We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maddie Blommel. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maddie below.

Hi Maddie, thanks for joining us today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I am definitely happier as a business owner! In the past, I thought about what it would be like if I stayed behind a desk or if I was working as a photographer in a company. In college, I thought that I was supposed to graduate and get a desk job in order to make a living and a life. It was a lot of pressure that myself, and many others, would put on ourselves to fit into something that I knew I didn’t fit into. My friends and family have always voiced that they want what is best for me and it was hard to voice my own opinion and say “I don’t want this life” because I was always met with the inevitable question of “How else will you make money then?”. People who care for you, want you to succeed and you don’t want to let them down either. The voice inside of me telling me to ‘really try and make it on my own’ helped me start my business adventure, but having support from others helped even more. There were times while working at internships in college where I would think “Is this it for me? Will I just be in a dark room all day taking photos, or be behind a desk editing photos and PDFs?” There is nothing wrong with either of those jobs, and I gained so much knowledge from them, but they just felt like it wasn’t for me. The job was a circle, and I was square trying to fit into the mold. I had a hard time finding joy in the day-to-day when it was the same task everyday, and it got to the point where I was trying to mold myself into a circle so that one day I would fit in with the system, but I couldn’t bring myself to do that. Now that I am a business owner I get to be whatever I want to be and have the freedom to change that as I grow in my career.

Maddie, 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?

MB Photography is a Cincinnati and Dayton, OH-based wedding photography service specializing in capturing the love surrounding newlyweds on their wedding day. Weddings may be my go to, but I also do couples, portraits, family and branding. I started my business journey in March 2020 and I’m eager to go on this wonderful photography adventure with couples.

When I started MB Photography, I knew I wanted it to be more than just a service I could provide. Meeting people and having a genuine connection with my clients is what I strive for! I hope we can be more friends, as I will be the best 3rd wheel through your wedding journey! If you want someone to take a few photos and be on their way, I’m not the girl for you. I will be there to help guide you through every step. Do you want someone to help pick out engagement outfits? I got you! Rain or shine, I’ll be with you with an umbrella.. and possibly a coffee in the other hand!

My photography mission is to capture candid moments that will last a lifetime. This is anywhere from a touch, a look, a laugh, or even a smile. Of course, we will also do plenty of poses, but candid is where you get to let your personality shine!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

That it is okay to fail! Failing at something is just a pit stop on the way to where you are going. Growing up, I had a huge fear of failure and what it could mean for my future. I always saw it as a bad thing and not an opportunity to grow from and learn something along the way.

When I was growing up, I had a learning disability and it wasn’t easy at times. Others tend to see you differently because you didn’t score well on a test that everyone else did well on and you needed to be taken out of class for more help. The feeling that I failed a lot more than others, made me feel that I had to work twice as hard just to be average and it was a constant thought in my mind. It was like I was competing for a big event, but it was an everyday struggle. When I finally made it across the finish line and I looked around, the milestone was long gone, but the funny thing was that it was only me competing the entire time. I was consumed with showing others I was going to prove them wrong, and that I wouldn’t fail or be a failure in their eyes, that I beat myself up in a race that didn’t even exist. I was so busy trying not to fail that I didn’t even enjoy what was around me.

Being a photographer there are so many amazing moments that you are hired to capture from births, to weddings, and even sometimes the last days of someone that is important to another. As a wedding photographer, it is a job I take seriously knowing that I’m capturing some little girls’ wedding day that they have been dreaming of since they were young. There is always a risk of failure when you are a photographer, from missing the right moment, to losing precious moments due to no fault of my own. I have experienced this before, and I am always taking precautions of course, to limit this from ever happening to me or my clients. Saying that though, if I do fail, I take it in stride, learn from my experiences, enjoy the moments with my clients, and let go of things I can’t control.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Yes, this did start as a side hustle, then into part time and now full time! Back in high school, I started by doing other people’s senior portraits and small photoshoots just because some friends didn’t have the funds to get expensive senior photos done, and asked me. Then after college, I started my business as a part time gig (but working on it full time it felt like) as I was also working at a couple other jobs. During this time, I was focusing on a couple weddings, small photoshoots, senior photos, and branding. Back in 2020, I decided to take my business full time and to where I am today! Some of the key milestones for my business since going full time, was my work being featured in the Unscripted app in 2022, getting to be sponsored by the Knot and WeddingWire in 2023, then getting “Best of Weddings” by the Knot in 2024 and getting featured in Voyage twice!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.madisonbphotography.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mb_photography.jpg/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mblommelphotography
• Other: https://www.theknot.com/review-wedding-vendors/2072461

Image Credits

MB Photography