We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jeffrey Tadlock. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jeffrey below.

Hi Jeffrey, thanks for joining us today. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today.

If I were starting over today on the path to generating income as a landscape photographer, I would have committed to the niche more fully in the beginning.

My roots with photography were from the film days, carrying a camera on a variety of backpacking and hiking trips over the years – from the bottom of the Grand Canyon to some of the highest summits in the Rocky Mountain National Park. It should have been obvious to me that my passion for photography is rooted in being in nature and photographing it.

But I took a long break from photography, and when I came back to it, I started taking photos of landscape scenes. As I decided I wanted to generate money from photography though, I steered away from landscape photography as it seemed easier to generate revenue from portraits and events. And I did that for quite a while – during that time I didn’t even take a camera out on hikes.

After time though I realized my heart was with landscape photography and I decided to shift my focus and put my time and energy into the pursuit of that. Back out in nature I went with my camera. Then I started a YouTube channel on the topic of landscape photography and leading small one-day workshops and moving on to multi-day regional landscape photography workshops.

Is it easy? No. But I find it so much easier to generate content, be engaging on social media, and even writing my bi-weekly landscape photography newsletters come much easier to me. I think the passion shows through, so while the road to sustainable revenue is harder, I think the path brings me much more enjoyment.

So if I were starting over today? I would have stuck with my initial love for landscape photography and not drifted away for a few years because I thought the money would come easier. I believe my energy for the genre of landscape photography would have shown through in all my work and accelerated my growth as a working landscape photographer.

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?

I am a landscape photographer based in Ohio. Many years ago my interests in hiking, backpacking, and rock climbing crossed with my interest in photography. To me, the camera functions as a tool or a good excuse to get outside and see new places in nature.

While I have had breaks from photography, sometimes lengthy, I keep coming back to the world of landscape photography. Blending the technical of the camera, the creativity of composing interesting photographs, and the chance to be outdoors is a big draw for me. It is nearly the perfect blend of pursuits.

I returned to photography about eight years ago and despite some forays into various other forms of photography, portraiture, events, etc. – I have come back to landscape photography as my primary genre for the reasons noted above.

A lot of my work with landscape photography is centered these days on helping others improve their photography. I do this through either a YouTube channel focused on the topic of landscape photography or through a variety of landscape photography workshop options I provide. I also have a bi-weekly email newsletter where I provide some behind-the-scenes and tips and tricks in regular mailings.

I believe one of the fundamental elements of taking good photos is understanding the basics of the camera. Not that being technically adept at using a camera makes you creative, but more that knowing the camera will help the tool stay out of the way and unleash real creativity.

Once a person understands the basics of exposure, well-focused images, and camera settings that can creatively enhance an image, I think photographers are well-positioned to elevate their work. The camera is no longer an obstacle but a tool that you can hopefully use as an extension of yourself.

I attempt to help photographers understand some of these elements better through my YouTube channel where I cover a lot of camera basics and more advanced topics. I also discuss various pieces of camera gear and how they can help (or hurt) your photography, plus behind-the-scenes from my own photography travels.

My in-person landscape photography workshops are generally kept to a small number of participants to ensure I have time to deliver personalized attention during the course of the workshop.

I work with workshop participants to be confident in the use of their camera and then move into more creative elements – such as composition and other related topics.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media today is so different than the social media of the past (and will continue to evolve). I think all entrepreneurs and creatives have a love-hate relationship with social media. With that said it is still one of the best ways to get attention for your work, services, or product.

Here is my advice for creatives and entrepreneurs working to build their social media followings. First, don’t get frustrated. Yes, organic reach is not what it used to be on social media platforms. But it is still more than nearly any other option.

Next, put the social back in social media. There are two elements to this.

The first is, if someone takes the time to comment on your post, your story, or your reel – like their comment and reply to them! Make time each day to work through your notifications and give that person an actual reply.

Someone took time to pause their scroll, do more than just click the heart or like button, and actually typed out a comment. Take the time to respond to them. Be social.

Next, also take time to engage with other people’s content. Take a little time each day, maybe while you are waiting in line, waiting for an appointment, etc., and open up your preferred social media platform and be social with other people’s content. Comment on their post, comment on their story, comment on their reel.

I can’t guarantee record social media followers, but I can say you will be building online relationships and fans. Engaged followers are worth much more than the sheer number of followers.

My final piece of advice is to think of yourself as a content creator – whether you are selling a service or product, these days you are a content creator first, the product or service comes next.

It doesn’t all need to be highly curated, marketing-perfect content. People enjoy the behind-the-scenes of what your day looks like or see that you’re struggling with the same things they are in your day-to-day life.

But really try to get content out regularly. Think about some of the favorite people you like to follow – are their posts all business or is it more a look into their world?

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

The chosen path as a landscape photographer is not an easy one. I think multiple revenue streams for any entrepreneur are important and certainly for a professional landscape photographer.

I have a variety of revenue streams and have plans for several more. This in the long run will help smooth out ups and downs along the way.

For example, I have ad revenue from YouTube, affiliate revenue streams from people clicking my links after consuming my content, I have revenue from landscape photography workshops – group and 1-2-1 options, and the occasional print sale or annual calendar. Beyond those, I also do some writing for photography-based websites that provide some form of payment as well.

The key point is, life as an entrepreneur or small business owner has its risks. Diversifying income across multiple sources can help provide some stability or at the very least buy some time if a primary source of income sees a sudden decrease for some reason.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jeffreytadlock.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeffrey_tadlock/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeffreytadlockphotography
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffreytadlock/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeffreyTadlockPhotography