I can’t begin to tell you how much BP4U Photography Guides loves Emily Tesnow Photography! She definitely knows how to capture those precious moments. Her work definitely speaks for itself, check it out! 🙂
Hi! I’m Emily. I’m a lifestyle family photographer based in NW Ohio. I’m married to my high school sweetheart, Chuck, and we have three amazing daughters: Piper, Phoebe, Isabel, and I have another baby on the way. I’m obsessed with photojournalism, beards (only on dudes though), nerd glasses (and yes I really do need them, I’m not a hipster), caramel fraps, boots of all kinds, scary movies, thunderstorms, and knitting. I’m a hippie at heart and love homemade everything. I’m deathly afraid of clowns, and weird in between tadpole/frog mutant things. I will eat peanut butter off of a spoon, and put maple syrup on my ice cream.
Peanut butter and pickle sandwiches are quite literally, a little slice of heaven in my book. I will watch Twister and Jurassic Park every single time they play on TV. I’m ridiculously short, but I make up for it with my awesome taste of music and wicked sense of humor 😉Â
When did you first realize you wanted to be a photographer? I honestly can’t even remember. It was all kind of a whirlwind of crazy fast emotions. I feel like one minute I was taking photos of my kids, and the next, I was booking out the ying yang. But all creative mediums have always been very close to my heart, so it really just came pretty naturally.
When and how did you start out in photography? I’ve always always been into anything artsy and creative. My high school art teacher is probably who really put the bug in my brain that stuck, and I was totally hooked with all art outlets. The actual photography part of it I think started around the time of my first pregnancy.
I was totally obsessed with wanting to capture everything, and more than just snapshots. My cousin Mackensey (who is also an amazing photographer) gave me some pointers and let me borrow an old camera of hers until I had enough saved up to buy my own DSLR. I started out with a Nikon D90 and a 50mm lens. (I’ve since switched to Canon)
How would you describe your style? Documentary and raw. My total passion is the natural unposed moments that a lot of people wouldn’t even think to snap. Those are always my favorite images of my own kids, because I’ll remember them for who they truly were as a kid, and not for the cheesy smiles I forced them into. I’m not afraid of grain, and I embrace it. A super moody, grainy, filmy, raw black and white are always my favorites.
What’s in your gear bag? I shoot 90% of the time with a Canon 5D MkII and a Sigma 50mm1.4 (and yes, normally I hate off brands, but this lens rocks my socks.)
One lens you can’t live without? My 50 for sure.
How did know when the right time to start charging was? I’m pretty sure I went about this all wrong, and I totally charged before I should have. There really isn’t any right answer. I felt that no matter what, if I was spending time away from my kids, I should be compensated for it. In hindsight, I feel sort of bad for charging because those photos were pretty terrible. I did my fair share of free shoots, but I definitely should have done that longer.
How much did you charge for your first session and how much are you charging for the same type of session now? My very first paid session was $50. For the same thing now it runs $500.
How did you market yourself when you started out? All of my marketing was basically through Facebook and word of mouth. It’s still the majority of that. Word of mouth is amazing. No matter how much you spend on advertising, if you have unhappy clients, it won’t do much for you. Happy clients are the best advertisers we have in this business, especially when there are so many of us to choose from.
We are going to play a game… name the first person that comes to mind when you think of…
·Newborn photographer: Emily Anne Photography (and she’s my best friend. She’s really the bomb diggity.)
·Wedding photographer: Lilly Photography
·Lifestyle photographer: DeAnna McCasland
·Most inspiration person: My mom <3
Did you go to school for photography or were you self- taught? I’m self-taught. The thing that was most helpful for me was really just trial and error. I had to go out and shoot often, figure out what I liked, and how to get it by just trying everything under the sun. I read a lot online on random forums, but I really learn hands on the best and out in the “field” as opposed to reading.
What has been some of the hardest things to overcome in your business? Balance. Hands down. It’s extremely hard to find that balance between work and family. But it’s something that HAS to be done. I cut back a lot on how many sessions I do a month this year. Last year there were months I was shooting 25-35 sessions in ONE month and I really almost quit. My kids were acting out, I wasn’t enjoying it.
It was too much work and not enough fun. All work and no play makes Emily a dull girl. I also was shooting stuff I didn’t really WANT to shoot. It’s imperative, at least it was for me, to find my niche, and remember that it IS OK to say no. Don’t shoot something if you don’t love it.
It will just take more time away from your family and you won’t even have fun. Believe me, your kids will not remember you for how much money you made when they were in kindergarten. They remember the time spent, and time NOT SPENT with them.
Do you have any tips for photographers just starting out? Practice, practice, practice. Don’t compare your stuff to others. It really does nothing for you but bring you down most of the time. Stay true to you and what you want, and learn when to say NO.
If for some reason you couldn’t be a photographer what do you think you would be? A hospice nurse. No doubt about it. That is what I *actually* went to school for 🙂
What’s the best lesson in photography that you’ve learned so far? Market yourself for the clients you want. It’s really important to find people that really appreciate your art and your time. I finally learned I didn’t need to be everyone’s photographer. Not everyone is going to like me, and that’s totally fine. A few will love me and my work, and it’s far more important to have 10 diamonds in your life than 55 useless rocks 😉Â
What are your thoughts on lifestyle photography? I adore lifestyle photography. It’s all about the real and true stuff. The real moments. The fact that your 4 year old wears princess dresses to the grocery store and never brushes her hair is awesome and should be documented.
That two year old that eats raspberries JUST SO, it’s real. And needs to be documented. I’m a big fan of documenting everything. Everyone has a story to tell, and I want to tell it. 🙂 Do you know what my favorite photo of my middle daughter is?
It’s this black and white photo of her curled up on our big lazy boy, just in her underwear, with some insanely crazy bedhead. It looks like she just got off of a week long bender. It’s first thing in the morning, and it’s just, awesome.
Emily Tesnow Photography | Facebook
Have any questions or comments for Emily? Feel free to place them in the comment section below!Â
Subscribe to our posing tips here: