Side Hustle Spotlight – Starting a Photography Business AND Being a Mom of Four!
Today we have a very motivating Side Hustle Spotlight for us parents. This mom will talk about starting a photography business. She started her own about 8 years ago in Germany. Once back in the states she has been able to continue to grow this business while her family grew from two to six within 11 months!
Britney is a very special person that all of us aspiring entrepenuers should look up too.
I got to know Britney back when I was studying Landscape Architecture at Iowa State University. Together, we had many adventures from traveling the whole length of Mississippi River to “studying” urban design throughout the Pacific Rim (when I got my first taste of photography).
Since she got into photography it has been fun to watch her work go from good to perfection.
Today Britney will share with us how she got started in photography then how she has been able to continue to grow that business while being a mom of 4.
1. Tell us a little about your crazy awesome life.
Well, my name is Britney Brown, I’m 31 years old and I live in Des Moines, Iowa. I studied Landscape Architecture and Fashion Design at Iowa State University, studied abroad, and then met and married my military husband. I moved to Texas where he was stationed with the Army and shortly after traveled the world living in Germany for several years before moving back to Iowa.
Once we returned to the states, we fostered briefly, and then in the course of a year, adopted three siblings from foster care and got pregnant with my youngest. We went from just us to a family of six in just under 11 months and it was a WHIRLWIND.
That happened about two years ago now and we’re just like any other family these days!
2. You are self-employed, what do you do for a living?
I am a professional photographer that primarily works with families, children, couples, and women to create really exciting, fun images. I have done everything from shooting births to boudoir to destination weddings to major corporate events.
My bread and butter is definitely working with kids and families.
3. What motivated you to start this venture?
When my husband and I got married, I moved to Texas to where he was stationed in the Army. I had been a server all throughout college and pretty much continued doing that. While working with a local theater that I was doing costuming for, I met a local pin-up photographer that I did costume hair and makeup for. I fell in love with her work. We had received a DSLR camera as a wedding gift and I began playing with it, primarily just having fun with my friends and family.
While I was in design school, for better or worse, learning Photoshop was a HUGE part of our curriculum to complete projects so I had a huge head start there. When we moved to Germany, it was incredibly difficult for me to find a job (I didn’t speak German!) so I continued photographing new friends and trying new techniques. Additionally, I took hundreds of hours of online courses with photographers to learn my camera, lighting, posing, and everything in between. It was quite the undertaking but I was home by myself a lot of the time and I was able to commit a LOT of time to it!
Eventually, I filed as a business with the Army base and the German Business Agency (which was tricky…remember I don’t speak German – OR read it!) and became the very first licensed photographer on our Army base! I continued building my business in Germany and kept at it when we returned to Iowa several years later.
4. What did you do to get started with photography?
To be honest, I had nothing when I started. Just a camera. I experimented with allllllll the gear and I still do! I’ve rented a lot of things to see how I felt about it before buying. There is actually a really cool challenge floating around on the interwebs where they give really renowned professional photographers toy cameras and what they can come up with absolutely amazing.
I learned very early that having better gear makes things easier but it’s never the end all.
You make it work with what you’ve got. Your knowledge of light and posing and interaction and focus and a million other things matter a lot more than having the latest and greatest camera.
5. What is your weekly time commitment to taking photos and editing?
I always say I’m going to get one of those old fashioned time clocks and clock in and out every day 😉 There’s an app for that right?
On average, I wake up every morning and respond to clients while getting the kids ready for school and during breakfast. Then when my youngest kids nap from 12:30-3:30, I am generally sending invoices, responding to clients, editing, etc. and most evenings I do the same from 8p to midnight. In an average off-season week, I’m shooting anywhere from 2-10 hours per week and in a busy season week or a wedding week it can be up to 20-30+ hours of shooting time. On average, for every hour I shoot, I edit for three. So, it adds up.
I would definitely say that JUST on work activities, my weekly time is anywhere from 40-80+ hours a week.
6. How do you find a balance between being self-employed, being a mom of four, and spending time with your husband?
HA! BALANCE! Good joke, guys 😉 Just kidding, kind of.
I’m working on it CONSTANTLY.
It can be a serious point of contention particularly when I’m smack dab in the middle of the busy season and it is our anniversary and our kids need to be run to gymnastics and I have clients trying to order Christmas cards and no one has cleaned the toilet in 3 weeks…it can get rough. But then some days, I manage to edit perfectly, finish right in time to make a snack before nap is over then take my babies to the park before coming home to make dinner and watch a movie with my husband.
Every single day it’s a challenge to decide what needs my attention the most and doing my best to devote most of my energy to that. Some days I’m a rockstar and some days I’m a disaster. How’s that for balance? 😉
7. How do you maintain focus/energy to get projects done for your business with everything going on?
I will say I am INSANELY organized; an attribute I get to thank my mother for.
I have a meticulous calendar, a very specific desktop workflow system I’ve developed over the years, and digital client and project management system that help me stay organized. Also, I did hire a nanny in the last year that helps me take time away to shoot during the day, run errands, or just get out to complete projects if need be.
I actually decided to start reading for fun again (I listen to audio books while editing) and I’ve been taking a calligraphy class once a week to focus on something creative that has nothing to do with photography. It’s been really refreshing to have time to relax and do something outside of work and family that is just mine and I absolutely couldn’t recommend it enough.
8. What challenges have you run into over the years?
The biggest thing I had to learn was teaching myself to manage expectations. My own, that of my family, and MOSTLY that of my clients.
I had to learn when to say no if a project just wasn’t a good fit. I had to learn how to respond to sensitive situations with absolute impartiality while still remaining empathetic. I had to learn how to offer the right kind of information regarding how long photos would take to receive, what to wear, choosing locations, filling out contracts, you name it. I had to learn to coach my families to relax around their own kids and just engage them rather than worrying about who was knocking over a lamp or punching their brother rather than sitting nicely on a chair. I had to learn to diffuse situations quickly and calmly and to anticipate the needs of my clients before they even thought to ask them. I had to learn how to engage small children to laugh because they never and I repeat NEVER want to smile nicely and say cheese.
I also bribe them. With candy. Yes seriously.
It is VERY rare I run into issues now that I’m eight years into this but occasionally someone still throws me for a loop but it is truly (and I almost hate when people say this but it’s true!!) a learning experience so that I can do it right the next time with no hiccups.
9. Do you have any advice for those patents looking to start their own photography business?
Anyone can use a camera. Anyone can become a gear head and learn how to click a button.
Not everyone can make an authentic and creative connection with other people…even if you’re photographing flowers or landscapes, ultimately building a business is receiving money for your time and energy. You will STILL have to connect with others to convince them that your time and energy is worth paying for.
Work hard to create connections, foster them, and maybe most importantly, trim them as needed. Not everyone is your client…and be ok with that as soon as you can. It can be really disheartening to see someone move on to a new photographer or not pick your print for their wall but you never know what led to that decision – chances are it had very little to do with you and a lot more to do with their aesthetic, budget, time, sales, marketing, etc. etc.
Your clients will always come to you. Trust the process. 🙂
10. Shameless plug. Tell us where we can follow you. Feel free to brag why you are the best!
I’m a bit of a social media junkie so you can follow my adventures all over the interwebs.
Find me on Instagram by following me @being_britney and @britney_shoots. My kids are absolutely nuts and often worth the follow alone 😉
You can also find my current work and fun on my business page at https://www.facebook.com/britneybrownphotography. Also, visit my website for more information at www.britneybrown.com!
Now It is Your Turn
Are you now interested in starting a photography business? That is great! There are so many different ways for you to make a living off of photography. Today we saw one photographer who mainly focuses on kid and family photography.
For me, my most success has been with stock photography. Also, here are 5 ways you can sell photos online.
Even if photography is not your thing, Britney has shown us how we can accomplish anything we want even with four kids! It takes a lot of hard work, focus, and organization but we can all do it if our side business is really important to us.
Is starting a photography business not for you to earn extra money? That is alright. We have you covered! Head over to our Ways to Make Money page. Andrew and I have been putting together a very comprehensive list of ways for you to earn more money this year.
Just as a friendly reminder…
All photography on this page is copyrighted by Britney Brown Photography & Design. Any unauthorized use of them is strictly prohibited. If you love Britney’s work where you want to use it, just ask her, she will not bite…hopefully.
Wallet Squirrel is a personal finance blog by best friends Andrew & Adam on how money works, building side-hustles, and the benefits of cleverly investing the profits. Featured on MSN Money, AOL Finance, and more!
Photography is an excellent side hustle because you can sell the photos on sites like Shutterstock, Pixabay or Pexels for a residual and diversify your way to multiple streams of income doing something you love doing as a labor of love. I believe this is also the era of female entrepreneurs on the rise. I think it’s inspiring to see females lead in the side hustle business. 🙂