23 Aug NAPCP Member Spotlight: Brandy Anderson
Sometimes it feels like the Monday blues, this time of year when that sinking feeling starts to set in. Life is about to get full on crazy busy with little reprieve between now and the holidays. We love this business with a passion but are constantly looking for ways not to feel all-consumed. Enter award-winning photographer Brandy Anderson, who has been there and seen the other side. In our Member Spotlight this month, Brandy shares about her business, her life, and five simple things you can do to keep from being overwhelmed and dishes about how she juggles it all at home.
NAPCP welcomes our August Member Spotlight: Brandy Anderson.
Brandy Anderson, started Fresh Sugar in 2005: “I was an avid scrapbooker that wanted to take better photos. I portfolio built for a year and then started taking full paying clients in 2006.”
Brandy is often asked why she chose the name Fresh Sugar Photography: “It’s because my sister-in-law is a wedding photographer here in Calgary, and I thought it might get confusing using my name. I was prepared to use Fresh Photography, but discovered there were many others using that business name, so I added my favorite word – sugar and Fresh Sugar was born!”
Where do you see yourself in 3 years?
In 3 years things will change considerably. My youngest will be in school full time, which will enable me to shoot sessions during the week. I will still have to do families on the weekend, but it will be incredibly helpful to my schedule to be able to do newborns and babies on weekdays and reserve more time on the weekends with my family.
In 5 years?
I’ve resisted the HUGE urge to have a studio space for these past few years, but we’ve started looking for properties that have not only a house but a separate building that I can turn into a studio. So hopefully in 5 years I won’t be driving around nearly as much. I’m not a big fan of driving, especially in winter.
What photographer most inspires you?
I fell in love with Jenn Hudson’s work a couple of years ago and was fortunate enough to attend a recent workshop that she put on. Her work is ethereal, creative and she is a master at posing women. While she is not really a child photographer – there is a wealth of knowledge to be found from outside our genre.
For child photographers, I am truly lucky to have so many talented friends that I could never just pick one that inspires me. They all inspire me daily!
Secret to achieving bright, fresh, look?
My most often used lens is my 24-70mm. I love the wide angle, I think it plays a big part in my style. I use the surroundings quite a bit, and try to find the most colorful aspect of my clients’ homes. When it comes to PS, I shoot in RAW and do the majority of my processing in ACR. Then if something needs an extra “boost” I run Itty Bitty Action’s color pop on it and adjust the opacities to my taste.
Best advice re: photography?
I know a lot of people don’t agree with the “fake it ’till you make it” philosophy – but I really think it’s key for those of us that are self-taught. I’m not saying that you should start charging when you aren’t ready or lie to your clients – but being confident at your sessions is really important. Clients want that direction, they want to know that they are in good hands. When I followed this advice, it was much easier for me to connect with clients at sessions because they expected me to be the expert, so even if I felt nervous or scared – faking confidence worked very well.
Advice to those starting out?
Make sure you really research what owning a photography business entails. I’m not saying this to be snarky, but to truly help those that want to succeed. I see so many women decide to start a business, get a website and put some prices up because hey – any money for doing something you love is great, right? But these same businesses are gone 6 months later. I know that I had NO idea how much was involved – taxes, licences, insurance, business plans, accounting, advertising, budgets, photoshop, emails, blogs, etc. Also, be prepared to invest a lot of time and money for the first couple of years and not make much profit. Those are the years to purchase equipment and get big tax write offs. Know your worth – you will realize quite quickly how valuable your own time actually is.
Biggest challenges professionally?
Right now my local market is incredibly saturated, there are a number of incredibly talented photographers and it takes more effort on my part to get ahead of the pack. Just a few years ago, I was pretty much one of the only natural light, on-location photographers in Calgary. Now I am one of a hundred. I have to get creative with my marketing ideas and make sure my client connections are really solid. I’m happy to say that this year has brought me more repeat clients than any other year, so things are still looking good for me!
What is your desire and hopes for our very specialized and unique industry?
I have big hopes for our industry. I would love for these big organizations put a larger focus on child photography. I personally don’t understand why there are several different categories at image competition for weddings – yet children are one lonely category. I would love to see our various branches get more respect – maternity, newborn, baby, family, etc. Gone are the days where portraits are ONLY done in studio with one backdrop. (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) Child photographers all over the world are doing some crazy cool photographic work, that rivals our wedding photographer counterparts. I’d like for all of us to receive more respect within the whole photographic community, there was a time not too long ago where “wedding photographer” was snickered at, so I don’t think it’s unrealistic at all for us to get more respect as time goes on. I think that NAPCP is going to be fundamental with uniting child photographers, and I hope that we can all rely on one another to bring our industry higher.
To see more of Brandy’s work, get to know her better, and check out her workspace, members – click here.
You may also find Fresh Sugar here:
Web: http://www.freshsugar.ca/
Blog: http://www.freshsugarblog.com/
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