique is me. When clients inquire with me, I try to find something that we can connect on, whether it’s that they also have a cat or that we went to the same college. When I can connect with my client, everybody is so much more comfortable during their photo session, which makes for memorable, genuine photographs.

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

So, my answer is not that I had to unlearn something, but that I needed to realize that being a business owner is not the same as being an employee. Let me explain. Before starting my business, I went the typical route: obtain a college degree and work for someone else. While working for someone else, I need to be productive and get tasks done on time, but I’m not necessarily responsible for figuring out what those tasks are, so to speak. As a business owner, there is no one above me and therefore no one to figure out my tasks. It seems obvious now, but I had to learn this—and learn it pretty quickly. In other words, instead of sitting down and completing tasks as they come to me, I realized I needed to be more disciplined in scheduling my days, following through on that schedule, and completing everything that needs to be done. It definitely has been an adjustment, but one that was well worth it.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

Every single dollar needed to fund the start of my business was my own money. As I stated before, I have another job. Extra money from my paychecks went right back into my photography business. I’m not going to lie—it’s really hard, especially when you’re not seeing any return right away. But I kept doing it anyway. Photography is something that I really enjoy doing. I love connecting with people and capturing their memories. I know everybody might not have the same luxury as me, but if you do, just know that it’s worth it and you will start to see a return, as long as you continue to work hard and have patience.

Contact Info:

• Website: caraephoto.com
• Instagram: caraephoto

Image Credits
All photos taken and edited by me