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

Lena , appreciate you joining us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

My story is pretty wild actually. I guess I don’t have to necessarily wonder what it would be like to have a regular job since I’ve been working one and owning a business simultaneously. I also teach photography and graphic design to high schoolers and college kids. It’s been a hard juggle with how my business has grown though so 2023-2024 will be the first year I don’t teach. It’s bittersweet but I’m excited for a new journey and the time to focus on my business growth.

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 getting into photography after my first child was born 9 years ago. I started taking photos of friends and family, and really got into family photography first. After a short amount of time doing that, I met another photographer who I went into business with and changed my specialty to weddings. It really is history from there, that passion and spark just exploded and I knew it was meant to be!

Have you ever had to pivot?

I love the word pivot. Other than the infamous friends episode that comes to mind, I really believe in the idea of adaptability, or being able to change at a moments notice. This really is an essential term in the wedding world, and being able to change the plans and the timeline on a moments notice is a necessary quality of any wedding vendor. Business aside, my life took quite the turn after high school, and ended up at a school I didn’t intend to go to, with a major I didn’t intend to study. In the end, I was thankful that I didn’t end up with a pile of debt or a biology major, but at the time pivoting away from them felt impossible. Turns out it was the best thing I could’ve done.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

It’s the customer service voice for me! We all have one – so don’t judge me! Jokes aside, I have spent countless hours reaching out to other professionals on social media, working and helping other professionals on the job and off the job. It’s so important to recognize that anyone could be a client, and my job really is to just be friendly and fun, which isn’t all that hard to do! Of course a lot of other things go into that, attending conferences, continuing to learn about new and exciting industry standards and producing solid work, but at the end of the day, being able to connect with people is what keeps me going in this business.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.Lenagillco.Com
• Instagram: @lenagillco
• Facebook: Facebook.com/lenagphotofilms

Image Credits
Lena Gill Photography and Films