Finding Your Ideal Client

When we started, we didn’t know what it meant to find an “ideal client” or who exactly were “our people.” We were just excited that anyone was willing to book us to take photos of them. Initially, we also didn’t know how to say ‘no’ and wondered how or why we would ever say ‘no’ to someone who asked. We didn’t know how to filter through which inquiries were best for us. We didn’t even know who we were as photographers yet, how could we possibly know who our target market was that we were meant to serve?

Over time, we began to see it and finally understood who they were.

We noticed that some sessions left us completely filled up. We left them feeling giddy with joy, energized by the people we had spent time with, and fully affirmed in the calling that “this was why we do what we do.”

But to be transparent, other sessions seemed to drain us. We experienced moments where we felt like we weren’t the right fit. Not because the people were particularly difficult or were unkind to us, but they were just looking for something different than what we could offer, or our personalities didn’t quite click.

Now, when we meet with potential wedding clients, we tell every single one of them, “Of all your vendors, you need to make sure that you love your wedding photographer. Because until they leave the reception, you will have seen your photographer more on your wedding day than you will have seen each other.” Which is kind of crazy to think about, right? But it can make for a bad or painful experience if you have to spend the day with someone you don’t genuinely enjoy being around…

We tell every single couple that we meet with that we want them to have the best experience possible and enjoy their wedding day to the fullest, even if that means that it’s not with us. Which some may find an odd sales technique, but that is just who we are! We want to best serve the couple, even if that means helping them find another photographer. And on the flipside, we want to be able to enjoy ourselves through the process as well!

A big turning point for us wasn’t just realizing who we loved working with, but understanding why we loved working with them.

Our People

One of the biggest things for us was recognizing couples who valued genuine connection over perfection.

The ones who belly-laughed freely, snuggled in closer without being asked, and/or teared up at their love for their partner without an ounce of shame or need for apology. Which is something Courtney consistently reassures our clients- we are firm believers that you should love someone so much that it makes you cry.

Our ideal clients have been those who wholeheartedly trusted us. Not just as their hired vendors or as a paid transaction, but who knew we were the people they wanted to walk through the day with them (and also take photos!) Those clients who invited us into tender, special moments and let us see the “real stuff,” even if that meant a full-on ugly cry. The people who were not only concerned about the pretty things for the Instagram highlight reel, but the real stuff.

Our couples are those where the groom is fully invested in the planning of the wedding day. It isn’t a shrug and an “I dunno, whatever she wants.” No, our groom lights up listening to his bride share her ideas and dreams for their wedding, and he is right there beside her with ideas of his own to contribute.

We’ve never been the photographers for stiff poses or photo ideas from perfectly curated Pinterest boards. We’re the ones who say, “Okay, let’s rest in as close as you can to each other. Synchronize your breathing. And just for a moment, just- be.”

We want to witness your people cheering you on. We want to see your grandma’s eyes sparkle as she pulls you in for a hug. We want to capture that quiet pause between dances when your spouse whispers, “We’re married!” and the beaming grin you flash back at them. Or the little squeeze on the bum, and the preceding wink you give them when you think no one else is looking.

Those are our people.

Over the years, we’ve gotten far better at recognizing who these people are when we meet them. And we’ve become more confident in saying that these are the people we know we can serve best.

And sometimes we would think, “We had an amazing season full of our people. So, we must have found all of them…” But our people continue to show up in our inbox. The more we shot “our people”, the more “our people” showed up! Some would be friends of past clients. Some were in past wedding parties we’d shot. But some would show up without a connection to anyone we knew. Our people just found us.

We have been so blessed to work with so many couples over the years who truly are “our people”. And then we often get to reconnect with them year after year, watching as their relationship grows, as their family grows, or as shifting seasons bring about changes in their lives.

Chances are, if you are reading this, you are probably one of “our people”. We want to say a HUGE thank you for being you! And thank you for being our people.

It took us a little while to recognize that we won’t (and don’t have to) be right for everyone or to shoot everything. Some people might not like us, and it isn’t even our job to try to convert them! And that’s the whole point- we get to be authentically us so we can capture and connect with authentically you.

Finding your ideal client is less about creating a perfectly defined avatar and more about paying attention to how you feel leaving a session. How did you make them feel? How did they make you feel? After shooting for a handful of years, we sat down and went through the sessions we absolutely loved. What did they have in common? They didn’t feel like work! We laughed a lot. They filled our tanks.

If you leave a session lit up, full of joy and gratitude, those are probably your people.

As we close out our final season, we have thought about you, our people. You let us in. You loved us as us. You let us capture you as you. You reminded us over and over again that love looks different for everyone, but it is always worth capturing. Those moments matter.

We found our people. And they found us.

To every photographer still trying to figure out who your people are, give yourself grace. It will take time to find which interactions feed your soul and which leave you feeling a little depleted. Keep showing up. Pay attention. Be authentically you. Your people are out there, too. And they’ll find you.

Awesome people are everywhere and though we may be a bit biased, “our people” are some of the very best.

You know who you are, and we love you all so dearly!

Cam & Courtney

*Disclaimer: There is no way we could include a photo of every person, couple or family who are “our people” – and for that we apologize. These are just a few glimpses or samples of who our people are. If we included everyone in that category, this would be an extremely lengthy post!