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

Yash , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How do you feel about asking friends and family to support your business? What’s appropriate, what’s not? Where do you draw the line?

Since my services are in Photography, I actually don’t mind asking friends or family. I think everyone in my circle is always looking for a professional photo. I ran into a situation recently where a friend of mine was interested in graduation photos, but after looking at the price I was charging, he did not feel comfortable paying that amount.

When that happened, the first thought that came into my head was to lower the price to fit him into my schedule, but I stopped myself from doing that. After talking to my brother, he explained that you’re running your own business and that you’re no longer treating this as a hobby. After putting on the business owner hat, I realized I can’t lower my prices for friends because that will drive down the value of my business. I realized that people who value my work would be willing to pay the price that I’m asking.

I did try convincing the friend to work with me, but I decided not to pester him because doing so could cause a strain in the relationship.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hi, my name is Yash Bhika, and I’m a freelance Photographer and YouTuber. I got into photography when I purchased my first DSLR camera from Facebook Marketplace during my senior year of college. What started out as a way to capture pictures of hanging out with friends and family soon turned into a passion. I was obsessed with learning how to take better photos and how to edit them.

My goal is to provide my clients with high-quality photos that they will cherish forever. Whether you’re about to be engaged, graduating or simply looking for great couples photos, I can help with your vision. When you work with me, I want to each session to be special to you. So that means understanding the mood and ideas you had for your shoot.

On YouTube, I work on providing people with high-quality videos about technology, book reviews, and productivity content. I want my videos to help people live happier and healthier lives.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Now this isn’t more so a lesson but a mindset that I had to get rid of which is to not be afraid to raise the cost of your services. I recently spoke to a friend and they mentioned that if your prices are low you are doing a disservice to all photographers out there.

I’ve always had the mindset of developing my craft and getting better first then charging people for my services, but you can only improve so much, and soon or later you have to take that leap and start charging people. Initially, when you do this, you might get some people who think you’re charging too much and that’s fine. What I’ve realized is that I want to work with people that are willing to meet my price point and understand the value I provide to them.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think the most rewarding part is being able to share my passion with the world. There is no better feeling than someone paying you to do work you love to do.

But beyond that, it’s great being able to connect with other artists and creatives who share the same passion as you do. Being able to talk with them helps energize me with more ideas and provides a space where we can all learn and grow together.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.yashbhikastudios.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yash_bhika_studios/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yashbhika/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/yashbhika
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@YashBhika