We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jennifer Sanders a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jennifer, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

The first time I felt the pull towards professional photography was during my time teaching Spanish at an elementary school. I found myself pursuing education about how to shoot well and how to edit proficiently. I had offered my skills as a fundraiser for the school and during that family session I realized, “I am totally limited by the camera in my hands! I need to say yes to leveling up.” So in 2018 I officially sent in my business name to the Minnesota Department of Revenue – and the journey began. I followed the advice of my mentors and built my website. After a few months of shooting family and portrait content, I was asked to photograph a wedding by friends of friends. Since that day, I have continued to photograph all three types of work and knew that as I kept doing my best and learning from others, I would become a better and better photographer. In 2020 I resigned from my teaching post – and a few weeks later the pandemic hit our nation. Though painful, I knew it was time to leave when my fall months had become overloaded with teaching and photography work. As a mom, I knew I never wanted to outsource the most important investment I will ever make in my life – which is into my marriage and my children! Knowing I was saying farewell to a steady paycheck was a bit unnerving, but I said yes to the flexibility of photography and have never looked back.

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?

Absolutely. As a wedding and portrait photographer, I consider it my job to serve and love people well through the entire process of booking, photographing the session, and delivering amazing images afterward. For me it’s not enough to simply be a friendly personality or to simply offer beautiful imagery – I want the experience from start to finish to feel so encouraging and so fun. I strive to do this by building trust. From the images you see on my website and instagram to the way I conduct myself with family members at a wedding, I am offering the same high level of service. I take the time to learn children’s names before sessions, to ask questions that help me to continue smoothly during family portraits at weddings, to listen to my couple’s stories even before they book with me. I think what sets me apart is my mindset – for me, photography is not a business, its a way I learn to serve and love better, and I mean that. My hope is always that everyone I interact with can feel my genuine desire to do just that – and to do it with grace and excellence.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yes! So by far the best thing any aspiring photographer can do after acquiring a camera (I mean even an entry level camera!) is having the humility to learn from other photographers. In my journey I did this partially and looking back I wish I had pursued it more fully. I say partially because I definitely had a deep hunger to be taught but I only did online courses. Don’t get me wrong, these courses from people like Amy & Jordan Demos and Katelyn James were amazing – I needed them. The caveat is that every photographer must realized that in the beginning of their journey they must pursue local business. Having local relationships with other photographers, vendors, and wedding industry professionals is how the luxury photographers can demonstrate such a high level of artistry and put on their own styled shoots for building their portfolio. Right now in the industry I see a lot of “content baiting.” What I mean by that is many people offer access to styled shoots for a price, and mention how it will boost any photographer’s portfolio. While this can be the right fit at the right point in the journey (or for example, if you are pivoting to shoot destination weddings or moving to a new city and want to photograph at that location) I think a more solid approach is actually local connections. Find florists and event planners that are just starting out and do your own styled shoot. Join a Facebook group and offer yourself as a second shooter so that you can learn and meet other photographers. It’s simple but it’s not easy to be consistent in reaching out. But the payoff is so big! I planned a styled shoot with a florist who has become a friend of mine and she is absolutely crushing it now – its such a win-win!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Intriguing question. I had to unlearn my fear of other photographers. Unfortunately my first experience with hiring a second shooter was a disaster. It is industry standard that a second shooter works a wedding day for the lead photographer. This means a second shooter does not talk up their own business but is literally a representative for the lead. I found out through the venue that this person sent an entire gallery of images from the day – a huge unpardonable “sin” if you will – basically taking credit for the wedding. I was flabbergasted and tried restoring trust with this person, talking through my frustrations and hiring them another time but eventually had to move on. This really shook my confidence in reaching out to new photographers and just this past year I feel like I’ve actually changed my mindset. It is true that some people are not altruistic. In the photography industry so much relies on trust. I’ve made my own honest mistakes relating to other photographers as I grew. I’ve always returned to two pillars of what sets photographers apart: those who serve and love their clients & other vendors, and those who use their clients and other vendors. While this might sound kind of harsh, it quickly becomes known to other wedding professionals who is laying themselves down to really love and serve versus who is focused only on their own ambition and is ready to bulldoze other people.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jennifersandersphotography.com
• Instagram: @jennifer.sanders.photography

Image Credits
Image of Jennifer by Lacy of East Oaks Photography