Little did I know at that time that I was on a path that would suck me into this industry like nothing ever has! The more people (photographers and bride and grooms) I met, the more encouragement I received, and the more weddings I shot… I was hooked! I knew that everything about my life would change! And it did!

There was something about the way I fell in love with weddings. I noticed that my brides’ eyes lit up every single time I would mention walking down that aisle to greet and marry their groom. I fell in love with the look on a groom’s face when he saw his bride for the first time in her wedding gown on their wedding day. I felt emotional when a father would dance with his daughter during the father daughter dance at the reception. And the look on a mom’s face as she watches her baby boy become a man is just priceless.

I was hooked. I no longer “just” wanted to shoot enough weddings to cover the cost of my equipment. What I wanted was to surround myself with love. I noticed that what made me the happiest was when I was capturing those HUGE moments on a wedding day that usually go by so quickly that a bride, groom, and their families never even really notice it because everyone is running on auto pilot. But even more than that… I noticed that what I loved the most was the reaction from my brides when I would share their wedding day photos with them for the first time.

I do not even know when it happened, to be honest. But one day I just realized that I was a professional wedding photographer. And like many people who get into this industry, admitting that out loud is sort of difficult. But I spent over two years developing my style, my craft, my brand, and my business practices. And in doing so… somewhere during that time I fell in love with what I do. I fell in love with the friendships that I have made with my clients and with other wedding vendors. I fell in love with everything!

I have held off on sharing this exciting news with any of you because to be honest… everything just seems so surreal. I still have many moments when I doubt myself and have to ask, “Wendy… what in the world do you think you are doing? Who do you think you are?” And in those moments I am reminded of why I am doing what I do. I am reminded of why I love my job as a PROFESSIONAL WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER. And that reason is because, as cliche’ as this may sound… I LOVE LOVE! And I love my clients!

So what is this exciting news that I’ve been holding back since before Christmas? Well here it is! I have been invited to speak at Showit United in Vegas during WPPI next month on the Creating New Clients panel! Showit United is an event put together by Showit that sold out in less than five minutes! EEEEEKKKK! Just typing this out here on the blog both excites me and sends me into a nervous frenzy! This is only my second speaking opportunity outside of my own community. I am a nervous wreck if I am being honest… because I will probably get up there in front of that room full of people and choke! But what is even more intimidating to me is who I will be sharing the panel with. I will be sharing this panel with Zach and Jody Gray, and Trevor Dayley. These guys are REAL PROS and have been REAL PROS for a long time. I do not have a CLUE what I will have to offer on this panel, but the simple fact that I was invited is seriously an honor!

So to those of you who will be attending Showit United in Vegas next month during WPPI… HOLLA! I hope I get to meet many new faces, and hug tons of necks! If you get a chance, make sure to find me and wish me luck. Because I am seriously a nervous wreck and have already started chewing my fingernails. LOL!

You may have noticed that the look and feel of my website changed. I actually launched the new look last night… sort of like a ninja in the dark. I did this quietly because really… it is not 100% complete. But I was so excited about the change that my clicky finger got a little antsy and went ahead and hit the publish button. It’s all good! I’m in love with my new look. But I thought I might go ahead and make mention of the new look over here on the blog because there will still be a few changes that will take place.

This style group was designed by Julie Story! You may remember several weeks ago when she offered up one of her style groups for me to give away! I fell in love with it and knew that I had to have it for myself!

Have I mentioned how much I love my Showit website?!

Change is good! Change always gives us a fresh start, a clean slate, a new plan, and can sometimes light a fire under our rear ends to do greatness.

I would love for you to take a look around the site! If you see any typos or broken links, be a dear and let me know! Sometimes I get so excited I get a little ahead of myself.

Let me start by saying that branding your photography business means more than getting a fancy logo or website. I say this to you because when many photographers are starting out, that is as far as they think when creating their brand. I did this too! Yes your logo and website is extremely important in expressing your brand, but there is so much more to it than that. Your brand is what people think of when they hear your name. It is more than what you put out there for everyone to see. It is how others perceive you and your business.

When I was first starting out as a photographer I would shoot anything and everything that would come my way. Let’s face it… new photographers are eager to shoot. We are ready to get recognition and we never want to turn down money! Can I get an Amen? But you know what? This actually holds us back. Our clients want to hire an expert. They want to hire someone who specializes in what they need. So narrowing down your specialty is vital! If you love shooting Seniors, then specialize in Seniors. If you love shooting infants, then shoot infants. If you are like me, and love shooting weddings… then focus your business on weddings! If a bride goes to your website and sees a hodgepodge of various types of photography, you will more than likely get overlooked. Defining your specialty makes you a specialist. You are suddenly an expert. And this is the first step in creating your brand.

So how do you stand out? How can you create an awareness of your brand when there are so many talented photographers out there? Consumers have so many options these days. And while there are many ways to brand your business, I choose to brand based on ME. Let me explain. With a sea of talented photographers out there, the only thing I can GUARANTEE to my potential clients that I have that nobody else out there has is ME. There is only one me! When you go to my website, you will see photos of ME on the front page! I want people to see ME. I want people to connect with ME… not just my work. I have included a huge “about me” section on my website where people can go to learn more about me as a person… not just a photographer. This allows people to connect with me personally! And connecting with people personally is the backbone of my business. But even more than that, it is why I do what I do. It is why I became a wedding photographer. It is why I LOVE being a wedding photographer!

The next two steps are really easy… and fun! In order to help create brand awareness for your business it is important that you network with other industry professionals as well as stay active on social media. One way to network with other industry professionals is to visit their blog regularly. Leave comments for them. And keep going back. Also… show up to planned community events within the industry. Make friends with your local photographers and/or wedding vendors. Become someone that they can trust and depend on. Within social media, be active! Communicate with your local photographers and vendors through social media sites such Twitter and Facebook. But also remember that you ultimately want to connect with your potential clients as well.

On Social Media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, you want to keep your brand consistent. Use the same profile picture for each site. Keep your look the same across the board. You want people to recognize you. On Facebook create a business page where people can click on the Like button. Update your status several times a day, and let your personality shine. Create conversations on your Facebook page by asking questions that people will relate to and WANT to respond. Share your blog posts by copying and pasting the link into your status update.

With a little help from people and companies that know way more than me, I have been able to brand my business in a way that has taken off over the last 14 months. With the help of Showitfast, I have been able to create a unique website that allows me to be unique. And the tools that Showitfast provides me to keep everything consistent within social media is priceless. I went from spending nearly $300 a month on advertising with sites such as Wedding Wire and The Knot, to only spending $39 a month for Showit. And the number of weddings that I have booked have tripled in the 14 months that I have focused on this type of branding.

I finally ALSO decided to invest in a designer to create a look that best fits ME. When photographers are first starting out, there is not much of a budget to work with. So we always think that we can just create our own logo and be done with it. I know… I was totally one of those people who thought that exact thing. But if you are like me, you are a photographer… NOT a designer. My pathetic little logos that I was able to create in Photoshop… well I thought at the time that they were great! But I look back at them now and think, “What was I thinking?!” So I finally invested in a consistent look to help me be me! Kim with Madilu Designs specializes in creating a look especially for photographers. The work that I had her do for me is a little more custom than what she does for most photographers in the sense that I wanted something different! I wanted different pieces than the usual pieces that photographers think of because I have spent so much time branding myself through Showitfast and Social Media, and I wanted that to remain consistent in my printed material as well. You can see the welcome packet and extras that she and I have been working on for the last several months.

I totally wish I had started out three years ago knowing what I know now. It would have saved me tons of time AND money! And since many of you have sent me questions about branding, I wanted to share with you my strategy. This may not be the best way, and it is definitely not the ONLY way. But it is MY WAY, and it works for me. If you want to dig deeper into my strategy, get with me for a mentoring session.

Want to connect with me?

TWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/wendycphotos

FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/wendycunningham10

WEBSITE: http://www.wendy-cunningham.com

I know I shared with you Kim and Chad’s engagement session in Murfreesboro. And later after their beautiful Opryland Hotel wedding in Nashville I shared with you their wedding sneak peek. So I also wanted to share with you the final custom client site that features everything all together in one place… and like I like to say… “all tied up in a pretty little bow.”

If you want to open Kim and Chad’s client site in a separate window, click here!

“It would be more resourceful to make a decision on where you want to go and miss the mark than to fail to decide right from the start.” – Dane Sanders

“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up some place else.” – Yogi Berra

“To reach a port, we must sail – Sail, not tie an anchor – Sail, not drift.” – Franklin Roosevelt

“Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind.” – Seneca

Vision For The Future

With the close of 2011 and new beginnings for 2012, I cannot help but focus on dreams, goals, and accomplishments! I can honestly say that many of my personal AND business goals for this past year were not met. But many of them far exceeded anything I could imagine. Dreams that I did not even realize I had came true! I do not deserve the opportunities that have been presented to me as a photographer. But I am too smart not to take those opportunities and be grateful!

It is these opportunities and accomplishments that were a surprise to me that made me think… Think BIG and allow myself to dream! But dream for what? So after being invited by, and encouraged by Karen Stott to join her on her 101 Goals In 1001 Days adventure, I am allowing myself to have vision for my future… both personal and professional. So here it is… a bucket list of sorts.

101 Goals In 1001 Days

1. Visit the Sistine Chapel

2. Tour Europe for 30 Days

3. Attend one of Rebecca’s body building competitions

4. Go on a cruise

5. Go with Jessica and Michael to Kenya on a mission trip

6. Teach Peyton to read

7. Go to a Cardinals game – and not hate it

8. Buy a new house

9. Graduate Tyler from high school via home school

10. Hire a housekeeper

11. Complete the P90X program

12. Shoot a real Cedarwood wedding

13. Complete my promo video

14. Take a Napa Wine Valley vacation

15. Decorate all common areas in my home with modern vintage style

16. Bi-weekly date night with my hubby – THAT HE PLANS – ahem ahem

17. Spend a weekend in Louisville with Rebecca being nothing but SILLY

18. Read the Bible from front to back

19. Vacation in Sydney, Australia

20. Visit the Grand Canyon

21. Photograph a dust storm in Arizona

22. Outsource my Accounting

23. Eat sushi and like it

24. Learn to speak Italian

25. Get over my fear and go cliff diving

26. Photograph The Great Wall of China

27. Get my gun carry permit

28. Fly a kite

29. Make a delicious homemade cheesecake

30. Get over my dairy food phobia

31. Plant a garden

32. Make a quilt

33. Shoot a 50′s inspired wedding

34. Tell my husband and my children that I love them every single day

35. Make more time for my family

36. Set and stick to office hours

37. Spend Christmas in New York

38. Get published again

39. Start Christmas shopping in January

40. Read at least one book every month that will help strengthen my business

41. Do at least one weekly random act of kindness for a stranger

42. Focus on nothing but the positive

43. Learn to say “no” without feeling guilty

44. Locate and visit Mrs. Jurlee Sanders – a very important lady from my childhood

45. Visit my family in Louisiana at least twice a year

46. Build and support an amazing network of photographers in Rutherford County

47. Attend one of Dane Sanders’ Fast Track Leaders conferences.

48. Donate blood

49. Finish writing my book

50. Spend a week at a 5 star spa retreat

51. Go to a Renaissance Festival and actually eat a fried oreo (shivers)

52. Give up drinking Dr. Pepper

53. Forgive myself for my ugly mistakes

54. Write a hand written letter to each one of my children to let them know how special they are

55. Swim with dolphins

56. Go snorkeling

57. Have our own family photos taken at least once a year

58. Forgive others

59. Get Rutherford County involved in a huge Help Portrait event

60. Buy Super Bowl tickets for Scott

61. See the Radio City Christmas Spectacular

62. Go on a waterfall adventure in Hawaii

63. Find something fun, cheesy, and crazy to do with Scott – like dance lessons – ball room dance lessons! YES!

64. Be more strategic when it comes to making business decisions

65. FINALLY complete a 365 project

66. Set a trend for pajama jeans! LOL

67. Hire an assistant

68. Learn how to make fried chicken

69. Replace every single light bulb in my house with economical light bulbs

70. Become more of a Suzie Homemaker

71. Never run out of clean towels or socks

72. Begin a ministry for teens who have survived a tragedy

73. Get my office more organized

74. Do something amazing to give back to my community

75. See and photograph the Northern Lights

76. Take a helicopter ride with my husband

77. Be asked to speak at a large photography conference

78. Go on a picnic with my husband next to a waterfall, and fall asleep next to him on a blanket

79. Take my children to Disneyworld

80. Cut out all red meat and pork. Eat chicken and fish only

81. Get all of my branded welcome kit materials printed and put together

82. Shoot a destination wedding in another country

83. Get my gymnast figure back

84. Participate in a flash mob dancing to I’m Sexy And I Know It

85. Perfect my workflow

86. Run a 1/2 marathon

87. Visit at least five new Tennessee waterfalls I’ve never seen before

88. Begin a year long daily devotional with my children

89. Launch my workshops – FEARLESSLY

90. Write random notes onto sticky notes and leave them all over my childrens’ bedroom wall.

91. Share my testimony in public – without fear

92. Pray hard every single day

93. Reconnect with my cousins Kathy and Kay Lynn

94. Dare to dream EVERY DAY!

95. Live by example for my daughters

96. Keep my mobile site updated

97. Take a road trip with my best friends – in a convertible so I can stand up and fly in the wind like a crazy person.

98. Spend more time helping new photographers

99. Make ammends

100. Love others and allow them to love me

101. Trust in God’s plan 100%

Happy New Year my lovelies! Instead of resolutions, I have laid the path for the future. Because unless you know where you are going, you will never know when you get there!

Would love to hear from you! Comment!

If you are not a Showit user, you may be asking yourself, “What is a style group?” Style groups are sort of like website templates only better! With Showit, you have the ability to create a completely customized website. You are not stuck in a template. With style groups, you can totally customize them to fit you and your brand! You can move, change colors, add, or completely remove any part of the style group that you choose. You can start out with a style group, and before you know it… you can have it so customized that you can’t even tell it was a style group to begin with!

And if all of that yumminess isn’t enough to get you excited, keep reading!

Julie Story has been gracious enough to offer me one of her style groups to give away! And I have chosen to give away her Lemon Chic style group! Check it out! But be sure to keep reading so you can win!

Isn’t this style group yummy? Julie truly outdid herself with this entire collection!

So here is how you win this style group:

Go like Julie’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/juliestorypage

After you have liked her page, head on over to mine and like it too. https://www.facebook.com/wendycunningham10

Then after you have liked both of our pages, come on back over here to the blog and leave Julie a comment telling her what you think about her style groups!

One random person will be drawn to win on December 20th!

Several people have asked, “What types of gifts do you send to your clients?” Well I’ll be honest with you. It isn’t a strategy. It is simply something that I try to unconsciously consider if that makes sense. I know that I am going to buy gifts here and there, but I do not have a plan. It is just dependent on how I feel on any particular day! But I know this… If you make a little bit of effort, you will turn your clients into friends! And that is the most amazing perk to our jobs! Seriously! And the feeling I get when I make new friends is exactly the reason I chose to specialize in weddings. I love people. I love the intimacy that I get to share with my clients. And I love weddings!

Here are a few ideas that I can share. These are gift ideas that I have given in the past.

Date Night: Send your clients a movie theatre gift card with a hand written note encouraging them to remember to take time for each other during the crazy wedding planning stages! I don’t know what my clients loved more… the movie or the hand written note! But it is always nice to hear that someone is just thinking about you, right?

Board Games: I love games that encourage listening. So MadGab is a favorite of mine! This is also a great game to give to the groom and his groomsmen on the wedding day to keep them occupied while they are having to stay tucked away while you are taking pictures of the bride!

Cosmetic Bags: Another wedding day favorite! I like to surprise the bride and her bridesmaids with a cosmetic bag full of girly things. I sometimes have the cosmetic bags embroidered with the wedding party’s monograms, and will usually include things like lip gloss, packs of tissue, a loofah, lotion, shower gel, and breath mints. And don’t forget the flower girl. It never fails! There is usually so much going on with wedding day plans that at least one of your brides will forget to think about keeping the flower girl entertained and out of the dirt! So I like to give her a cosmetic bag just like the big girls. But I will usually put crayons, coloring books, miniature notebooks, lip gloss, and lotion into hers.

Candy Grams: When my clients first book me, I always send them a link to an online questionnaire. Most of the time they end up laughing at some of the questions that I ask because they just do not understand why their photographer wants to know what their favorite 90′s boy band is, or what their favorite candy is! But I love getting to know the small details about them, and candy grams are always a fun gift to send! Don’t forget the hand written note just to let them know you are thinking of them! I sometimes send candy grams anytime during the year… but around Valentine’s Day this works great… especially when you include a cheesy elementary school style valentine card! It just brings a smile!

Specialty Photography Gifts: One thing that I like to do for my current AND previous clients is to send them a Christmas ornament. There are several labs who offer different types of photo Christmas ornaments such as the ones pictured below that came from Black River Imaging. But what a nice gesture for you to acknowledge to your clients that this is their first Christmas together as husband and wife. Just because the wedding is past, doesn’t mean you have to stop! But what about those clients who have upcoming weddings? Use an image from their engagement session if you can! After all… this is their first Christmas as an engaged couple more than likely! Small gestures go a very long way! And I love these Christmas ornaments!

Got any ideas on client gifts? Share them! I’m always looking for more ideas!

I have been invited to speak to the Paducah, KY SMUG MUG group next week about Social Media Marketing. When I was first approached by Mark Koenig about this, I wanted to run! I went through many different emotions which started with fear. I wanted to scream and run the other way. But then I listened to some very supportive friends, and I hesitantly accepted their invitation. Once I accepted their invitation to speak, I began to allow myself to get excited!  I wanted to come over here to this blog and write up a little piece about “my next speaking event.” But the truth is… this is a first for me! And I am totally scared to death! Social Media Marketing? Really? What am I going to say? That I am addicted to Facebook and I spend entirely too much time there? Let’s face it… I am NO EXPERT! I am simply a little fish in a big ol’ sea of SHARKS!

So here it is friends… Me being real! I am no expert on social media marketing… or anything for that matter. But I am going to do this. I may totally fall flat on my face, and be laughed out of town. The very likelihood of that is far greater than me making any kind of impact on anyone. But that is okay. I have to try. And all I can do is be real. All I can do is get up there and share with everyone what it is that I do. I am almost positive that there are better ways of using social media to market your business, but it is what it is. I will share my practices, and hope that even a tiny piece of what I share will help someone.

This I Believe:

I believe in being real!

I believe in sharing!

I believe in overcoming my fears!

I believe in chasing dreams!

I believe in taking chances!

If you want to tune in and watch me live, be sure to bookmark this site and tune in on Friday, December 16th at 1:30 central! And maybe say a little prayer that I do not faint while being aired live? Yeah… that would be great! http://www.ustream.tv/channel/jmkprodnet  

Therefor the child portrait project was born!

When I mentioned to the other photographer moms in the Home School Mom Photographers group that I had no recent photos of my children, I was shocked to find out how many of them were in the same boat! Here we all are… wedding and portrait photographers… home school moms… spending our days every day of the week with our children… and we never put them in front of our cameras? What’s up with that?! So it all changes now. We have all pledged to take at least one photo of one of our children every single week and share it in the group. I am hoping to have time to also share here on the blog. I’ve never been really good at sticking to 52 week projects. So lets hope the motivation of my own children will help! Besides… when I grow old, I do not want to have tons of images of brides and grooms yet zero images of my own children.

AND…  how difficult should it be to take photos of one of my children every week when I have children as GORGEOUS as this?

A question that has come up several times is this:

“Why are other photographers in some of the photography forums so mean to newbies?”

Well… I don’t really know how to answer that question directly. I can give you my best guess though. My guess as to why photographers are sometimes mean is this: A. They feel threatened by the number of new photographers entering the industry, which usually means they consider you their competition. B. They feel entitled to something that you may take away from them. or C. They are just naturally a miserable, mean person. Dane Sanders, in his Fast Track Photographer book, calls these people The Grumpies. And I am very familiar with my share of them.

We hear it all the time from some of the well known names in the photography industry. “Get involved! Get plugged in! Get to know other photographers!” So this is exactly what I did. When I first started trying to plug in and get more involved, I joined the Nashville Photography Meetup Group. This is where I was able to connect with people who knew way more than me about shooting. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even own a DSLR camera at the time. I was shooting with an old SLR film camera and knew NOTHING about digital photography. And if I am being completely honest here, I knew nothing about shooting with my SLR film camera either. LOL. But the point is, I spent time with other enthusiast and learned TONS about my camera and eventually purchased a Canon 50D and learned everything I could about digital photography.

After a couple of years of being involved with the Nashville Photography Meetup Group, which by the way was a marvelous decision on my part, I ended up actually becoming an organizer for the group. It was so much fun! That is where I realized that I loved giving back to other photographers. I was constantly seeking out opportunities to put together a photo shoot or a seminar where I could also give away lots of photography goodies. I began to meet professional portrait and wedding photographers, and thus an awakening inside of myself that I had finally found my calling!

Once I decided on my niche (weddings and portraits) I realized that I needed to surround myself with more professional wedding and portrait photographers. I eventually became less active with the meetup group, while I focused on the more professional aspects of starting and running a business, as well as professional weddings and portraits. The meetup group was one of the best things that ever happened to me, but I was growing and had to allow myself to keep moving forward. I began to get more involved with professionals, outings, meetings, and online forums. AND WOW! I do not think I was prepared for the nastiness that I was suddenly faced with. It was intimidating to say the least. I was a watcher. I did not plug in very much. I did not join in to very many conversations taking place… mainly because I watched some people get ripped to shreds for asking a question that another photographer felt was a stupid question! I was suddenly in a completely different league! And I was lonely.

I began to doubt myself and weather or not I had made the right decision to skip my student teaching semester at MTSU. I began to wonder if I was in way over my head! But I kept pushing forward because I had been bitten by the wedding bug. I loved weddings! And I loved getting to know my clients in the year leading up to their wedding! It wasn’t until dinner one evening with a certain local husband and wife photography team that I realized that I could do this! I felt empowered and began to seek out other opportunities to learn and connect.

I am now organizing the local Fast Track Photographer group in Murfreesboro, and I found a community within Showit and Pursuit 31. Connecting with locals in my immediate area has been a very rewarding experience, and we are able to share with each other and support each other as we grow. The Showit and Pursuit 31 groups allow me to reach outside of my immediate area, and I honestly believe that being part of an online community is important! It allows me to share what I may know, and learn what I don’t.  But the reason I choose to stay so active within the Showiteers group and the Pursuit 31 group is because there are absolutely ZERO grumpies. NONE! ZILCH! NADA! Both groups have become my go to place for when I have questions. If I need an answer to something, all I have to do is post my question up in the forum and I will immediately get dozens of answers which allows me the opportunity to get different perspectives on a topic. If someone else asks a question, I can also share my thoughts, opinions, and experiences thus allowing myself to contribute back in the same way. Both groups are full of photographers ranging from enthusiasts to full time professionals. And both groups have become my photography family!

The point here is this: It is very important to get involved and plug in with other other professionals. And online communities are a great way to learn and contribute some very valuable information. But there are definitely some personal decisions that you will have to make when you are deciding which forums or groups to get involved with. For me, the grumpies intimidated me. I tend to be the kind of person that does not like any form of negativity. So when I saw photographers being mean or ugly, I knew it was not the place for me. Some of you may have thicker skin than I do, and if you do you can probably handle the grumpies much better than I can.

The important thing to do is to go where you feel comfortable. And do not be ashamed to move on to bigger and better things once you feel you have outgrown something. Aspiring and professional photographers both are hopefully continuing to grow and move forward every day. Serve others, and let them serve you as well! Resist the urge to become a grumpy yourself. Believe me, this will only hurt YOU in the end. Most grumpies tend to be grumpy in order to serve their immediate needs. But in the long run… they are just a grumpy! So do not allow yourself to get sucked into that. Stay away from the gossip. Stay away from bashing. And stay away from the grumpies. You will thank yourself later.

WOW this post got really long! Sorry about that, but thank you to those of you who stuck it out long enough to read this far! Until next time…

XOXO

Wendy