Photography Mentorship can help you Grow!

And that’s why I offer it. 

I don’t talk about it a ton, but I offer Photography Mentorship for photographers who want to get up close and personal with a successful studio photographer. There are a ton of reasons I offer it – but it mostly comes down to some pretty simple statistics.

Photography as an industry has an 85% failure rate for those getting started – and that feels WILD to me. I’m all about community over competition, and so it feels important that I can share with the larger community of photographers about how to actually do the thing, and NOT end up a part of that 85%. I wish I’d had a mentor when I was starting, because honestly I did a LOT of throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something would stick. And that kind of thing doesn’t bother me, which is part of how I ended up here, on track for a multi-six-figure year as a photographer.

But that’s why I do it – not why YOU should. And today I want to talk just a little bit about that, in case you’re on the fence!

1. Where to start

Working with a mentor means you get the information you need about where to start. Of course, you can do the research on your own, like I did. You can scour the internet, try this, try that… but when you’re working with a mentor you don’t have to take all of those steps on your own. You’ll get direct info from your photography mentor about how you should be branding yourself (or you’ll be directed to a pro who can create a brand FOR you) for example. You’ll get all of the right information the FIRST time about how to set up your session pricing, and all of the details that come along with it.

You can, OF COURSE, go through trial and error to figure it all out yourself – I mean, I did, and I got here. But I don’t think you should HAVE to go through that process.

P.S. Looking for information on how to pick a photography mentor?

2. Creative Direction

There’s more than where to start that you have to think about – there’s also the growth and development of your work itself. After all, even though we’re taking pictures of families and not quite always crafting the cover of Vogue, we’re making ART. And that matters! Working with a photography mentor means you have someone on hand to critique your work that isn’t random strangers on the internet (we’ve all done it, lol.) And that can help you grow not only as a business owner, but as a creative, too!

3. The Unexpected

Look, there’s no easy way to say this. Running a business is NOT a walk in the park. It’s just not. There are unexpected moments at every turn, especially early on. If you don’t have a client communication process in place, it’s likely you’ll run into a few hiccups (or worse) with client conversations (I said especially early on, right?). If you’re working without a contract in place with your clients… same deal. And when you have these unexpected moments, it’s really valuable to be able to have a photography mentor who can hold your hand, tell you it’s okay, and help you handle the situation before it gets worse. Or to talk through how it can be handled better NEXT time, if it’s one of those mid-session issues that occasionally pop up.

4. Collaboration

I know I said this earlier, but I’m all about collaboration over competition. We’re all trapped in capitalism, and it’s not the most fun time in the world, but we don’t have to be assholes about it, basically. A rising tide raises all ships, and working with a photography mentor? It opens doors for you (and your business) to collaborate more fully down the line! It will help you build your professional network (especially if you’re new) and that’s ALWAYS a positive!

Ready to join a Photography Mentorship Program?

Let’s talk!!

If you have questions about my photography mentorship program, I’d love to talk to you! You can reach out here, and ask any questions you’ve got. (No really, ask me ANYthing!)

And whether you reach out or not: I wish you ALL the luck in the world!!