We recently connected with Erik Jaworski and have shared our conversation below.

Erik, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

“ErikJawsPhoto”

Erik – My name. Born and raised in Chicago. I graduated from Hinsdale Central in 2011 and then went to Ithaca College for a degree documentary studies & Productions and a minor in theatre. After college, I was able to get employed by NBC Universal, and assist with set lighting and gear equipment for Chicago Fire, PD, & Med. In between my fulltime job, I purse my passion for photography and offer my services to those who need it. My other interests include video games, biking, tea, and cooking.

Jaws – My Nickname. Am I big shark fan? Not really. Do I like the Steven Spielberg blockbuster classic? Yes, but that’s not the main reason. Since my last name is Jaworski, many people struggled pronouncing it correctly. So I was often called ‘Jaws’. The word became my college nickname and also my DJ name on the local college radio station, VIC. After college, it just made sense to make that nickname be part of the brand for my photo business. I saw other classmates add a little personal touch to their business cards and felt that was something that pertained to me. Just please don’t send me any Baby Shark related content! Haha

Photo – My Job. It’s crazy to believe that my photo journey started with a small point & shoot camera and a high school English teacher who encouraged me to join yearbook. That was the spark that started my passion for photography. People loved my photo work and with their kind words of encouragement pushed me to borrow my mom’s DSLR camera and self teach myself. I took on It was only in college I took formal photography classes . After years of lessons and work experience, I’ve come to learn that photography is the perfect balance of both creativity and science. After college, I did attempt to offer photo and video services, but there was a bigger demands for photo. Took on gigs from headshots, events, cosplay and more.

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’ve been in the photography scene for many years. From takin on different gigs for my high school yearbook to artistic photo projects during college. When I graduated from college, I decided to provide my photography services to the Chicago area. I tried to get many jobs, whether it was headshots, events, etc. However, they weren’t the most reliable and often didn’t find client as easily. Overtime, I learned that cosplay was a good niche in to invest my photography work. Not only did I get repeating clients with different outfit, but I got to experiment more with different lighting techniques, composition and such that lead to many other photo project opportunities I wouldn’t have gotten if I followed the conventional route.. Overtime, my reputation grew in the cosplay community, and I became a well known name in the Chicago cosplay community. Then I got invited with Cosmeetups. This non profit organization helps host photo meetups for photographers and cosplayers to network outside of the con scene. And the group has grown so much from the meetups that we’ve made a presence in conventions and other opportunities for workshops and such, Every little step help me learn more and more about photography and learn from my different peers

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

I’ve often learned from my experiences and many other photographers that word of mouth is key to getting new client. That and just being a good person of character leads to great success. Many new clients who want to book me will reach out to my past clients to see about my services and try to assess if I’m a good match for their shoot. Often times with my outgoing and kind manner, they feel a connection that makes me a trusted and reliable source that they can trust to give them photos that they need.

However there are many photographers who can claim they are great with taking photos, but are not the best in “front of house” manner. Many are often are short of being professional or even sometimes present a negative and pessimistic persona on their social media. They seem to complain and bring down other photographers in their field, and that leads to them isolating themselves in their insecurities when other find great success.

In the end I go by my grandfather advice that “do a good job, and people will recognize it” and I just try to do my own thing and thankful that people recognize the hard work.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Every year or so, I try to challenge myself with something different for my photo business. It can be something whether learning, changing up, or doing something new to my practice. The first year with covid (2020), I decided to restructure my photo editing process by relearing Photoshop, learning masks and non desctrutive editive. In 2021, I decided to restructure my website and my client booking format by testing out different programs like PixelSet, Honeybook, PicTime, and such. In 2022, I bought a mirrorless camera and wanted to expand my portfolio with different subjects. In 2023, I tested myself into more offset flash work. It’s always good to test out and try something new to help improve your work and business to adept to the every increasing nature.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.erikjawsphoto.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagratwm.com/erikjawsphoto/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erikjawsphotot
• Linkedin: Erik Jaworski
• Twitter: https://x.com/erikjawsphoto
• Other: https://www.twitch.tv/erikjawsphoto
  https://www.tiktok.com/@erikjawsphoto

Image Credits

Insta: Fox (@ki_ann) , Hades (@madhattercosplays), NoFace (@littleviecosplay), Chicago Fashion (@artemismooncosplay), Konshu (@alucard1017)