What Made Us Different and Why It Mattered

With so many photographers around, it is easy to get lost in the mix or feel like you are just adding to the noise. But we believe every person and every business has those things that make them uniquely them.

So, what is our secret? What made our business work? What made us stand out from all the other photographers in Regina?

It wasn’t the gear. It wasn’t the editing style. It wasn’t the marketing.

There’s no perfect formula for a long-lasting photography business.

But there was a kind of “secret recipe” to Cam & Courtney Photography- ingredients we didn’t fully appreciate how special they were until we looked back.

So today, we are opening up our cookbook to share with you all what we believe made CCP different, and our 7-ingredient special recipe. None of these things are groundbreaking or overly surprising, but by us focusing on these things, we stood out from the crowd in a way that was uniquely us and that attracted our ideal clients to come back year after year.

1. Real Over Perfect

We never set out to be the flashiest or trendiest photographers. In fact, we often buck any trends that come.

We didn’t chase publication, fame, fortune- not that there is anything wrong with that, it just wasn’t us. We didn’t follow the “Pinterest-perfect” formula or the most curated Instagram feed.

Instead, we chased connection. We chased meaning. We wanted the real, raw, and authentic.

Our goal was never just to make pretty photos. It was to make people feel seen. To reflect the actual joy, tenderness, awkwardness, laughter and sacredness of the day- not just the curated version.

And we believe that our clients felt that.

They trusted us to capture their emotions, their relationship. The real thing, even if the thing was ugly crying. And that is something we are most proud of.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to be perfect. We want the real you.

2. Two Photographers

At the heart of CCP was our marriage. This business wasn’t just a shared to-do list. It was a shared vision.

Many other photography businesses may offer two photographers, but there is something different about a husband-and-wife team. You do get the 2 photographers, but you also get someone who can help mirror the pose being asked, someone that understands the dynamic of marriage- you get so much more.

We know what it meant to promise forever.

Working as a couple, we knew each other’s strengths. We picked up the slack when the other was exhausted. We communicated without words and tag-teaming everything from posing to problem-solving.

We photographed weddings complementary to one another, but not just as observers or documentarians, as participants in the story.

3. People-Focused Photography, always, from Start to Finish

From the very beginning, we believed our time with clients weren’t just transactions. It wasn’t about booking everyone and everything and filling our calendar.

They were people we genuinely cared about. We cared about their dreams, their plans, their families, their difficulties, their questions.

This wasn’t only in how we carried ourselves but also literally in how we photograph. The most important aspect to us are the people in the photo. Sometimes, to be honest, we have under or overexposed the image, because in the moment the most important thing was to capture that precious moment of the person/people in the frame.

And beyond the photo, we want the couple or clients to know that they matter and that this is more than just a job.

We often will hug our couples and love on them the best way we can.

This hasn’t been just about business. It is deeply personal.

Our question to each other before every wedding was in the intention of “How can we serve these people well today?”

That heart for service shapes everything we do from how we communicate, how we plan, how to shoot and how we deliver our galleries.

4. Faith at the Center

Our faith wasn’t something we marketed, but it is something we lived.

It gave us purpose when the days were long. It gave us peace when things didn’t go as planned. It gave us compassion for the complicated and grace for the tough moments.

It reminded us that every interaction had value far beyond what the camera could capture.

God gave us this business as a ministry. An opportunity to love people and serve them the best way we knew how, with the gifts that He had given us. Sometimes that was visible, but sometimes that was just in the quiet, behind-the-scenes moments.

Having our faith as the center shaped how we showed up for consults, interacted with our couples, and how we approached each other each and every day.

5. Forever Learners

We were always learning. From year one to year fifteen, we never assumed we had it all figured out. There was always something new we could learn or try to do better.

We invested in education. We spent time experimenting. We gave ourselves grace. We pushed each other. We always wanted to know what we could do better, faster, more effective. All in an effort to serve our clients better.

We continued to evolve. Our business name changed, we found our style, learned to set better boundaries, created workflows so that we could be the best version of ourselves inside and outside of our business.

One of the things we learned was how to listen. We listened when we felt it was time to close this chapter. Because being in tune with what matters most was part of our secret sauce too.

6. An Unforgettable Client Experience

As we have mentioned before, we never wanted our clients to be viewed as or feel like transactions. We wanted their session or their wedding to be better because of how we showed up for them.

We wanted to make sure they felt seen, heard, loved, valued, and worthy of what they were investing in.

We wanted to go above and beyond in the communication, education, planning, relationship, gifting, and final delivery of the gallery.

We wanted each couple to know how unique and special they were. It wasn’t about doing the same things because “we know this works” but rather to see the uniqueness in their relationship and personalities. To make sure that when they looked back on the photos from their day, they wouldn’t just remember the image but that they would remember how they felt in the moment. To know that their images were uniquely them.

We pray that our clients felt that and continue to feel that as they look back on their images. That they remember those magical moments and honestly, that they remember us too. That we can leave a legacy of ourselves within their memories. We could write a whole book on our client experience process – a few paragraphs just can’t do it justice!

7. Fun

Photography is hard work. It’s busy. It’s difficult. It can sometimes feel stale creatively.

Wedding days are long. Sessions don’t always go as planned. Cameras get heavy and timelines go sideways.

But we always found the joy.

We would dance during receptions (while still holding our cameras). We made each other laugh during stressful moments. We joked with the couples and wedding party. We embraced our awkward selves and poked light-hearted fun at one another.

We genuinely enjoy working together. And we LOVE our people- many we would consider friends.

We tried hard to never be too busy to have fun, to laugh, and to find the joy.

The Recipe

So what was the secret recipe?

• 1 part heart & hustle
• 1 part faith & fun
• 1 part marriage & mission
• 1 part care & creativity
• 1 part people over portfolios

It was us. Just showing up fully and wholeheartedly, year after year, session after session, wedding after wedding.

And if you were ever on the receiving end of our cameras, words and hugs- you were part of that secret recipe too.

Thank you for being our people and part of what made this business so special. We couldn’t have done it without you. We love you!

xoxo

Cam & Courtney