Communicating my passion.

I attend a breakfast networking group that meets twice a month at 7:30am. At 6:30am, recently, I got a message asking if I would like to be the speaker at that morning's event, as the scheduled speaker was sick. My first reaction was "Absolutely not!". I am not fond of speaking in public and prefer to sit back and listen. I wasn't prepared! What would I talk about? Then I realized that this was a perfect chance to put myself out there (wherever 'there' is) and show up for my business. After all, I can talk about photography all day!  So I said "yes" and sat down for a few minutes to collect my thoughts. My two favorite genres are families and business headshots and it was easy to think of reasons why both are important. 

Family photos are possibly the most important things we own. They are physical memories. A gateway to the past and the way we were. Children grow up, loved ones pass away, but photographs can bring it all back in an instant! With Mother's Day coming up, I reminded my audience that it's important for everyone to be in the picture! Giving Mom a picture of the grandchildren is nice, but how much better to gift her the photo session and let HER be in the pictures with them!  My oldest granddaughter is just about to graduate 8th grade and my daughter (her mother) has been sifting through old photographs of her growing up for the graduation slide show. Since she loves photographs as much as I do, there are a lot to choose from! We are also planning a "senior" photoshoot for Maddy and her friends-I'd love to see 8th grade graduation pictures become a thing as well as High School- kids change so much in those four short years!  

Of course, business headshots also serve an important purpose.  You are the face of your business so your headshot needs to look professional, and especially, it needs to look like you! A twenty year old photo may make you look like a movie star, but it doesn't help your customers recognize you when they meet you in person!  Good, professional photography will make you money and more than pay for itself.

My impromptu presentation went well and was well received. I didn't ramble or suffer from stage fright. Part of being a business owner is showing up as the face of my business, just as I tell those headshot clients, and I have found that my passion for photography makes a real connection when I just start talking!