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

Alright, Lydia thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I grew up in a small rural town in the middle of nowhere, pop. 500, surrounded by Louisiana farmland, a small brown bayou, and all the ghosts of the past. There wasn’t a whole lot of available intellectual or creative stimulation available, but there was a book mobile that set up camp every other week in the post office parking lot. I was always there.

I loved reading, and I loved art, both of which were supported by my parents. I spent many a night hiding under my blankets with a flashlight, reading a book that I just couldn’t put down. I had a vivid imagination and always felt like I was part of the story, slaying dragons and traveling across ancient lands. When I wasn’t reading I was drawing or painting.

I was probably around 10 or 11 when my dad decided that he loved photography. He drove my siblings and I half crazy, constantly having to pose for his camera. He turned our bathroom into a darkroom and encouraged the whole family to be involved. The first camera I used was a pinhole camera that I made out of a cardboard cylindrical oatmeal container. It seemed absolutely magical that I could capture images of grass and trees, and blurred images of my cat from a bug’s view. Eventually I was using my dad’s Fujica SLR and learning to develop black and white film and processing my own prints. I was in love!

I wanted to stay in art for my college degree, so I went with a bachelors in graphic design, partially to please my parents who assumed that art wouldn’t be a lucrative field. It wasn’t a field that ever felt like the right fit for me, but I spent 20 years in government contracting, which led me to meeting my husband. Eventually I started working for Disney as a Photopass photographer, and I was back in my rightful place again. After eight years I’ve gained experience, along with imaginative ways to flex my creative muscles. Just prior to the pandemic I decided to go back to school through Disney’s Aspire program, and I am currently a hair’s breadth away from having a degree in photography.

Finally I have the opportunity to pull the magic and love of history and fantasy into my work. I am inspired by the great artists of the renaissance as well as the precision of the Dutch masters. It took some time to develop my personal editing styles, my lighting, and my compositional styles. However, I love challenges, which in my case also involves working in a very tiny studio. The majority of my work is done in a 6 x 6 beach cabana set up in a large screened patio at the back of our home. Everyone in our household, from my husband, to our three children, and even myself, have had our turn as models.

There is almost always a historic feel to my images, and sometimes there are modern twists here and there. This is partially out of necessity, and partially out of desire to pull in an audience that can relate on multiple levels. My mission is to bring the beauty of fantasy and the richness of history and myths back to a world that has forgotten how to use their imaginations. I look to the future with so much optimism, my ideas are numerous and I often feel impatient, like I want to do everything all at once.

Lydia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

What I offer is high end fine art photography, meaning that every single image is designed with intention and attention to the finest of details. I prefer studio work because I am the master of my world, I can even change the time of day, the shadows, and the emotional impact of the image. I am purely artistic, combining my love for antiquity, art, and photography. I aspire to treat my images like paintings, which sets me apart from photographers who are taking lovely, but very realistic portraits.

I named my business One Big Fish Photography because it perfectly embodied how I want to be viewed by consumers. It started with the question of “why be a little fish in a big pond, when you can be a big fish in a little pond.” From there it evolved to ideas of the fisherman bragging about the “one that got away,” the one that seems to get bigger every time he tells his tale. It is a name that stands out as uniquely as my work is.

I am on the brink of publicly announcing my business, though I’ve tested the reactions of friends, teachers, classmates, and co-workers all along the way. Soon I’ll be creating my social media strategy and double checking its function with a friend who is a certified social media strategist. My goal is to be curated for exhibition, as well as taking clients who want to be featured in a clever and imaginative world that suites their personal desires.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

So far I am self-funded, but I will seek out grants in the near future, just to help me get started. It is important to first brand myself and seek recognition to bolster my image for committees who award grants. I have cut corners on just about everything, even taking risks on purchasing used lenses from eBay, which worked out well for me. I’ve become the master of finding the best sales and the best coupons for props, fabrics, flowers, and homemade costuming. I know probably a hundred different ways to use a house hold curtain or bedsheet. Slowly but surely I have upgraded my gear to the point that it works well for me, with plans to replace with better gear once success has provided the means to upgrade. There will come a day, hopefully sooner rather than later, when I have a fully functional studio.

Have you ever had to pivot?

It wasn’t by choice that I left government contracting as a graphic designer, though in retrospect it wasn’t the career I was truly destined for. Government contracting is subject to the whims of, well, the government. Changes in Presidents and changes in national priorities created an annual stress for all of us in the field. Would we be funded for another year? Would a competitor win over our most lucrative contracts? I was laid off near the beginning of a new Presidential regime where spending on military and government online training wasn’t prioritized. Contracts dried up, and many of us in the field were left jobless.

I tried my luck in other fields, but found that working in one niche for so long had left me devoid of needed experience in other fields. Finally I ended up working for Disney, and have been there ever since.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://onebigfishphotography.myportfolio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/one_big_fish_photography/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100081682250283

Image Credits
Image credit Lydia Codding, One Big Fish Photography