We recently connected with Hannah Goodin and have shared our conversation below.
Hannah, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the story of how you went from this being just an idea to making it into something real.
We call it the “rainy day fund” and it was definitely downpouring the day I got furloughed. This was before I had my twin girls and during a pretty dark period in my career. I was and still am a full-time sports broadcaster and producer for Georgia Public Broadcasting in Atlanta, and I’ve previously worked with many major sports networks across the Southeast. When COVID hit in 2020 sports were completely shut down in Georgia, and I was told by my boss that our department was also closed for the foreseeable future. Well, it only took a few days out of work for me to start getting antsy. I began writing a list of things that I love to do, and photography was at the top! I’m always the one taking pictures on my phone and making sure to capture special moments for my friends and family. I then started seeing the “front porch pictures” on social media, and if you aren’t familiar with those it’s where photographers would go around capturing beautiful family photos for clients while being socially distanced from the front door of their homes. One of my friends had them done and I was shocked at how much she paid. I thought I can do that… but I’ll need a camera first! I did my research and decided on a Sony, which was way more money than I had anticipated. My husband, being the most supportive person on the planet, told me to use our rainy day fund and go for it. I started out doing a few free sessions for friends and family to build my portfolio, social media and website. I then had my first paying client within a month. Three years later, I’m now juggling my full time job in sports, a thriving photography side business and being a twin mom.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I call myself a light and bright family photographer! I specialize in connecting with families, especially young kids, to capture priceless memories for them. My love of photography began at just 10 years old when I was gifted an original Polaroid camera. I eventually upgraded to a purple digital camera that never left my side. After years of capturing my own life behind the lens, I decided to share my passion with others. My mission is to work with families on creating a fun and relaxing environment in order to provide an experience and product that they will never forget. Life goes by too fast and I aim to freeze a few of those precious moments in time. I don’t only photograph families though, I also love to capture love! Sessions like couples, motherhood, maternity, newborn and even pets are some of my favorites to do.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
The best sources of new clients for my business are social media and word of mouth, but let me take you through the process. I will have a potential client see my work on Instagram and reach out to me through my website portal. I will then set up a phone call to go over my entire process, expectations, locations, wardrobe, and any questions they might have. I’m a natural extrovert so having conversations with strangers is a strength of mine, that’s why I like to get a potential client on the phone. I like to make people feel comfortable with me, confident in my abilities and excited for their photo session. Getting the entire family ready for pictures can be very stressful, so I like to reiterate that once they arrive, I’ve got it all handled from there! I would say almost every client that I get on the phone ends up booking a session with me for a current or future date. I then provide a great experience and a beautiful digital photo gallery, and my clients post them on social media, which makes my day every time! That’s when the new inquiries start pinging my inbox. I also have many new clients reach out to me directly through my number or email because they have been referred to me. I even meet new clients at events I’m working, like birthday parties, small weddings, receptions, showers, etc. I love to talk to people and network in-between shots, and it’s easy when you’re constantly getting looks and questions about your job. I once had someone book me on the spot at an event when she looked up my Instagram!
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
I get asked a lot to do free photo sessions and I don’t think everyone understands what all goes into being a photographer. You don’t just pay for a fancy camera, show up, snap a few pictures then email them to your client later. That would be a dream workflow! For every 1-hour session there’s at least 6 hours of work I do behind the scenes transferring, culling, editing, exporting, uploading, delivering, posting, marketing, and updating everything. Photographers, please let me know all the steps I accidentally left out there! There’s also a much larger overhead than most people realize. My equipment, editing software, licenses, training, and digital services alone, not including all other business expenses, add up. Also, I know many amazing photographers who use purchased presets when editing, but I’ve created my own and hand-edit every single picture to perfection in my own unique style. So, if you’re ever wondering why photography can be so expensive it’s because of all those reasons.
Contact Info:
- Website: hannahgoodinphotography.com
- Instagram: hannahgoodinphoto
- Linkedin: Hannah Chalker Goodin
- Twitter: hannahcgoodin
Image Credits
I edited and own the rights to all pictures that have been uploaded.