We so love your brand, can you share with us how you came up with the name for your business?
Before I was a photographer, I worked in advertising and public relations for 10 years. When I began the business five years ago, most photographers used their namesake. I wanted to create a brand that was memorable, flexible and unique–yet still fitting as my work evolved over time. Lifeography was a great descriptor of what I was hoping to achieve. Authentic captures that were honest, with a focus on relationship.

You are so open and inspire so many people with your work, who inspires you?

Inspiration comes from many sources. These days, I think looking beyond the limited realm of photography is the best place to start. I admire authors, creatives, mothers, musicians–and my own family. The most inspiring people I know are authentic, brave, faith-filled and humble — plus many of them are amazingly talented.

What is your advice to someone who is just starting out?

From a technical perspective, it would be to shoot on manual and JPG only. Don’t even open photoshop until you are happy with what is consistently coming out of your camera. Photo editing is irrelevant (yes, this will take months and months). If you want to become a good photographer, you can start with the cheapest DSLR and 50mm lens you can buy. Then shoot. Learn the basics first. I guarantee that anyone who can do this will be a better photographer than 95% of their peers in just a few short years. Once you can produce an entire session of good work using just those tools, switch to RAW and learn how Photoshop can take your work to the next level. I wish someone had told me this.

For a philosophy, it would be to try to find your own way. Try on others’ styles as you are learning — this is an integral part of the journey. But don’t put yourself out there until you find what drives you and your portfolio isn’t mimicking others’ work. This takes time, but you will be a happier artist in the end.

Finally, learn things for yourself. Invest in your education whether through time, workshops or research–and temper your expectations of what should be given to you. Form a network of peers and walk the journey together. It’s much more gratifying to succeed this way.

One of the best things about owning a photography business is that it’s not one size fits all. How do you make photography the perfect fit for you and your family?

I make the business “fit” my family. It is not our primary source of income, so I have flexibility here. But, with three children five and under with a fourth on the way, my priority is my my loved ones. Early on, I spent a disproportionate amount of time on the business to the detriment of them, because I was “passionate” about it and just loved the creative outlet it offered. Without hesitation, I can say that living an unbalanced life did not bring me happiness–and in fact was quite selfish of me. Since then, I have learned to establish realistic business goals and work to achieve them within the time I allot myself for business. When that time is up, I’m done. My focus is 100% on my family. We are all better for it.

We know that it is important to you to give back and would love to hear more about the Give Ten Project.

The Give Ten Project is simply a name I gave to my philosophy of giving back: a commitment to give 10% of my time AND profits to causes greater than myself. The concept seemed like it could be universal, so I shared the idea. Mostly, it’s just that — a commitment photographers (or anyone) can make. There’s a logo and a web page, but really it’s just aligning with a philosophy versus an organization. I’d love to do more with it since I have so many ideas, but right now I focus on my own Give Ten projects and am grateful if they inspire others to do the same.

Do you have a favorite subject to shoot? If you had to give them all up and choose just one, what/who would it be?

If I absolutely had to just choose one thing, I’d give up my business and photograph my own children and family. They are my heart, my muse, my inspiration and a gift. That’s where it began and where it will end.

To see more of Stephanie’s work, visit her site. Did I mention what an amazing writer she is? Go see for yourself!

Because I wouldn’t dream of having a workshop without giving away a free seat, I thought it only fitting to run one last contest. I have decided to run this contest a little different than I have in the past and thought what better way to do a giveaway than to also benefit a good cause. My friend and fellow Photographer, Deb Schwedhelm is raising money for the Foundation for tomorrow, benefiting children in Tanzania. She will be taking a month long trip there this summer to document the 400 mile fund and awareness bike ride through Tanzania! Her fundraising goal is $5,000 and I would love nothing more than to see her reach it! So this is the way it works, to enter simply donate $10. Every $10 donation will count as one entry and you can enter as many times as you’d like. Then email stacy@launchworkshop.com to let us know that you entered! The winner will be announced on Monday April 2nd. If you have already registered for the workshop, don’t worry you are also eligible to win. If you are chosen, we will simply reimburse your entire tuition. Not able to come to the workshop but would still like to donate? By all means, please do!!

Best of luck to everyone and I hope to see you in Tampa!!

The highlight of my trip was renewing our vows. We found a little place called the Pop Up Wedding Chapel in the Cosmopolitan Hotel and it was perfect! My dear friend Sarah was here and agreed to come along and Photograph our renewal in the hour and half she had between classes and to her I am eternally grateful….. I can’t wait to see them and will post pictures soon. For those of you who know me, you know that I have the most AMAZING husband on the planet. I promise you, I don’t deserve him but I will never stop trying to live up to the person he sees when he looks at me. He is the father to my children and my best friend and I look forward to many more years together.

I promise to get back to posting in the coming week, I have so much to share and am excited to be back here at the blog. See you soon!!

Stacy xoxo

TO ENTER

-Like their Facebook page and leave a comment on their wall letting them know that Launch sent you

-Tweet “Enter to win $100 shopping spree at http://launch-workshop.com/blog/” (this will count as your second chance to win)

-Then come back here and leave a comment letting us know that you completed step 1 and 2 and what Frank and Frida product you like best.

And if that’s not generous enough, they are also offering 40% off on all of their products until midnight on February 9th!! use code BIG40

As I am sure you noticed, I am very food focussed this week but in a good way. Nine days ago I embarked on a  journey to cleanse my system. Lately, (really the past couple of years) I have been dealing with fatigue, migraines, constant stomach aches, a touch of anxiety (but who doesn’t get anxious) and an overall feeling of general fogginess. So when a friend of mine told me about the Arbonne 30 day cleanse I was intrigued. Because I am a mocha every morning and Coke every day kind of girl I knew it was going to be tough. No refined sugar, no dairy, no gluten and no processed anything. So what does that leave you ask… Lean meats, fruits and vegetables. I start my day with a protein shake (which I have grown to completely love) with frozen berries. Tons of veggies and low glycemic fruits. I can do this. Nothing could have prepared me for the first four days. To say that it was hard is a gross understatement. My body was screaming for sugar. SCREAMING! All I wanted to do was pop open an ice cold Coke and eat a gigantic slice of pizza. I had to force myself to drink the 90 plus ounces of water that I was required to drink and nothing really tasted good to me at all. I was eating the food that I was supposed to because I was supposed to and for no other reason. I hit an all time low on day three when my 16 year old son came home from school and made bacon. I FREAKED out. I was so angry. How could he do this to me? BACON? Could he have picked a worse food to cook? I couldn’t escape the amazing smell and it took everything I had not to say forget it, throw in the towel and eat that delicious thick sliced bacon. But instead I went to my room and cried. I knew if I gave in then, all my hard work would be for not so I pushed on. I can assure you that I was NOT HAPPY about it. And to make matters worse I was on day three of a THROBBING headache. Then on day five I woke up feeling better than I had in years. I went to yoga in the morning and walked 4 miles that night. I had so much energy, I didn’t crash at 2:30pm in fact I felt like I could run a marathon. And every day since then has been better than the day before. That is when I realized just how much I was abusing my body. I look better, my skin is glowing, my hair is softer and my stomach never hurts and I am actually enjoying and craving water. I haven’t had a headache all week, all my cravings are gone and the most amazing thing of all; the food that I was forcing myself to eat in the beginning tastes AMAZING! It is clear to me now that what started out as an attempt to flush the toxins out of my body and hopefully give up drinking Coke has completely changed my life. And now I know that I can never go back to my old ways.

No one just picks up a camera and “gets it”. Of course, it may take a little longer for some than others (I feel like I was on the “some” side) but the only way to perfect your craft is to get out from behind your computer and practice. This is the digital age so go out and find the light, experiment with exposure and aperture. You don’t need a subject to practice, at least not all of the time. Have fun and give yourself a break and remember if you really really want this than don’t give up! There is no substitute for hard work and dedication. I believe that you never truly “arrive”, that Photography is a journey that has no final destination. The moment you think you have arrived is the moment you stop learning.

I recently shared a photo with the Launch Alumni from the first year I was in business and their response made me think I need to share it here on the blog with you. And just in case you were wondering, YES I did make the lovely hat on that poor babies head and YES she is sitting in a planter that I bought at Target and YES I was proud of it at the time

THEN

NOW

Due to such a high demand for a spring workshop, we have decided to move our original February workshop to April 22nd and 23rd. If you are interested in a payment plan, please contact me through the site so that we can discuss arrangements. Hope to see you soon!

What a week. Our water heater decided to dump almost it’s entire contents into Cade’s room leaving him no choice but to bunk up in the bonus room. I learned this week that there are companies who specialize in this sort of catastrophe and to them I am grateful. Just when we we thought we were all dried out, we had a second mysterious flood that is still under investigation. So needless to say, I didn’t get half of things done this week that I hoped to accomplish. To make matters worse, the humming of the fans made me extra sleepy since I sleep with a fan right next my head every night. I am grateful that I was able to work around the shoots I had scheduled and that I can work from home when necessary. This kind of thing is much harder to manage with a 9 to 5 job so for that I am again grateful for this wonderful Profession. I wish I had taken more pictures this week but next week will be better. I can feel it. Enjoy your weekend and don’t forget to hug your water heater.