Can you imagine a life where your camera takes you around the world? In today’s episode, I have the honor of introducing you to Halle Heather, photography business coach and host of the Take Your Shot podcast. Halle and I are chatting about cultivating community as an entrepreneur, traveling for your business, and taking your shot at your dreams. 

On Quianna Marie Weekly, we’re chatting about business growing pains, finding genuine connections, and celebrating wins of all sizes through the lens of a photographer at heart. Sprinkled throughout stories and interviews with past clients, photographers and other business owners this podcast is designed to help you step into your purpose and to truly create a life you’re proud of, a life worth photographing and sharing.

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Today’s episode is brought to you by The Green House, my resource garden for photographers! Let me help you AMPLIFY your heart online and in real life to turn bridesmaids into future brides through templates, workshops, and freebies!

Review The Show Notes: 

Creating A Business With Your Husband (2:28)

Living Out Of A Prius (5:15)

Funding Prius Life (10:16)

Traveling For Business Or For Fun? (13:44)

Advice For Photographers Interested In Destination And Adventure (16:23) 

Current Trends In The Wedding Industry (18:43)

Marketing And Branding So That Dream Clients Run To You (22:55)

The Line Between Friendship And Professionalism (26:06)

Cultivating Community As An Entrepreneur (30:24)

Finding Community Online And In Real Life (35:26)

Take Your Shot (39:07)

Key Tip From Halle (41:33)

Connect with Halle:

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Website

Mentioned In This Episode

Take Your Shot Podcast

Review the Transcript:

Quianna: Can you imagine a life where your camera takes you around the world photographing the coolest, sweetest, and most down to earth couples? Well, today’s guest cracked the code and now gets paid to photograph weddings, capture love stories, and celebrate couples right next to her husband who records these adventures as a talented videographer too.

For today’s episode, I have the honor of introducing you to Halle, one half of the husband and wife team, Lulee Photo and Film. Halle will be sharing stories about traveling around the country in their Prius, yes I said that right, their Prius, to escape the snow in their hometown of Minnesota. We’ll chat about booking destination weddings and elopements, the growing pains and blooming seasons of entrepreneurship.

We chat about the value of genuine friendships both online and in real life, wedding trends, what’s in, what’s out, what’s coming up soon, as well as juggling being a professional in the wedding industry while still treating our clients like forever friends. Halle not only travels to incredible destinations with her camera, but she also shares her voice and stories on her podcast.

Take your shot. And they just opened up a beautiful creative studio in their hometown. It’s truly an honor to introduce you to kind hearted, ambitious friends like Hallie. Even if you’re not a photographer, stick around, babe. Business is business. And I love sharing these inspiring conversations to help you relate to these marketing, social media, and business strategies to your own industry.

Without further ado, from Minnesota, all the way to sunny Arizona, please welcome Hallie Heather. Welcome to Kiana Marie Weekly. A podcast for creatives who love to celebrate wins big or small by dancing in the kitchen, photographers who are excited to serve their clients and friends who are ready to chase really, really big dreams.

You can find all of the resources mentioned in this episode at kianamarie. com slash podcast. Join me as I share a weekly motivation, chat about growing pains, finding genuine connections and celebrating your wins with me. through the lens of a photographer at heart. Come join me for a dance party. Ready?

Let’s go.

Hey, hey, hey. Welcome to the party, Halle.

Halle: I’m so grateful you can join us today. Oh my goodness. Thank you so much for having me, Quianna. I’m so excited to be here and just, yeah, connect with everyone today. It’s going to be so fun.

Creating A Business With Your Husband

Quianna: Yes. Well, I love a good introduction and a super sweet story. So could you explain to me your business name and how you created your name with your husband?

Halle: Oh my goodness. Okay. Well, um, first of all, my name is Hallie Heather. You can call me Hal. Just please don’t call me Hallie because that’s not my name. But yeah, so I have two different businesses. So photography business is Luli, um, and it’s combining Luke plus Halle is Lulle. We’re a husband and wife team started in photography.

And then now we do both photo and video, which It’s so fun. I honestly love telling people’s stories in kind of like that holistic way. And I also run a podcast called the Take Your Shot Podcast. It’s under my brand, Take Your Shot Collective. And that is a long story. I could maybe try to give you the summary, but long story short, it was not my plan to become a full time photographer.

Take Your Shot Podcast

I actually went to school for journalism and communication, worked in the Fortune 500 company and got my MBA, thought I was going to move up in that career, but ultimately God closed that door. And in that time, I had a friend who basically was praying for me and got this vision of me playing soccer, and God was telling me to take the shot.

And so Take Your Shot comes not only from me stepping into full time photography, but also wanting to empower others to really step into their gifts and talents and passions. And so that’s kind of my heart behind that. So two different companies, but ultimately I just love what I’m doing and how basically my life and my experiences are really something that have led me to what I get to do today.

And my favorite part about all of this is getting to connect with people like Kiana and people like you, because ultimately it’s the people that makes the whole thing so worth it.

Quianna: Yes, I love that story so much and I love that we can bring our creativity into our passions and our business and I love your spin on Take Your Shot because I think when you look at your podcast at a glance, you think, Oh yeah, she’s a photographer.

Take your shot like you’re taking photos. But having that extra element of soccer and sports and business, girl, like this is all my jam.

Halle: I love it so much. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. And I feel like, I mean, for me, take your shot. Like. I don’t know it’s so easy as a creative to kind of just put yourself in a box or feel a little like wow where’s my place in the world because I think especially here in America you know there’s like that nine to five culture and the climb the corporate ladder kind of thing that’s always praised and for generations always has been but I think we’re kind of entering a really cool space as TikTok and other really big like online platforms have kind of been going after it and like Really emphasizing the importance of personal brand and creativity and being able to step into that and like your career doesn’t have to look like some corporate thing, you know, and that’s what I love about all of this.

Quianna: Yes, and you’re doing it. You are literally living this life. And this is why I am so drawn to you and why I love chatting with you because you are not only this incredible photographer, podcaster and videographer team with your husband, but you’re living it like you are living this life of adventure.

Traveling and Living Out of A Prius

And so Hallie, I need to hear this story about how you and your husband literally traveled the country living out of your Prius. So can you please share how you kind of like how your business has allowed this flexibility?

Halle: Yeah, totally. Um, thank you so much, by the way, like that just makes me so happy. Um, and to be able to talk about all this is just so wild.

But yeah, essentially, so my husband and I, when building our business, ultimately, kind of like I was saying before, it’s not something that we necessarily planned on doing. It’s just something that really we felt called to do and over time just built. Ultimately what it comes down to is like really leaning into the things that we’re passionate about.

So I’ve always been a passion, like I’ve always been really passionate about like traveling and hiking and being outdoors. And obviously we love the creativity of being able to shoot and connect with people. And honestly, we just like treat a lot of our like couples, like you know, friends and we go on double dates with them and it’s kind of this kind of adventure that we get to do together.

And so kind of as we’ve been reflecting over our brand over the last few years and just kind of figuring out, okay, how can we be more intentional? How can we live a lifestyle and a brand that really feels like us and feels our passions? Because at the end of the day, you spend a lot of time doing this, right?

And you should be doing it with the people that you love, the people that you connect with really well. And ultimately it aligns not only for you, but also for them. And so a big part of it comes down to, you know, what you showcase online and what you do and You know, we showcase our traveling. We showcase a lot of like our trips and look for ways to like, how can we integrate this with our business and our life?

And I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of van life, but that was kind of a big thing over the last like decade, 10, like five to 10 years. And like, we’ve always kind of had this dream of van life. And I had this dream before even being a full time photographer. But one of my favorite photographers who does it, it’s Abby Hearn.

She and her husband, Callen, they live in Moab and they, like, before settling down would travel and basically would shoot these elopements in really beautiful places and they lived in their van full time with their dog. And it’s just like, I would look at their work and be like, man, I’m so inspired. Like, that’d be so cool to be like that.

And fast forward to today, um, there’s a lot of flexibility that you have with running your own business and Luke works remote and I have this. So it’s kind of this really cool thing where we were thinking, how can we. Achieve the lifestyle we want. Maybe it’s not about the van. Cause you know, vans are very expensive.

Like you can easily spend like anywhere from a hundred to 200, 000 on a van. Right. And realistically, and just like with all the things that we’re trying to do in our business and in our personal lives, we’re like, I don’t know financially if that’s. Feasible right now, or even like the best option for us.

Cause it’s not something I wanted to do full time, but essentially living in Minnesota, this is kind of where the thought process came of going and taking our Prius down for a couple months is we, I don’t know about you, but like, you know, I personally don’t love being in negative 20 degree weather. I mean, you live in Arizona.

There’s a reason you don’t live here in Minnesota. Yeah. And so, um, yeah, basically we kind of thought through how can we escape the Minnesota winter and not have to wait until we’re 80 years old and retired. So we basically tried to figure out how can we craft our business in a way where we can actually do that.

So this past year, we actually ended up hosting a workshop in Joshua tree, California, but also like packed up our car. And instead of buying, you know, a hundred thousand dollar van, we actually took what we already had and figured out how can we achieve this dream? So we looked at our Prius and we’re like, you know, the seats lay down.

I know of some people who’ve done Prius life and, you know, definitely not the most successful. Space, especially for two people who are pretty tall and our dog, but we like tested it out and we just kind of like went for it, honestly, it was kind of this thought we had in our minds. Like we talked about it maybe two months before going.

And then honestly, when the snow came, we were like, wait, the snow is going to be, we were going to have a snow storm. now. So we like, basically, and like, it sounds crazy, but like packed everything up within like a week before this like snowstorm and basically got the heck out of here. And we didn’t really have a plan on how long we’d be gone.

We knew we would be going to our workshop that we were hosting and having that be part of it. But we weren’t sure if we were going to be gone for like one month or two months and three months, maybe like we kind of kept it open. And honestly, it was so fun. Definitely not easy. As you can imagine living in a car with, you know, your husband and a dog and.

Not always knowing where you’re gonna sleep at night might not be the most adventurous thing for everyone. We loved it though It was really fun. But man, it was it was incredible So that’s kind of like the thought behind it and kind of how that got going and throughout the whole time We were taking photos documenting our journey Building up different things for different blog posts and you know places that we’re visiting things like that And so there’s a lot of work to still do on the back end of like that trip, but it was so fun

Quianna: Oh my gosh, I can, like, as always, I’m a very visual person, right?

And so I can see this happening. And oh my gosh, it just sounds so much fun. And what a sense of freedom, a sense, like, of just flexibility for you and your husband. I love that when you mentioned, you’re like, we could be gone for a month. We could be gone for two or three months. Who knows? And like, that to me feels just so, uh, Liberating.

And I think maybe for some people like you mentioned that may not be their cup of tea or may not be like, Oh, I don’t know where we’re taking a shower next. Like, we’ll figure it out. Right. But I love that. So can you please share? I like I want to get into the like the nitty gritty here. How did you fund this?

Funding Prius Life and Taking Your Business On The Road

Like, is this something I know you mentioned Luke works remotely, obviously, you’re kicking butt with your with your weddings and your portraits and getting things on the books for the future. But can you run us through exactly how that played out?

Halle: Yeah, I mean, that’s a great question. So a big way that I structure my business, um, because at least here in the Midwest, you kind of have like your busier season is in the warmer months, which is typically, you know, May through October.

And then as the snow, as the trees die and the snow comes in, it’s a lot colder. There’s usually like kind of a season where there’s just not as many weddings. Not to say there aren’t any, but after going through my first cycle as a photographer and realizing man, there’s like ups and downs in wedding seasons, um, I restructured our payment schedules so that I get paid consistently throughout the year and not just only when I’m shooting.

So the way we have it scheduled is when a couple books us, they pay their first, like first payment, there’s three payments. Um, and then six months before the wedding, there’s another payment. And it’s also a natural check in point. Make sure they feel good. Go over timeline, things like that. And then the final payment’s due one month before the wedding.

And so by having this out, you like kind of map it out. That’s almost like a year. If they’re booking you a year in advance, you’re getting paid kind of consistently throughout that year. And so if you’ve got six months of, you know, busy season, well, six months before that, Is also when you’re getting paid too.

So that really has leveled the playing field in terms of how we get paid And I highly recommend that for anyone if you’ve ever struggled with how do I? Live my life outside of busy season and like still be able to fund things That I think is a great way to do it And i’ve never had any couple come back and say like, oh that doesn’t make sense Like it totally makes sense.

And in fact, it’s easier for them, too It’s instead of writing a check for you know, five ten thousand dollars like you know It’s broken up into smaller pieces and it feels a lot more feasible. So that’s how we kind of funded it. And then in terms of like having it last, you know, we ended up going, I think, about eight weeks, which was pretty long for us, honestly.

Uh, I thought we were going to go longer, but we were, we decided to cut it short and just go home for a couple of reasons. It was kind of like, you know, I think it’s time. Um, but To kind of answer your question of like what that looked like. So we obviously didn’t sleep in the Prius every single night.

Like we, we brought our camping tent and so we were able to at some points, like have campsites and, you know, have places where, okay, it’s actually like there’s showers available. We also do have a gym membership at LA fitness. Um, there’s also like snap fitness and you know, 24 hour fitness places where people will, you know, sometimes use that to shower.

So we use our gym and would shower there. We would skip the workout part sometimes. Um, And that was how we would shower. And then I don’t know, we kept it simple with like groceries. I mean, obviously I love trying new restaurants. So we’d have like our date nights and go out to like nice places, but we also would keep it simple and have like some simple meals, like breakfast and, you know, lunches is kind of like bag lunches and things like that.

It was definitely a whole thing with just like setting it up ahead of time because it does add up, like we’ve done this before where we’ve paid for the Airbnbs the entire time, like last year. Before we did the Prius thing, we would still travel for, you know, a month and a half, but we were booking Airbnbs, we were renting a car, and obviously that just like adds up over time.

Again, not to say we can’t do it, but we’re like, let’s try something challenging, more adventurous, because we love the outdoors. How can we lean into that?

Quianna: Yeah. So, yeah. I love that so much, and thank you for sharing the realities of it, right? Because, I mean, I feel like sometimes we get into these thoughts or we get into these, just these big dreams.

And then you realize, wait a second, what? Like, like, what does this actually look like? So thank you for clarifying that. And I would love to dive deeper into these destinations. So when you were gone for, let’s say that winter season and trying to escape the snow and the blizzards and all the crazy weather, Were you guys actively trying to book destination weddings, elopements, and shoots?

Traveling And Booking Destination Weddings On The Road

Or was it just kind of like, we got ourselves kind of situated, we’re just taking this time off to adventure? Like, how did that kind of play in?

Halle: Yeah, that’s a, that’s a good question. So, I’ll preface it with this. So last year, about 30 percent of our weddings were out of state. So we shot, you know, engagement sessions in New York city and the Pacific Northwest.

We also had a wedding in Colorado and in Utah and, you know, California, like we had basically traveled so much last year. And that was, I believe the fruits of that. Of kind of years prior where when we travel we are very intentional about posting about it on social media, tagging, you know, different locations and places that we’ve been doing blog posts and really targeting those areas.

And it’s really fun when you like go to a place, travel there, you get the content and whether that’s you set up your own shoot or you have connections there and you just exchange photos for time and exchange for getting that content like. Um, there’s so many different ways you can do it. And so we’ve kind of built that out over the last few years.

And it’s really fun when you start getting inquiries and get to go travel and you get paid to go back to some of those places you love. And anytime we travel, we try to like incorporate that as well. So we do have family and friends. So like there are people where I do like family photos along the way, or I’ve got a cousin in Colorado Springs and I was like, Hey, if you’ve got friends, like.

Here’s kind of like what I’m doing. And sometimes you offer, you know, a discount if you don’t have as many connections there, but want to make it easy for people to, you know, book with you so you can get that content. So, um, definitely was doing it, but I wasn’t trying to actively book every single day, right?

Like you got to find balance and there’s also. space and time for editing. We were also preparing for our workshop. And so we hosted that in Joshua tree, which there’s a lot that goes into planning a workshop. It was so fun. We loved every second of it, but, uh, we’re preparing for that. And then it’s funny because the week after that workshop in Joshua tree, we had a wedding in Tampa, Florida, and we were going to drive the Prius all the way across the country to do that.

That’s when we decided, you know, I think we should go home. So we ended up driving back to Minnesota and flying, but original plan. We would have almost drove across the whole country, but I think we also learned our limits too. So it was a, it was a good thing to just kind of have that reflection and be like, okay, sure.

We could say we did this, but had our limits. Sorry. I kind of steered away from the question, but to answer your question. Yeah. So we’re, we’re trying to do work along the way, but also making space for both enjoying it, but also, you know, making sure that we’re, you know, Getting content and able to expense the mileage.

Quianna: Yes. Oh, absolutely. Everything’s a write off. Right? Oh my gosh. Well, what advice would you share with any photographer that is interested in tapping into destination weddings and booking elopements and adventure shoots? out of state? Like, where do we begin with that?

Halle: Yeah. First thing I would say is it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

So, like, take your time, have grace with yourself, and don’t compare your day one at trying to do this to someone’s day 100 or day 1, 000, right? Like, you gotta really figure out, first and foremost, like, What have you built so far and how can you build off of that? For example, if you already know the foundations of you’ve shot weddings before you kind of understand like what goes into that, take, take it a step further and think through, okay, what, what, what needs to change in my content?

Am I actually like, if someone’s going to book you for, let’s say you’ve never been to Hawaii before, but you really want someone to book you for a wedding there. Unfortunately, unless people can envision themselves and your work in Hawaii. It might not be possible. I’m not saying you need to go to Hawaii to do that, but maybe you need to go to a place that has palm trees or a place that has beautiful sunsets on the beach and start trying to mimic that type of content and appeal to the people who are interested in that.

Utilizing Styled Shoots To Boost Destination Wedding Inquiries

So I would say, look at your content, figure out, you know, what connections do you have if you’ve got an uncle that lives in Florida. Go to Florida and like start there. Um, and maybe you’ll start booking weddings in Florida. If you can set up your own shoots, there’s also plenty of photographers out there who will host style shoots or content days.

Be a little careful with this I think it’s a great way to build your portfolio, but make sure you’re really authentic and Hey, this was a styled shoot. This was something I did. The benefit of that isn’t to say like, Oh, I shot this wedding when indeed he wasn’t, it was not a wedding, but you can say like, Hey, I did this awesome shoot.

And like tag the vendors, take the people, give them credit, but also still benefits you in the fact that people will be able to see that work and see that, Oh, wow. Like this person is capable of getting the type of photos I want in a location I love. So I think it’s important to like really have that distinction and build it in an authentic and intentional way, but also giving yourself that experience and building that portfolio and doing so in a way that aligns with what you want to do.

Quianna: Yes. These are all such helpful tips and I love it. I can have an entire episode on styled shoots. Yeah. Like the etiquette of it. Um, and you know, just all the creativity behind it and being very authentic and real about what you’re doing. So I love that you mentioned these tips. Thank you so much. So tell me, Hallie, I have like so many questions for you.

Oh my gosh. Now that we’re like untapping these things and now that we’re bringing up weddings, I would love for you to share what trends are happening right now in this wedding industry. I feel like since COVID things have really shrunk down to really tiny allotments, kind of more backyard wedding status.

Um, even we see today, so many couples are actually opting out of any, Bridesmaids are groomsmen. Like sometimes they’re just kind of standing up there by themselves, right? So I would love, in your opinion, especially from being in a different part of the country, what’s happening right now in this wedding scene?

Halle: I feel like trends can be taken in a couple of different ways. Trends as in what are we seeing in the market and trends in the market or trends in terms of like what the weddings are actually looking like. I can kind of speak to both of those things. Um, I would say in the market what we’re seeing, cause especially Especially during COVID when there was restrictions, obviously we’re seeing people kind of break up their weddings where they would do their intimate, like getting married just the two of them and then having the party later.

Some people are really liking that and that’s starting to stick a lot more. Not to say that that’s like the first time that that’s happened, but I think now that more and more people have done that, people are really liking how can I really shape this around an experience versus just one party where you invite your.

Parents, coworkers, and distant uncles and people you don’t really spend time with and spend all this money on it. Right. So I think it, I think like coming out of the times of COVID people have really been thinking a lot more intentionally about their wedding day and how they want to experience that.

And it’s been really interesting to see, like some people still opt for the big party. They want everyone there and they want to make it a big whole thing, have an amazing DJ and just. Dance the night away. Uh, and then there are people who are really shifting into these more intimate weddings. And it’s not always going to be just an elopement, uh, where it’s just, you know, the couple and the photographer and the person marrying them.

But, um, we’ve been seeing a lot of like intimate weddings too, where people will rent an Airbnb and maybe have their closest friends and family, whether that’s 10 or 20 of them at a place and like get married. So we’ve seen the range and we definitely book kind of within that whole range of them. And I think.

Ultimately, it’s going to look different depending on the couple, but it comes down to what are they valuing? Yeah. So those are some of the trends I’m definitely seeing, but when I really am like talking with these couples, it comes down to, yes, what they value. And then also how do they want to experience that day?

And then the other part of trends, which is like what we’re seeing in the market, um, I think I’ve heard a lot of words and, I’ve heard a lot of like other photographers talking about how bookings have been low this year and how it’s been kind of just difficult booking those weddings. And it’s been interesting because it’s definitely a trend I’m seeing where couples are not necessarily booking their photographer right away like they used to.

So pre COVID, pre pandemic, people would book their venue, book their photographer right away. And you still get that sometimes, but I’ve had a couple conversations, even myself, uh, where. The couple’s been engaged for like four to six months already and they’re just now reaching out to me and their wedding’s not for another, you know, 10 to 15 months out.

So it’s been really interesting seeing people take a lot more time in that planning process. I don’t know if that comes down to the intentionality of it. It could also have something to do with the market and just overall people trying to save up to pay for the things that they want in their weddings.

Um, it could be a wide range of things, but it is interesting. And I’ve also seen a lot of different surveys and studies showing that. You know, engagements have just been down in 2023 compared to, you know, pre pandemic and even during the pandemic and a lot of that seeing a lot of that could be a result of, you know, in 2020, there was, you know, a lot of restrictions, people couldn’t go out, they couldn’t meet new people, like there was like a very confined time of life where people were social distancing and staying home.

And so with that, you’re also seeing a gap in dating. So less relationships were starting. And so here we are three years later. Seeing kind of the effects of that, because, you know, three years is a decent average of, you know, how long someone will spend together before, you know, tying the knot and deciding they want to get married.

And so we’re seeing that effects too going on right now in 2024, where people are not necessarily, there’s just not as many engagements going on.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh, that is such an important message to remind ourselves, especially as photographers where we’re thinking, what’s wrong? Like Instagram hates us.

My Pinterest isn’t working properly. Right. And I think taking some time to really look at the scope of our world, like of this time in our timeline, and how. Literally, we are actually still experiencing the repercussions of this pandemic, like is insane. Oh my gosh. So what are some ways that you and Luke are increasing your marketing, kind of polishing up your brand and being top of mind?

So when your dream clients are ready to book, how do they know to run to you too first?

Halle: Yeah, and I think this comes back to I think this is a great question. I think it comes back to kind of the beginning of just like really building your business around the things that you’re passionate about because that’s going to really shine through and like consistently showing up.

Even when it’s hard, like on social media and showcasing that side of you, like what is it like to work with you? What are the things that you’re passionate about? And like really standing in that and being the best at that that you possibly can be. Like be the best you that you are created to be. That is something nobody can replicate.

They can try. But at the end of the day, you’re authentically being yourself. And so when people see me getting on Luke’s shoulders and taking a photo at a unique angle, or just kind of these fun behind the scenes of how we work, or I’ll bring my dog to different sessions and all these things, or whether we’re hiking in the woods or, you know, at a beautiful venue, like people see these things.

And I can’t tell you how often people, when they do reach out, they say, first thing they say is I feel like they already know us. Like they kind of point to things like you guys seem so fun. You guys seem so adventurous. We love X, Y, and Z about you guys. Isn’t it? It’s funny because I actually don’t know who this person is, but yet they feel like they have this connection.

So yeah, being authentically us is like really important, but then also just giving people space and like talking through like what makes you unique, what’s going to be different and like showcasing that value. So I think it’s really important to just, you know, not try to be a copy and paste of someone else.

I think people see right through that. Like if you have the same words on your website as all the other people around you, like, That’s going to get old for couples as they’re researching. And so leaning into the things you love, like, I don’t necessarily know another photographer. I’m sure they’re out there and if you are that photographer, come say hi.

I want to connect with you. But like that lived in their Prius for two months and like traveled the country with their dog and did all the same things. Like, I don’t really know that, right? But that’s kind of this unique, fun thing that, oh, wow, there’s something different about these people. Takes a special person to do that.

And maybe I’m just going to attract the crazies. I don’t know. But, uh, you know, that’s just kind of. a fun thing that you can just do and be yourself and enjoy life and just kind of like not overthink it so i actually don’t and that would be my next piece of advice is just don’t overthink it like i don’t really overthink what am i posting what am i doing all these things like as long as it’s a extension of like who we are and it aligns with our values and the people that we want to work with We just kind of go for it and run with it.

Like, I don’t have every single thing planned out for the next, like, two months, right? I might have some ideas and, you know, in those seasons posting relevant information, but at the end of the day, social media is all about just connecting authentically with people. It’s not, it’s called social media, not marketing media, right?

Like, you’re supposed to be social with people, engage with them, give them a glimpse of, like, who you are, and just, like, be yourself.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh, mic drop moment there, Hallie. So, so good. Oh my gosh. Well, one thing that you mentioned and I really want to kind of dive deeper into is when you talked about being your authentic self and you’re attracting these people that have similar interests and that feel like they know you and they’re They already love you and want to be a part of just your ecosystem and being near you.

I would love for you to kind of break down for us what that looks like to kind of create this experience where you literally become BFFs. Like you become best friends with your clients, but there’s also this line of professionalism. And I think sometimes those lines can be blurred. And so I just would love for you to kind of just kind of shine light on how it’s possible to be very close and be Just have like a very fun relationship with our clients, but then still be professional.

Like, can we unpack that a little bit?

Halle: Yes. I absolutely love that. A big part of this comes down to how are you defining that process with your clients. So, uh, for us it’s unique because we are a husband and wife team. So we, obviously there’s two of us and two of them. So naturally we just kind of market and talk about the experience as being and feeling like a double date.

And, and so there’s kind of this element where we’re, you know, creating and crafting a double date and really making it personal to them. But it’s still also part of that process. So when we are talking with couples who are interested in booking with us, we kind of talk through the different options. We kind of talk through what we’re doing and when.

Yes, every once in a while there will be like some texts and we do like to do like the group texting at times once we have that relationship built. But otherwise I try to keep most of my communication all on. And because I think that keeps a level of professionalism. It also keeps structure. They kind of know what to expect, what to expect and when, because we’ve already kind of had those conversations.

And so for us, I haven’t really run into a ton of like, Oh, we’re my, I felt like my boundaries were crossed and I have had it where couples have texted me on the weekends or just at a time where I’m not in my office. And when I do get those types of texts, I’m obviously I value the friendship and I care about it, but I’ll say like, Hey, we’re That’s a great question.

I’m not in the office right now. Would you be able to email me so I can get back to you when I am? And that kind of sets this boundary of, okay, cool, like I’m not just this friend that they can text anytime and ask me to like do business tasks for them. Um, it kind of reminds me like, okay, yeah, cool. Like they feel respected as a client because I obviously responded to the text, but also deferred like, Hey, I’m not in the office right now.

Let’s talk about this later. So I think if you can communicate really clearly on that, and I do let my couples know, you know, email is the best way to communicate with me, texts get lost. I’m constantly like trying to manage that. It’s been, it’s been really good. And I think people just kind of get to know you too.

And I don’t really overthink it too much, but I haven’t really run into any like crazy bad clients, which I’ll knock on some wood, but. Um, generally speaking, we do attract really down to earth people, which I love.

Quianna: Yes, that’s incredible. And you’re absolutely right. It’s all part of that process. It’s part of that intake form, like everything from that first initial inquiry all the way through the process.

Like you’re being super proactive about what their questions may be. You are answering their frequently asked questions, all the fun stuff. So they feel like they’re well taken care of. And then there is there is that element of email like there’s something about email and you think about it. I don’t email my best friend like right.

I mean, like maybe I get like an evite from, you know, a friend that has, you know, it’s like for her little daughter’s birthday party or something like that. Like those are emailed just so she knows I’ll see it right. I love that element of professionalism. And then you’re right. The more you are, the more you are authentically yourself, you’re going to attract good people.

Like, I’m sorry. Like, it’s just who it is, right? And, and I even noticed this too. I remember, I feel like there’s, there’s either a love hate relationship with country music, right? So like, I love country music. I was raised on 90s country. And I remember, in the getting ready room for wedding mornings where I, the more I played like country music, like either in my reels or like, you could kind of hear it in the kitchen when I’m sharing a quick story or something.

I attracted more brides that loved country music. So on the morning of weddings, I would hear these nineties countries playlist and it just put me in a good mood. It just made me feel like, wow, like I’m the perfect photographer for this couple. And, you know, you may listen to this and be like, country’s not my thing, and that’s totally fine, but what is your thing?

Right? Like, this is your permission slip, this is your green light to start sharing more of your authentic self to really attract those dream couples.

Halle: Totally. I love that so much, and I couldn’t agree more. Like, just, Yeah, leaning into the things you love and ultimately just like being unapologetically yourself.

Like that’s truly what it comes down to because that’s the thing that’s so unique about you. So yeah.

Quianna: Yes. Well, as you and Luke are continuing to just expand and grow your business and really go to these next steps. Incredible locations for destination weddings and elopements. I would like to guess that creating this business can feel really lonely.

So, and especially if it’s just the two of you staring at each other on these road trips, right? And your dog, thank God for your dog. Yeah, but I would love to know going full time as an entrepreneur, what has been the best way for you to cultivate community?

Halle: Yeah, that’s a great question. I would say It can be really hard when you are spending extended periods of time on the road and Luke and I had like a big heart to heart at one point and that’s kind of why we decided to do part time for us because it naturally is a great time to escape the winter, but also it’s like we do have really strong community here in Minnesota and Minneapolis like we love the community here, but also have that like thirst and hunger for adventure.

So I would say like the going full time and being a full time photographer, it’s definitely not easy. I think when it’s a side hustle, it’s kind of this thing you do on the side and you make time for it. But when it becomes your livelihood and the numbers matter more and all of that, like you, it’s so easy to get so overwhelmed and like, Feel the need to take on even more work and then burn yourself out and not necessarily have the structures in place.

And I remember feeling that my first year and feeling so isolated and also misunderstood because I mean, I was a girl with an MBA. People had like all these expectations. I’d be in the corporate ladder and like the CEO of something someday, right? Uh, not actually, but you know what I mean? And, and then to just like, You know, trade that for a camera.

I know for me, family didn’t necessarily understand. People just were like, why would you do that? What do you mean like you’re going, you’re just going to take pictures, you know? Like, so it can be isolating in that sense too, not only living on the road, but also when people in your life don’t necessarily understand.

And I found for me seeking other people in the industry, valuing community over competition always. Um, I know people say that all the time, but I think to live that out really, it does look like, like seeking other photographers, like not in a sense of like, Oh, what can I take from you? But honestly, just wanting to have friendship with them.

So I have friends here locally that like specifically two girls that I really love hanging out with. And if I’m editing a wedding. That’s something that I can easily do because I’m not reading, I’m not writing, I can just edit while having conversation with people. So we’ll edit at each other’s houses or go to local coffee shops and just have a little editing date.

It’s really fun. And in the fall, one thing we’ve started doing is, you know, when you’re a photographer and everyone else is out there nine to five, you get to pick your schedule and we typically work on weekends. So during the week, we’ve actually set up different retreats that we do each year. And we’ll book an Airbnb.

Only requirement is it has to have a hot tub and we’ll have it a little editing retreat and we’ll spend that time together, like going over our businesses or like editing different things and just like processing the year. We typically do this in the fall as like busy season winds down. And it’s just so nice in the midst of like.

A busy season to just like be with people who get it and and I cling to those people like no other because they I would not be where I am today mentally without them and also just like creating that space for others too so I also can’t always meet online right like I’m not seeing them when I’m traveling so I also have like an online community for photographers that I host um also through my podcast and I just really want that for other people and so just trying to create a space where people can connect with others who get it or at a similar space.

State and they can, you know, not only keep it online, but look for ways to take it offline too. Right? Like, I think it’s so important to find your people and just lean into them, pour into them. And ultimately it, it really does end up serving you in the long run. If you go into the intention of not expecting anything in return.

So like, for example, these girls that I have, you know, spent the last couple of years, like getting to know and investing in, like we have genuine friendship and that’s first and foremost, what matters most, but ultimately like you’re only taking on a certain amount of weddings each year. So like when you hit your capacity or you’re already booked for a date, who are you going to refer?

You’re going to friend, you’re going to refer your friend who, you know, takes great photos, who you’ve worked with before. Maybe you’ve second shot for each other even, and like you trust them and you feel good sending their name to someone else. So I think it kind of goes full circle when you really view at like just investing in people and enjoying it and making it fun and finding the perks and unique things about your job that allow you to do things like going on retreats or editing at coffee shops and just make it enjoyable for yourself.

Yeah.

Quianna: Oh my gosh, 1000%. And I completely attest that my business has grown in so much, in abundance, financially, and just like my, even my own self worth, like I, I would never put that into like on someone else’s shoulders. But when I am connected with other photographers, I mean, these are my lifers, like, these are the people in my life, like you said, that understand us and that challenge us.

I mean, we can bounce pricing, we can bounce just trends, like just all the things in life and business. And, and it’s great too, like you mentioned, because our schedules typically line up, right? So, like, I love being a photographer where I can actually walk around Target at 10am on a Tuesday, not like most businesses can’t do that.

Right. And so I just love that so much. So what would you say? So, you know, the old saying, um, what came first, the chicken or the egg? So like what, in your opinion, What comes first? You know, has it been finding more genuine connections online and then making that, like, cultivating that friendship online and like bringing it offline?

Or have you found the opposite where is it easier for you to make friends in real life and then just become cheerleaders online? Like, what feels more genuine and more, like, just life giving for you, Hallie?

Halle: Yeah, um, I don’t think I can solve the question of what came first, the chicken or the egg. I think it could be either one and, and to answer your question, I’ve seen it both ways where I’ve met people online and took it offline, but I will say that offline and in person connection, Always and a hundred percent feels stronger every time.

So when I meet people in person for the first time and you like, keep that connection going, that I think has a lot more longevity to it versus if you meet someone online and it stays online and you never try to take it offline. So I think it’s really important to just be intentional. And there are people who like just with proximity, like I’ve got people in Australia.

I’m probably not going to get coffee with them during the week, but that’s really cool that social media allows me to connect with them. Right. But I think. When you’re thinking of like, who are your closest people, it comes down to proximity and ultimately, I don’t think an online space can fully replace in person.

I think we all felt that during the pandemic when we weren’t able to go see our favorite people and like, you know, you just, you can’t, it’s limitations. And that’s not to say you can’t meet online. That’s not to say it’s not good. I love work remote, like people working from home. That’s amazing. But then you, like, Ultimately still will want to then see people at some point throughout the day or a week because if you’re only doing online, it’s just, it’s really, really tough.

And so I, I’m a big proponent of like trying to do it in person and the people that I am closest to when I think back on it, most of them have been like, in person. And if it has someone that’s online, I feel like that connection gets even stronger the moment you do meet them in person. And then you only continue to like foster that relationship offline.

Quianna: Oh my gosh. Yes. And I’ve even found the power of meeting them in person. And it’s, it’s the follow up, like literally it’s the follow through, right? So whether you are taking that kick for soccer or like for me, um, Throwing my drop, um, you know, softball pitch, whatever. Like it’s all in the followup and the follow through.

And I love that because that’s the beauty of social media is it allows you to tag those people that you met or tag that event space or tag that host or even the cute coffee shop. Right. And then you, you continue that conversation. You know, I feel like that’s. I feel like a lot of business owners, and I’m sorry if you feel like I’m calling you out, but sometimes we get the courage and we get the energy to show up in person.

And then we kind of like feel like we check a box like, Okay, we did that. And it’s like, wait a second, hold on, like, that’s just the first part. The second part is that follow through where you are communicating with them, showing that you are interested in them, like just that engagement, right? And just keeping that alive.

And that’s when those genuine friendships just become on lock and I call them like instant forever friends.

Halle: Yeah. And it is cool. It is really cool that you can stay connected with people, not even just like other photographers, but even like you work a wedding with a planner and then you stay connected on social media.

Like it is so great. Like I absolutely love it. I just think that like you’re easy. It’s a lot easier to, you know, foster that and like have that base foundation of like, okay, we’ve met in person. This person’s real. They’re legit. I love it. And you kind of get to see those quirks and fun things that you wouldn’t necessarily see on a polished social media account.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. Well, I would love to kind of shift the conversation now and chat more about your podcast, Take Your Shot. And I’m just so inspired by you, Hallie. And I would love to know what kind of things do you talk about on your podcast?

Halle: Yeah, so take your shot podcast is all about empowering photographers and videographers.

I mean, we do both do both. Um, and then honestly just general creative business owners, um, in their business. So granted, like I have an MBA and I thought I was going to do something in the corporate world, but when I shifted gears and ended up going full time in this creative space, I found that there are so many really creative and talented people like photographers and videographers who literally their work is amazing.

But when it comes to running a sustainable business, they’re drowning. It’s really overwhelming. It’s really tough. And I’m not even saying, Oh, here I am. I’m perfect. But I’m saying I’ve been there. I know what that’s like. And a lot of like my business background and like experiences and my own failures have really contributed to just the success I’ve seen.

And the last thing I want is for someone to sit there struggling. on their own as long as I had and as long as other people have seen it. So I really want to empower people. That’s really the goal of my like Take Your Shot Collective, which we have the free podcast. We also have a free online community as well as other resources and I do coaching.

And so it’s kind of this whole thing where I really want to give people the tools and resources that I wish I had had.

Quianna: Yes. Oh my gosh. That’s literally the heart of Kiana Marie Weekly too. Like I literally look back at this and I’m like, Oh, like I wish this existed 10 or 15 years ago. Yes. That’s amazing.

So tell us more about this workbook that you have. If you were maybe kind of in this season of wanting to step out and either start something new or create some pivot for your business and your brand. Um, tell us about some resources that you have.

Halle: Yeah, so if you’re listening, you are going to get access to my free brand audit workbook, and it’s a free download.

You can download it online, and essentially it’ll guide you through different areas of your business from like your website and your copy and your social media and just really being intentional about not only, you know, what you are as a brand, but how you’re communicating that to your ideal client. And so it kind of breaks down different reflection questions and allows you to really dive deeper into those areas and just build a more, you know, intentional brand and intentional, you know, communication

Quianna: and strategy with that.

Incredible. Thank you so much for offering that and sharing that with our audience. Oh my gosh, Hallie. I’ve been having so much fun with you. So one question I love to ask every guest is what is your key tip? What is something as an entrepreneur or as a dreamer that you wish you knew sooner?

Halle: I think my key tip is Always stay true to who you are and like what you value because I think it’s so easy in this industry to get caught up in what other people are doing or the shoulds of trends and all of that.

But at the end of the day, not everything is you and you really have to take everything and put it through this filter of Who am I? What do I value? And like, what do I actually like want to be doing with my business in my life? And just because someone else is doing it, just because it’s trending or popular, doesn’t mean you have to hop on that.

And I think so often it’s easy, especially in this industry where it’s like creative and also like we’re serving specific clients to feel this need or push to like do things, but it might not necessarily align with you. And so I just empower you. Like you are the owner of your business and you get to choose and set the pace for yourself.

Nobody else is going to tell you what to do. You’re not behind just because you didn’t set up, like set out on the same trend as everyone else. Like you get to define that. And so just really looking in and staying true to like who you are, what you value and, and all of that, and just coming from a place of authenticity.

Quianna: I love that so much. And I’m so grateful you like wrapped up this conversation with that, because that is literally the epitome of who you are, of what you and Luke are creating. And I’m just. So grateful that our paths crossed and everything that you’re doing, Hallie, seriously, from your podcast, from your business, from your own online community, like this is the resounding message is staying true to you, following on your dreams.

And I feel, you know, it’s crazy. And this just dropped in right now, as I’m kind of wrapping this up is all of the interviews that I’ve had recently. is just an extension of our hearts. And what I mean by that is I’ve been interviewing so many different businesses, so many different businesses and niches and industries.

And yet at the end of the day, what we’re doing is simply just like what we’re using is just a tool to connect with people to make a difference. And I just think that is so beautiful that we get to live our lives on our own terms. We get to show up authentically as ourselves. And still do the work. Like, let’s be honest, like, this is still a business.

Like you mentioned, like a lot of us are drowning and we really need these kind of business tips, especially as creatives, we need to tap into these left brain friends. But I just love that so much. And I’m just so grateful for your time, Hallie. So please share with us. How can we connect with you? How can we continue learning from you?

Halle: Absolutely. Yeah. So you can find me on social media at Take Your Shot Collective. Uh, that is my coaching and podcast, um, platform. Otherwise you can find my photography at Lully Photo and Film. Uh, that is where you can find it. And then, yeah, I also offer one on one coaching. I’ve got a number of resources.

And if you are looking for community, I would love to invite you to join my online community. It’s a great place to just connect with others and grow and not feel like you have to do this alone.

Quianna: Incredible. So if you’re listening right now, just like Hallie says, this is your time to take your shot. Go for it, babe.

Whether that’s taking pictures and just romanticizing and loving your life full of adventure or taking that shot and taking that risk, jumping off that high dive and just going for it because your dreams are worth it. Oh my gosh. I love it. Yay. Thank you so much, Halle.

Halle: I hope you have a beautiful day. I appreciate you.

Thanks, Quianna! Thank you so much for having me.

Quianna: Oh, wow. I love that conversation and hope you enjoyed it too. Hallie and I connected from a post requesting podcast guests. And with this episode, we just successfully completed a podcast swap. Make sure to check out episode 33, leveraging the power of behind the scenes on take your shot podcast to hear more about the podcast.

The behind the scenes at your next wedding and capturing your client experience with B roll. This is the power of pitching yourself to podcast hosts, getting yourself in the room and betting on yourself. I’m so grateful that we initiated these conversations and fully support our businesses. We’re always just one friendship away from changing our lives.

Make sure to follow along with Halle and Luke at Lulle Photo and Film, as well as Take Your Shot Collective to stalk their adventures and check out beautiful locations for your next camping trip. Both Halle and Luke are generous educators and mentors. They make the perfect photo and video team. I appreciate you taking the time to listen and look forward to more amazing guests coming up on the podcast soon.

If no one has told you today, you are incredible. You’re doing the best you can. And that’s more than enough. Our world needs you keep shining. Keep dancing. Keep being you. Can’t wait to chat next week. Okay. Love you. Bye. That’s a wrap on another episode of Quianna Marie Weekly. Thank you so much for your listenership and support.

You can find the resources and show notes for this episode and more at QuiannaMarie.com/podcast

I’d be honored if you’d show your support by leaving a review and rating on your favorite podcast app until next time. Keep on dancing!