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

Suzy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

I have two main goals for my photography business: to help people feel confident in front of the camera AND to help them feel confident behind their own.

First let’s chat confidence in front of the camera. Getting in front of the camera comes more naturally to some than others, but every one carries some kind of insecurity, fear, or uncertainty heading into a photoshoot. As the photographer, it’s my responsibility to not only use my skill to put people in their very best light and reflect back to them their unique beauty, but to also use my countenance to put people at ease. To call out the beauty I see in them. To affirm them of how lovely they are, inside and out, throughout the process. People look their best in photos when they feel free and at rest to be themselves. Confidence is everything in creating not only flattering images, but authentic ones that tell that person’s story. It is MY responsibility as the photographer to help people find that confidence within.

Now let’s chat confidence behind the camera. A fear of many photographers these days is that their services will become obsolete as phone cameras continue to improve in quality & the ability to snap a photo becomes easier & more accessible. Will people still need to book professional photography services when they can just take the photo themselves? Where is the value in booking a hired professional for a session? A response I have seen to this is to try to convince people that the photos they are taking on their own don’t come close to what they can receive from a professional photoshoot, but I have taken a different approach. I want to EMPOWER people to take even better photos with the phones & cameras they have. The magical moments of every day life are important and I believe that with education & resources, people can take beautiful pictures that they’re proud to print & frame around their home. I want to be seen as an advocate and helpful resource to people in this regard, helping them feel confident behind their own cameras as they document the life around them. That’s why I created my online digital photography course and my Lightroom mobile editing presets & tutorials. I want to validate all the moments people are living in between their yearly photoshoot, because those moments matter! And I hope that then, when people are ready to make the investment into professional photography and get in front of the camera themselves, they will trust me as their advocate and trust that I can help them feel confident & beautiful in front of the camera, too.

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?

I fell in love with photography while working in the social media/digital marketing space. I was photographing products & styled scenes, but what I really loved was working with people and helping them feel at ease in front of the camera. So, I decided to take a leap of faith & start my own photography business – seniors, families, weddings, you name it. I just knew I wanted to work with PEOPLE! Since then, I have niched down further to mostly focusing on families & motherhood. My goal is to make people feel confident in front of my camera during my photo sessions and to help them feel confident behind the camera with my online education & resources. I offer an online, self-paced Digital Photography 101 course as well as Lightroom mobile presets for editing the camera roll on your phone.

What stokes my passion for what I do is reflecting back to people the beauty & joy I see in them. I know that people can be so hard on themselves & it’s my goal to help people see themselves in a new light through a different perspective so that they can embrace their unique beauty & season of life that they’re in. Being a parent & raising a family can be incredibly hard at times & I believe having photographs as a visual reminder of the JOY that it is as well is important to keep you encouraged on the hard days.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

I have found that the most effective way for me to stay in touch with clients is through email. I keep several segmented lists so that I can stay in touch with them in different ways. Local clients vs. out of state clients, segments based off of type of photography they’ve booked, etc. I want them to know that they are my number one. Yes, I want to gain new clients & continue to grow my clientele, but I always want to put the people who have already say yes to me first. To show my loyalty to them, I always offer them first spots for special photography events before opening up spots to the rest of my email list and social media. Additionally, all of my past clients receive $100 off any future sessions booked with me. Retention of clients is one of the most important things to me in my business.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

The Next Right Thing by Emily P. Freeman was a life changing book for me. It’s not necessarily a business book, but a book about making mindful, peaceful decisions. As a creative, I can often get inspired and distracted by the next fun thing! I’m great at starting new projects but find it harder to see them through to the end. This book has helped me think thoughtfully about business decisions before making big pivots or investing a lot of time into a new project.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.suzycollinsphotography.com
• Instagram: @suzycollinsco
• Other: www.highlightstudioknox.com (my new photography studio available for photographers to rent!)

Image Credits
Suzy Collins Photography ;)