Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Emilie Becker. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Emilie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been one of the most interesting investments you’ve made – and did you win or lose? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)

The best investment I ever made was hiring my very first mentor. It was what led me to become a wedding and elopement photographer and I am not sure I would have ever done it, or been successful if I hadn’t stumbled on the opportunity. I was fresh out of college, working as a banquet server at a resort in Safety Harbor, FL, we did different events but mostly weddings. I saw so many wedding photographers and thought for so long, “I could do that” and one night out of the blue, I decided to approach the photographer from that night. I told him I was interested in becoming a wedding photographer and would love the opportunity to assist or shadow him. His answer was better than I could have ever anticipated. He told me he had a consulting program where I could build a portfolio under his weddings and he would teach me everything I needed to know about becoming a wedding photographer and help me set up my own business. That night on my drive home I finally felt like I knew what I was going to do with my life, I was going to be a wedding photographer and this guy just gave me the golden ticket. We met a few weeks later at his house and with my parents present and he told me we would pay him $5,000, I knew it was a lot of money but my parents agreed to help me by lending me the initial investment and it was more than worth it. I got everything he said I would get out of the investment and so much more. I ended launching my own business by the age of 22 and I also worked weddings he booked me out for, in the end he paid me more than I ever paid him and I have knowledge and experience that completely changed my life. Since that initial mentorship I have learned how invaluable learning from someone more experienced can be and I have made a couple more mentorship investments since then that have helped me further advance my career. I know that I will never stop learning and honing my craft because that is what makes a successful photographer, and person in life.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started taking an interest in photography in high school because of the black and white photography class I took. I am so incredibly grateful that I was able to develop my interest in photography with film photography before getting into digital. I was able to learn the entire process including developing my own black and white prints in the darkroom, which led me to have a great appreciation for where the art form came from. I went on to minor in photography in college and then landed an incredible mentorship that led me to becoming a wedding photographer. I later took a break from the business while I traveled the world for two years, still photographing but not full time. When I came back I converted a school bus into a tiny house so I could travel the country and photograph elopements all over the US with is where I am today!

Big World Photography was born because of my love of travel and photography. I wanted to combine the two into one, which is what I have been working on all of these years. One thing I thing is great about being a traveling elopement photographer, is that because I live on the road there isn’t really travel fees, it’s just my way of life. I am also constantly exploring and scouting new locations to suggest to my couples. I also feel like when a photographer is not constantly shooting in the same location over and over, their creativity gets to come out and show itself in their photos so much more.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I would say COVID was the biggest pivot point in my life. I had been in Australia and had been traveling for two years at that time when the world shut down. I had to make one of the hardest decisions of my life and that was to move back home with no money, no way to make money (photography obviously wasn’t booming at that point), and no car. I felt like everything had come to a halt and I feel a lot of people can relate. It took me a minute to figure out my next moves but eventually I bought a little camper and I moved out to Arizona where I fell in love with the dessert and realized that elopement photography was way more of a passion than big weddings. This is when I started my rebrand and relaunch of my business.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think I am happiest when I am creating. This goes way beyond photography. I love to create ANYTHING, this includes building (especially building my bus), cooking, photography, and so much more. I love the point where I can sit back and look at my work and say, “yeah, I did that.” I sit in my home (bus) every day and am amazed that I built such a beautiful space with my own two hands. It fills me with pride and makes it so much more comfortable. The same goes for my photography, I will spend hours simply going through and looking at my photos, barley believing that it was my eye that saw and captured a unique moment in time in such a beautiful way. When I capture these unique moments for my couples it is the most rewarding, especially when they express how much they love their photos. I will obsess over shoots and the images from them as if they were photos of myself. Sharing my art and appreciating it is what I live for.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bigworldphotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigworldphotography/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bigworldphotograph