I get to travel a lot for my photography business, but I also like to try to find a session or two even on personal trips. This is only a recent mindset for me, though. In June of 2023, I was at the beach in the Pensacola, FL area. I am from Arkansas, so we obviously do not have an ocean anywhere near. However, I have been to the gulf coast many times throughout my life. So, this was not a new experience. There are a couple of things that were new about this trip, though. I had never been to the beach in the Pensacola area, and I had decided that I wanted to offer my photography services to strangers. I had decided to try to get some photography business while I was at the beach because just about everyone wants beach photos. I was trying to capitalize on that while on vacation/work-cation. The reason for this trip was to take family pictures for some friends while they were on vacation. Anyway, I was going to just walk up to someone and offer my services. One little fun fact about me is that I am not a salesman. I do not push myself and my business onto people. I just like to post on social media and treat my clients well. Then, I basically just rely on word of mouth for the rest. I should probably do better about this aspect of advertising, but I haven't quite made it there yet. My point is that I don't typically live my life just ready to sell my photography services to random strangers who were not interested in the first place. Like I said before, this was the "new" thing about this particular vacation. I was going to try my best to just walk up to someone and ask if they wanted photos while they were at the beach.
We were at the beach one day, and I picked out a couple that was just a little ways down from where we were set up. They were young and looked like they would be fun to take photos of. So, I thought about it.... and thought about it.... and thought about it. I can't remember what all went down in my head at that specific time, but if I know myself, I probably talked myself out of it a few times. I eventually decided to walk down the beach and pass where they were. So, I did just that. I walked right past them and didn't stop. I'm not sure what my strategy was here, but I know for a fact that it was being run by anxiety. Haha I finally started making my way back down the beach, and I saw that they looked like they were packing up to leave. I just went for it. I walked right up and told them that I was a photographer from Arkansas and that they looked like a cute couple. I then proceeded to offer my photography services with the occasional disclaimer that they absolutely did not have to accept my offer. After I gave my spiel, the girl (Roxy) pointed out that the guy (August) was from Arkansas as well. So, I asked where. Come to find out, he was literally from my home town/area, and he was in Florida visiting his girlfriend for part of the summer. So, let me spell this out for you. August (from Batesville, AR) meets a girl from the Pensacola, FL area. He decides to visit her for the summer. I go on a random working vacation to take family pictures for some friends in an area that I had never been before. I finally talk myself into asking someone to do a photo session. I see August and Roxy who just happened to come to the same beach where we were that day. I walk up and talk to them, and he lives in the exact same area that I do. Isn't that crazy?? Maybe that was God's way of relieving my anxiety in that moment and giving me the confidence to do this kind of thing more often.
Here are a few photos from the session. Also, the story is not over, so keep reading!
As I said, the story is not over! August just happened to be going into his senior year of high school. He is a 2024 graduate of Batesville High School in Arkansas. Soooo, you probably know where this is going. If you follow me at all, then you know that senior photography is my area of expertise. With that being said, in November of 2023, I had the amazing opportunity to take senior photos for August back in Arkansas.
This seriously was one of the best experiences for me, and it was the start of my journey of asking others to do photo sessions in the random places that I travel to. I will continue this for future trips, and I hope to make new lifelong friends a long the way. Meeting people and making connections is so important to me, so this story is near and dear to me heart. Little did I know that I was going to take couple photos in Florida for someone from my hometown. I hope y'all have enjoyed reading this!
P.S. Here are some more photos of a couple that I approached at a ski resort in Utah!
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