Today we’d like to introduce you to Joelle Hill.
Hi Joelle, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Hey, y’all! I’m Joelle Hill.
Well, to get started a little about me I am a mom to three wonderful little girls and wife to a Marine. Our lives consist of adventures and memories.
I first got started into photography when my oldest was born I was constantly taking pictures with my iPhone and editing them and documenting every little milestone. Then I had my second and I realized I had no more room left in my phone for photos haha. Mom things. I never thought I souls fully get into photography until I did my own boudoir shoot with an amazing now-retired photographer. After that shoot, it was like a lightbulb went off and I knew then and there I wanted to be a photographer. I did all the research, went back and forth with cameras and finally decided on a Sony. A fellow photographer friend of mine helped me learn my camera and how to properly shoot sessions. She was actually my very first in-home maternity session. Once I picked up my camera and saw the magic I could create I knew this was it.
Then a few months later I found out I was pregnant with our third baby girl. We were moving across the country to a new duty station. I needed to help out with bills, especially with a third on the way. We moved here to Beaufort, SC, I took up a job on a beautiful flower farm ( WimbeeCreekFarm) had the most wonderful experience and enjoyed every moment of the job, but at the same time, I felt something was missing. I was dabbling a little in photography when I first moved here just trying to gain some clientele. It was not till the fall of 2021 my business went off!
A fellow photographer friend of mine had a death in the family and needed someone to take over a session she had booked with a Family for Family Day and Graduation Day on Parris Island. I reached out not thinking I would be chosen and by surprise I was. I went nervous as ever but got the job done. Delivered the photos via an online gallery and the mom was ecstatic. Next thing I knew my business was being blown up left and right on the Parris Island page I booked out for the year I had many different niches at that time as well.
As much as I loved photographing Family Day and Graduations, I once again felt like something was missing. Then it hit me I want to specialize in boudoir photography. It had taken me some time to get it into the works but I’m finally at the point where I offer boudoir services. My ultimate goal is to be a traveling boudoir photographer or have a studio and those who want an experience like no other to travel to me and have an unforgettable time.
Beginning of 2022, I was struggling a bit to figure out what needed to be done. Then summer of 2022 I decided enough was enough and now I only offer Boudoir, Family, and Maternity Experiences. You can choose to either embrace the outdoors, or I have a studio I rent out in Hilton Head Bluffton Area that is amazing. I’m really looking forward to what 2023 will bring for my business and to seeing just how far I can truly go as a small business owner. Photography is my everything it helped me stay connected with my true self, my family, and my passions. It’s truly an art form to me and I will treat my clients as if they are the muse.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I would say as far as obstacles and challenges go everything you do in life will have bumps in the road it’s all about how you go about and how you handle said situations.
But yes I will not lie it has been difficult from thinking I needed to be like other photographers, to overbooking, to finding a balance between work and family. I’m still working on the balance part but I think I finally found who Joelle Hill of LoveNLight Photography LLC & HigherSelfBoudoir truly is and what she wants to achieve in life and her business.
One struggle is imposter syndrome which was a huge one at the beginning. You think your work needs to look exactly the same as everyone else and that’s the only way you will achieve anything but it’s not true. Being you and your true individual self is what brings the right clients your way.
Another challenge is learning to say No because you can take every session that’s handed to you but learning to say No is the most important thing a photographer an artist needs to do. It helps you bring more creativity and flow into your career rather than chaos and uncertainty.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
What I do is I create an unforgettable experience for my clients. I make you feel comfortable and confident and capture the very essence of emotion and memories.
I feel I’m very much known for my boudoir, slowly but surely and definitely for family and maternity. I have quite a few clients reach out about those sessions monthly.
I am most proud of the boudoir because it’s truly my passion and what I want to excel in and I feel like I’m on the right path.
What I feel sets me apart from others is my approach and appreciation for my clients. I have repeat clients and I truly love and appreciate that they keep on coming back for more and more sessions. I truly do put them 1st above all else in my life and that’s what I feel sets me apart. I don’t rely on social media to get my name out there I get a lot of clients through word of mouth. Which I feel to me is the best way to get your name out there.
What matters most to you? Why?
What matters to me most is providing for my family and making sure that every person I meet, I touch their lives in an impactful and meaningful manner.
Pricing:
- Boudoir: $400 but Collection Pricing Varies
- Family: I offer packages ($333,$444,$555)
- Maternity: I offer packages ($333,$444,$555)
- Mini Sessions Varies
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lovenlightphotographyllc.pic-time.com/client
- Instagram: @lovenlight.photos | @higherselfboudoir
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lovenlight.photography
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/groups/httpsapp.irisworks.comcustomerleadsnewref/?ref=share
Image Credits
Joelle Hill
MaddieFaithPhotography (main photo)
