Speaking About Branding at AKP Morgantown, WV Workshop | West Virginia Wedding Photographer
Last weekend, I hopped in my car and drove west from my little cozy town of Harpers Ferry to Morgantown, WV to spend time with 20 amazing ladies from different parts of the country! Ladies from WV, VA, MD, and PA all joined us for a weekend of fun, learning, and laughs! And of course…when you have 20 women together who are so passionate about something, there shall be tears!
I am so thankful for Ashton of Ashton Kelley Photography who asked me earlier in the year if I would be interested in coming to her workshop and speaking to a room full of women! I of course said YES!!! It was my first speaking experience, and it was such an amazing feeling! I even had one attendee reach out to me after the workshop and just let me know how much my talk meant to her! That made it ALL worth it! If I just reached one person and made a difference in this one attendee’s life and business, then that meant the entire world to me!
At the workshop, I spoke about branding and rebranding! I won’t go into my entire talk, but I did want to highlight three of my main points here today on the blog!
1. It is really important to remember that a brand is not just a logo, a website, and a color palette. A brand is an identity and a reflection of you, your business, and your style!
2. You MUST stay true to yourself! Forget the trends and build a brand based on what YOU love, not what you think you’re supposed to love.
3. Take your time! There is no need to rush into branding / re-branding. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen photographers create a brand in practically no time it seems and then end up hating it two months later, and you see them make an announcement that they are re-branding. It tells people that you are not quite confident in who you are and what your business is representing. It is SO important to put in the time and the work and just be really intentional about your branding because ultimately, you BRAND is what sets you apart! There are thousands and thousands of photographers who have the same equipment, use the same lenses, and/or have a similar style. Your brand is what makes you and your business totally unique!
I am passionate about branding because of the amazing experience I had with my own brand designer, B is for Bonnie Design! I spent nearly a year on my re-branding, and Bonnie was amazing to work with! She spent time getting to know me, getting down to the nitty gritty of why I loved photography, focused on what I really loved and was attracted to vs. what was trendy, and I can never truly thank her enough for helping me to create a timeless brand that I am STILL obsessed with! It does help set me apart, and it allows my ideal clients to find me. Maybe they love blush pink and peonies and sunsets too…and those are the kind of people I want to draw in! Or maybe they can connect to what makes me love photography, and they also find it important to document the important moments so they can pass them down to the generations to come! We click, we mesh well, and I can offer them an amazing experience because we are like-minded! Make sense?
Ashton also hosted a cute wedding inspiration shoot, complete with black and white stripes and pops of pink for the ultimate Kate Spade lovers out there!!! Enjoy some favorites from my weekend in Morgantown, WV for the AKP Retreat!
^ Photos taken by Ashton Kelley Photography; edited by yours truly! ^
And of course…no workshop is truly complete without a group confetti photo, right?! Thanks Ashton for the photo!
I was also able to squeeze in some headshots for one of the attendees AND a member of our local Tuesdays Together group, Marla of Marla Thach Photography! Absolutely love her smile and sweet soul!
It was SO fun getting to be a part of something so inspiring to others, and I left there with so many new friends (AKA Shutter Sisters)! Experiences like these are amazing because not only are you walking away with knowledge and advice from people who have been there and experienced similar things in the past, but you’re also walking away with sweet memories with people who get you and it and we are always better together! Having an abundance of support is never a bad thing, and I just love meeting new creatives because that means there are more people to love on, more people to cheer on from afar, more people to watch grow, and that makes my heart so so full!
Attendee Swag
Notebooks: DangBat Industries | Pens: Indie Olive Paper & Press | Camera Straps: Gabriella’s Closet | Mugs: Home Brewed + Co. | Cupcakes: My Little Cupcakes | Truffle Bouquets: Cake Walk by Ashley
Styled Shoot
Florals: Potomac Floral Wholesale | Vintage Rentals: Willow Ridge Vintage | Decor + Styling: Ashton Kelley Photography | Paper Goods: EAlex Designs | Models: Kelsey + Gabe | Venue: Private Residence @ Cheat Lake
xoxo,
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Beautiful!