We were lucky to catch up with Laura Vitale recently and have shared our conversation below.
Laura, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?
I’ve always been into photography. I picked up my first camera in 2004 at 15 years old. It remained a hobby of mine, as I was super critical and doubtful of myself, but I always knew that I wanted to be a professional photographer in some capacity.
I worked as a receptionist in the medical field from 20-26 years old and hadn’t really touched my camera much during that time. When I became pregnant with my daughter I was pretty sick and couldn’t really function at work. My husband and I sat down and discussed our options and I ended up quitting to become a stay at home mom, but my heart was drawing me back into photography. I started shooting friends’ and family’s photos while pregnant as I dipped my toes back in to the creative world. I practiced a TON on my daughter; I have an insane amount of photos of her haha. I taught myself the ins and outs of my camera, editing software and how to engage with clients for the best photo experience.
Fast forward to 2018 – I had enough experience under my belt where I felt confident enough to make the leap into officially starting my photography business. It was so surreal. I never thought I would have made my passion into my career, but here we are nearly 5 years later with a successful business!
Laura, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I specialize in portrait photography (mainly weddings and families) with a lifestyle/documentary approach. I am ALL about capturing people as their authentic selves so I love to get families or couples interacting with each other in fun or unique ways. I feel that capturing people in an organic way not only gives my clients beautiful photos, but an overall memorable and fun experience and it’s a total bonus for me to get my creative juices flowing!
I have made so many friends along this journey as I am truly getting to know my clients’ personalities, love stories and family dynamics.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Honestly, word of mouth! I have a lot of repeat clients that recommend me to friends, family, coworkers, etc. I can’t even describe how grateful I am that they support me in that way!
Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?
This has been something that comes naturally to me. It’s so important to me to get to know my clients personally to truly document their story with my camera. I’m also just genuinely interested in getting to know them – whether through email exchanged, following them back on instagram and relating to them through parenthood, marriage, etc. I have many clients that have become such close friends of mine and continue to work with me year after year.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lauravitalephotography.com
- Instagram: lauravitalephoto
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/lauravitalephotography
Image Credits
Laura Vitale Photography