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

Lexi, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think success follows people who exhibit multiple traits, the main one being consistency. I think talent and passion are incredibly important in any industry you choose, but both will only take you so far if you’re not consistent. day after day showing up for yourself and those looking up to you. consistently learning. growing. sharing. asking questions. improving. if you wake up everyday and pour everything you have into a skill, a business, or yourself? you’d be absolutely amazed at the payoff. it’s difficult to persevere but i think the ability to keep showing up is what allows success to reach you!

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?

my name is Lexi and I do wedding + intimate portraiture! I make a living documenting peoples most intimate moments + milestones. I started photography as a teenager but truly got my start during the pandemic when my body positive photo shoots went viral on tiktok. support started pouring in from fellow photographers and brides that felt connected to a bigger body like mine! I made an effort to make content that made people feel safe and to ROMANTICIZE bodies that didn’t often see representation in the media. plus sizes bodies, disabled bodies, any bodies ! i was blessed to touch people all over the world with positivity and a different take on photography. I encouraged my clients to bend the rules that they’d previously known and indulge in a photo session that felt so completely them. whether it was a bride that wanted to get away to the forest for her portraits or a boudoir client that never quite felt safe with any other photographer but wanted to embrace the skin she’s in. my style of photography lends itself to the outcast. the moody ones. the ones who have overcome darkness and stood triumphantly in the sun on the other side. I want people to use photographer (and me) as a tool to connect with themselves. to reward themselves. to see themselves through my eyes. it’s been an incredibly rewarding journey, even all these years later.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

i had to unlearn the idea that “professionalism” as i’d previously known it was the only way to succeed. i thought button up shirts and slacks would earn me the respect i was looking for in this industry. in my clients. but honestly? screw that. pretending to be a robot placed a wedge of disconnect between the client and i. it wasn’t authentic. it wasn’t me. i learned in time that if i have the talent and knowledge to back it up, i can be my truest and silliest self with my clients and they will love me all the more for it. authenticity will take you far. run an ethical business, but keep it human.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

something that even I struggled to understand my first year of full time creative business was just how mentally taxing it is. it’s such a different kind of demanding. i expected to work my dream job full time and was hit like a truck when i came to terms with how much work that truly means. how much stress falls on your shoulders to bring in paying clients. how many weddings can i actually take on each month? how many hours have i spent in the car? what’s the difference between being on instagram for work messages & content inspo vs being on instagram to relax? it all starts to blur and technology is constant. constantly at the computer editing or sending emails. constantly on the phone sharing images or communicating with clients. the demand to show up in business to make the money is 24/7 and income is never guaranteed. it can eat you up if you’re not careful.

Contact Info:

• Website: lexhallephotography.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/lexhallephoto?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Image Credits
Lexi Peers – lexhalle photography