We recently connected with Kinsey Gibson and have shared our conversation below.

Kinsey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us a bit about who your hero is and the influence they’ve had on you?

Who is your hero and why? What have you learned from them?

The benefit of finding your passion at a young age is having experts go before you and show you the way. There are quite a few people I look up to but one sticks out! Ya see I have had multiple side jobs while trying to figure out the whole business thing, one of them being babysitting. I did this to make some extra cash because honestly I was scared to go for my dream of supporting myself through photography. It was not the most fulfilling season of life but if I had not done this I wouldn’t have met Meg Renninger, my hero.

During the time I was babysitting for her, she periodically checked on my business and provided me with constructive criticism. Meg was always looking for ways to help me. For example, she asked me to shoot content for her business. This was something I had never done before but wanted to get into. Because she has done so much for me, I wanted to do the session for free but she wouldn’t have it. Like I said, she is the best.

Through her advice and mentorship, I quit babysitting and pursued full-time photography. Her role transitioned from my boss to my business mentor. Now, she meets up with me every two weeks to challenge and cheer me on. Oftentimes, I was scared of investing money in something that would help my business but she encouraged me to do it anyways. (Spoiler alert: She was right.) I have found that finding a mentor in the same industry will put you on the fast track to success. Entrepreneurship is difficult, but it is fulfilling when you have people in your corner showing you the ropes. Meg was not obligated to pour into me, but she chose to. Because of her influence, I will be intentional with helping business owners that come after me.

Go check out her amazing business at “Southside Plants”

Website: https://southsideplants.com

Instagram: @southside_plants

Facebook: Southside Plants

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 started photography when I was just a kid with an iPod camera. Talking my friends into dressing up and taking photos was what I liked to do for fun. I mean it still is, don’t get me wrong, just now it’s with paying clients! In high school, I decided to take photography more seriously by taking classes and learning the basics. I quickly realized I was one of the few people in the class that was taking it seriously. After that I started to have paid opportunities, which was pretty cool for a 15-year-old with no other job experience. Fast forward to graduating high school, I went to community college and jumped from side job to side job, never feeling fulfilled.(It’s like there was something else I should’ve been doing… don’t worry, I eventually figured that out.) In the fall of 2020, I had more business than ever and it just went up from there. I shifted my business from general portraits to wedding photography. Couples photography is my jam. In 2020 I shot 4 weddings, in 2021 I shot 11, and now, at the beginning of 2022, I have 14 weddings on the books. I am PUMPED about this!

Soooo why do I do this whole thing in the first place? I’m glad you asked. My favorite thing in the world is human connection. Photography has allowed me to meet so many incredible humans. My job is to connect with people and photograph their connection with each other.

I love incorporating storytelling into my shoots. This allows my couples to relive their best memories while creating new ones. I know how awkward taking photos can feel, so I make sure to hype up and make my clients feel comfortable. I truly believe I have the coolest job.

Alright now that you know about me, I’d love to meet you! I currently shoot wedding photos and videography, engagements, couple portraits, senior portraits, and family portraits. I am also expanding into branding and headshot photography. Let’s do this!

Wedding photos: starting at $2,500
Wedding Videos: starting at $1,500
Portraits sessions: starting at $300
Branding session: starting at $800

The best way to contact me is via contact form on my website or via email “hello@kinslens.com”

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

This is a wild story. I had an engagement session with a bride and groom whose wedding was coming up. We ditched the norm and decided to shoot in a bar! It’s where they met and we wanted to recreate their first memories together. I, a 20 year old girl who can’t even drink, showed up to the bar early and had to explain the situation to the bartender. Luckily, he was chill about it. As we were shooting, everyone recognized the couple because the groom used to work there. Let me tell ya, it felt like we were in a movie. Everyone was watching us. I even had a guy interrupt the shoot to tell me about his daughter’s newborn photo business. I had to respectfully tell him I needed to get back to work. Anyways, there was another guy who was really invested in the shoot. He told the groom that he wanted to talk to me afterwards. This man then told me he was getting married and he loved the way I shot. I had a business consultation with this new couple in the middle of the bar. They booked me and were such great clients. Their family made me feel like family throughout the whole process. This is definitely my favorite sales story. It reminds me to always be kind to people because you never know who could become your future client.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I know this story kinda drags in comparison but stay with me – it’s good stuff.

Last year I felt defeated. I questioned whether I wanted to continue running my own business or find another path. I constantly felt inadequate. I felt this way because I was looking at business from the wrong perspective. I waited and expected business to come to me. I have found that this is a common trend among less successful business owners. I talked to trusted mentors about this, and they changed my perspective by showing me how cool my life could be If I became a #girlboss. The important lesson I learned is: to succeed, you have to put yourself out there! Practical ways I did this was doing free shoots for couples who fit my brand, building an email list, marketing sessions to the list in advance, and taking good care of my current clients. I continued to do this and have gained a lot of business from this.

Contact Info:

• Website: kinslens.com
• Instagram: @kinslens
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kinslens

Image Credits
Headshot Image Credit: MADSHEWMEDIA