21/02/2025
I met the incredibly talented Chantelle yesterday! Chantelle used to be a photographer in the early 2000's, for many reasons she stepped away at the time but her love for photography never left and she's now reached a stage in her life where she feels it's the perfect time to restart her business.
The biggest issues for Chantelle have been:
- not knowing where to start (so much has changed in 20 years with technology, equipment, systems etc.)
- gaining the confidence to do it
- not knowing where to start or who to ask for advice locally in fear of how they would respond
I advertised some mini sessions in a local Facebook group, Chantelle saw my work and took a leap and sent me a message with her story and asked if she could book in with me for a session of some kind to pick my brain on all things photography and business.
I love helping others, I love small business and I believe in community over competition so of course I said yes!
Yesterday we met at a cafe and spent 3.5 hours going over a list of questions Chantelle had and a whole bunch more and she's walked away with more direction, more confidence and even more excitement to jump back into it all and I can't wait to see how far it takes her!
I've been a photographer for over a decade and I've been working for myself primarily for almost four of those years. I get the dreaded imposter syndrome constantly and often think I don't know 'enough' or I don't have 'enough' experience even after all I've learned and accomplished over the years. Yet Chantelle is at the start of her comeback journey and can't thank me enough for what I've been able to teach her and says the information I've provided is invaluable to her. The difference in that perspective is funny isn't it?
Often there are others out there admiring you from afar, dreaming to one day be where you are right now but you generally don't remember how far you've come because you're too busy raising the bar and achieving the next goal.
This selfie represents a new friendship and a huge amount of growth for both of us in different ways.
We trust the food when we don't know the chef, we trust the plane when we don't know the pilot, why not give ourselves the opportunity to trust and believe in our own abilities and potential?
Whatever your dream is in life, you just have to make a start! Never be too afraid to ask because you just never know...