Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Meredith Washburn. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Meredith, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?
Over the past 18 years, I’ve built a pretty diverse photography portfolio as a hybrid photographer (both digital and film) all while traveling the globe specializing in adventure elopements, vow renewals, and destination weddings/couples/and family sessions. I think my biggest inspiration for photography stems from lengthy road trips chasing beautiful views and landscapes with my husband (Ben) and friends.
I never really envisioned doing photography as a career when I was younger. Surprisingly, as a child I always dreamed of being a Pediatrician (ironic as I ended up marrying a Physician), however, had some trouble learning after getting hit in the head with a golf ball in high school. At that point, I really found freedom in being able to express myself through pictures rather than words…everything felt so much easier that way. All through high school I took my friends on photoshoots after school and really jumped headfirst into digital photography and editing.
Still, after High School, I never imagined the type of photography I enjoyed doing as being an attainable career goal, so I ended up going to college and getting a degree in Mathematics and Education while pursuing photography more as a side career. I taught Junior High School and High School Mathematics for a few years while also doing photography every evening/weekend.
After getting married, my husband really encouraged me to pursue photography more as a solo career because we were required to move quite a bit for his career. Pivoting into photography as a full-time career was the best decision I’ve ever made. I LOVE IT!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I would never want to give the impression that it’s been an easy road to where I am today. My husband decided to go to medical school right around the time that I went full-time with photography as a career. We moved frequently and finances were tough for a few years trying to build my business to be successful enough to get my husband through school on my income alone; it was one of the hardest times of my life.
Building and owning a successful business is a TON of work and it’s taken me 18 years to get to where I am today. I started wedding photography right around the time that digital cameras were becoming popular so there weren’t very many resources out there for learning. I self-taught myself and definitely learned from mistakes along the way. I grew and evolved into understanding how to run a business (and how many facets there are to that), how to do my own marketing and social media management, etc., and continued learning new things every day. All of that learning has compiled into 18 years worth of education from trial and error. If you’d like to avoid all the pitfalls of this route/experience, go to school for business/marketing and photography. And if formal schooling isn’t the route for you, there are incredible mentors out there for weddings/elopements/or whatever niche of photography that you’re into. Mentors have played a pivotal roll in my business as an adult and I highly recommend investing in yourself no matter how successful you are. You always have room to grow and learn. Find mentors in your specific niche who are able to push your business into new and more positive directions.
I started my career photographing very large and traditional weddings. Mid-way into my career, I really wanted to specialize in elopement photography…and specifically adventure elopements (aka people who want to say their vows in epic scenery and also maybe add in some sort of adventuring: off-roading, hiking, camping, mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing, etc.). To me, elopements were everything I loved about marriage, and I truly HAD to figure out how to make this my entire career. I invested a lot in education — specifically with educators who had a primary focus on the Elopement Photography Industry. This was a huge stepping stone to gaining a wealth of knowledge that I had always craved for this specific niche of photography. I think investing in myself and finding people to surround me who supported me and wanted me to flourish were some of the greatest pavers to my current success in business (also shoutout to all of the people from my home-town who have supported me from day one, and all of my clients who have gone out of their way to leave raving reviews for me — I would never be where I’m at today without ALL of you. THANK YOU!). Mentors are life-changing and can help you avoid massive pitfalls that they’ve already encountered along the way. You can also find a community of like-minded friends within these mentor groups where you can network and help each other along the way!
After photographing traditional weddings for years, I was finally given the opportunity to photograph an adventure elopement. It was as if a whole new light emerged from my soul and I just became obsessed. Everything I’ve ever loved about “getting married” seemed to be encapsulated in this sweet little “elopement” world. Couples were creating entire days based on things they loved in epic places which created these epic core memories and the most stunning photographs. Over the years I have loved watching couples incorporate their families, friends, children, pets into these beautiful elopements (some more adventurous and some much more low-key and chill). Every couple is so unique and I love how elopements and elopement photography can be tailored so beautifully to express the couple and their love story.
Not only am I a photographer, but I also offer services for guiding/planning their day or multi-day adventure (yes, some couples do multi-day elopements, and they’re SO RAD). I am obsessed with elopements for so many reasons. My motto is “Pioneer your own path, be wildly you” for a reason. I resonate strongly with people who like to ditch tradition and plan their day(s) to be full of activities/adventures that fully represent and express their relationship. I am an inclusive photographer (to ALL) and want everyone to feel loved and valued for who they are here on this earth. Capturing and documenting their love stories is what sets my soul on fire. Finding the uniqueness in each couple and their love story is what keeps my job so interesting. I have learned so much about love through photographing love stories, and I am so grateful to every couple who has bravely let me document it all.
ELOPING: let’s clear up the definition of this word. Eloping does NOT mean that the couple is “running away and getting married in secret” but instead, eloping means “choosing to throw out tradition to focus on the love couples have for one another above all else”. It’s a way of choosing to get married that reduces anxiety, reduces overall average wedding cost, and should be stress-free from outside opinions. Elopements allow the focus to be on the couple, their relationship, priorities, and experiences. Elopements can be anywhere and any way. The beauty and freedom in that just makes my heart happy. This means that eloping can be just two people, can include best friends, and even families (perk: you can even bring your pet(s)! Eloping typically doesn’t involve a venue or typical wedding set-up with chairs/etc. Couples can keep it simple or can make their day(s) full of adventure. Couples can helicopter to a glacier to say vows, hike a mountain together to an incredible view for sunset, camp overnight and have their first kiss at sunrise, off-road to an epic view and have a picnic, walk a short distance to a stunning view to say “I do”, etc.. The opportunities are endless and the day(s) can be designed and tailored to fit each couple’s uniqueness.
My favorite memory and one that I’m most proud of is a week 1/2 long elopement I shot in Iceland. The couple let me help plan their road trip and sights/activities, and then we photographed at multiple epic locations along the way. I love traveling and road-tripping with couples. I get to know them really well and feel like I get a special “inside look” into their relationship which helps me document moments that are especially beautiful. If this sounds like something that resonates with your soul, then reach out, and let’s get to planning!
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
MENTORS! I wish more than anything I had mentors earlier in my career so that I could have skipped over some of the pitfalls I ran into running my business.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Be prepared. Be organized. Be confident. DELIVER. You should always make sure your clients are educated on the entire experience of working with you from beginning to end. You should be answering questions they have before they even need to ask them. YOU ARE THE EXPERT. Guide them to what makes the best experience for them as individuals and as a couple. You want to be able to deliver your best experience and images possible — and you know how to do that best.
When you’re photographing, make the experience fun and stress-free. Make sure you know all of their desires before you show up for the day so that they don’t have to have the responsibility of organizing people or putting things together — you should be taking that stress completely off of them. SERVE. I truly believe in being the hands and feet of Jesus and serving your couples, their friends, families, and anyone else involved in any way possible. Work really hard and put every ounce of passion and creativity you have into their special day. Every couple deserves you at your very best.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.meredithwashburn.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meredithwashburnphoto/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meredithwashburnphotography
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredith-washburn-0b2a535a/
- Other: Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/meredithwashbrn/ Threads: @meredithwashburnphoto