We recently connected with Rachel Mayers and have shared our conversation below.

Rachel, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you take vacations? Why or why not?

Yes! I love taking vacations and it’s always a bonus to step away from work every now and then to go do something outside your regular routine. I grew up taking vacations with my family and grew to love the adventure and experiences it brought. One trip I’ll always remember is when my family and I flew to Egypt. I got to walk into one of the pyramids, take a river cruise on the Nile, and watched how papyrus paper was made along with many other eye-opening activities. I would highly recommend traveling to anyone, whether it’s out of the country or even just getting away for a mini road trip nearby.

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 Rachel and I am originally from the beautiful Evergreen State of Washington. However, I traded the rain for sunshine and have been living in San Diego, CA for six years now.

I come from a creative family so it’s no surprise I found my way to photography. I considered pursuing photo journalism when I went to college, but writing hasn’t always been my strong point. I knew being outside, possibly traveling and taking pictures was something I wanted to eventually explore. While getting my degree in graphic design I ended up working at a photo studio, taking pictures of families and kids which I loved. I’ve always enjoyed printing and keeping photos as memories, so it was nice to be able to offer that to other people for them to cherish.

I eventually took the leap a few years after to move south to California. It was there that I saw a school nearby offering courses for photography. I went back to school to earn my certificate in photography which was a great way for me to learn new techniques, as well as expand my current knowledge of the photography world. We had a project that was solely focused on portraits which ultimately led me to starting my photography business after I finished the program. I started with free to low cost sessions to build up my portfolio and website. My main focus at the time were families and children which are still my top sessions I photograph. I am also expanding into maternity sessions and am building up my client closet so people can select dresses to wear at their session. I have some gorgeous gowns in all sizes and colors that are meant to make it a little more convenient and accessible for expecting parents. I also photograph couples and have been getting into more smaller/intimate weddings and elopements.

I started my business three years ago and am proud of where I have become. It started out slower as expected while I booked new clients, but I have met so many wonderful groups along the way. I am incredibly thankful for the clients I met three years ago who still reach out to me to this day to capture their family photos. It’s such an honor to be able to see the children grow up while meeting new members of the family. If someone reaches out to me for a session, I do everything I can to capture what they are looking for and needing. I have a list of locations that I love recommending but am also open to seeing new locations that the client requests. I do my best to select times that work best for everyone, especially if we need to work around kids’ nap times. I’m easy going and am very open to hearing the client’s thoughts. A happy client is a happy photographer!

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

I have found Facebook to be the main source of new clients for myself. I am a member of different local community groups. At times people are looking for a photographer and it has been a great way for me to reply that I am available and open to working with them. I also have friends and previous clients who tag and recommend me as well on the same post or even other posts. But being in those groups also allows me to occasionally post and offer my photography services to my community. I include my website so people can check out my portfolio and reach out to me via my site, or they reach out to me directly through my personal or business Facebook page.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Hands down, the most rewarding aspect of being a photographer is knowing the clients are happy with their photos. I love that in this field I can capture the love, goofiness and everything inbetween. Sometimes kids are kids and don’t like their photos being taken, or it’s just an off day for them. But even when that happens I do everything I can to get a laugh or a smile, and it’s just a great feeling when the parents still love the photos.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rachelmayersphotography.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/rmayersphotos
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/rmayersphotos