Today we’d like to introduce you to Liberty Lunini.
Hi Liberty, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Hi! I’m Liberty or Libby. I’m an Autistic 25-year-old mother of 2, wife, Chronic illness warrior, and business owner. I grew up doing Photography with my dad, who was a part of Combat Camera in the Air Force. He had a career of 22 years and passed a lot of his knowledge and Camera equipment on to me. I opened Lunini Photography LLC in 2017 after marrying my husband, Aaron. We suffered a miscarriage shortly after, and I stepped back from working. We found out we were pregnant in January 2018, immediately after my husband left for his first deployment. Right after I got pregnant, I started to pass an insane amount of kidney stones.
I had previously struggled with them from age 7 but only had an attack about once or twice a year. I passed so many in my pregnancy that I had to temporarily move back to South Carolina with my parents while my husband was deployed. I was hospitalized for most of my pregnancy but had our healthy baby boy, Tucker, in October 2018. My husband was on FaceTime halfway across the world during his birth. That was one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done. However, we made it through and were stronger from experience. My husband came home in December 2018 and met our son for the first time; it was one of the best days of our lives. I was able to start working again, and my business was thriving. I fell in love with my work and especially started focusing more on Newborns and Maternity while offering most other session types.
However, less than a year after he returned home, My husband’s ship deployed for the second time in a year. During this deployment, I struggled to balance being a new mother, business owner, and navy spouse, and then the pandemic hit as well, which isolated me. I struggled greatly with my Mental Health, and then my physical health started to decline. I started passing kidney stones again constantly and could barely do what I loved and enjoyed being a new mom to such an incredible little boy. The 100’s of kidney stones I passed and procedures I had started to cause damage to my right kidney and ureter, resulting in debilitating chronic pain. I had to fight for diagnosis’ and eventually had surgery to remove two of my parathyroid glands to slow down my kidney stone production. All of this happened with my husband halfway across the world.
I was lucky enough to have a village. My parents, sisters, family, and friends, especially my mom, got me through it all. She was my hero, and I wouldn’t have survived without her. My husband returned home in June of 2020, and things started to improve, although I was still struggling with my physical health. I could work again and dive into education on my craft and practice what I loved again. We found out we were expecting again in October 2020.
Furthermore, immediately after we discovered I was pregnant, I started to pass kidney stones at least once or twice a week, sometimes more. I was again hospitalized for most of my pregnancy and had surgery about halfway through. Through it, our beautiful baby girl, Magnolia-Grace, remained healthy, and we were so thankful for that. Due to an obstructing kidney stone blocking my left kidney from functioning, I delivered our healthy and beautiful baby girl at 36 weeks in June of 2021. I had two procedures for my kidney stones 9 & 14 days postpartum. I still struggled with debilitating chronic pain but established care with my primary care doctor to manage pain and other symptoms. At the same time, my specialist continues to work on slowing my stone production and the damage to my right kidney.
In October 2021, our son finally received his official Autism and Sensory Processing Disorder diagnosis. He had a severe speech delay and sensory issues, we knew he was autistic before his diagnosis, and it never once changed how much love we have for our sweet boy. About a year later, while researching what we could expect for his future years with development when it came to autism, I came across an article about autism in adult women and was blown away. It was like I was reading an article about myself. I brought this up in therapy and to my family and discovered I was 100% autistic. I had masked my entire life to seem normal but finding out I am autistic has allowed me to open up, unmask, and be my 100% most authentic self. Celebrating the things I thought made me “weird.” I’ve fully embraced my special interest without feeling ashamed of being called a nerd. I am obsessed with Marvel and Star Wars and, of course, photography. With adequate management of my chronic illness symptoms, continuing care and research, and taking charge of my mental health, I am on the road to recovery. I am rediscovering myself, enjoying being a Mama to the two most incredible and kind-hearted kids, and enjoying my husband and the things I love. I’ve been able to fully dive back into my work and do what I love. My business is finally starting to pick back up again. I love working with so many amazing people and sharing their stories. I am incredibly proud to be a Neurodivergent woman, mother, wife, daughter, sister, friend, chronic illness warrior, and business owner. I will never give up on making my dreams a reality and inspiring others with my story.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has been an incredibly rough road battling chronic illness, depression, anxiety, navigating deployments as a new mother, and through the pandemic as well.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a portrait photographer located in Moncks Corner, South Carolina. I provide services to Moncks Corner, Charleston, and all surrounding areas. I opened my business in 2017. I offer almost all sessions typed but have specialties in Newborns and Motherhood(Maternity, Breastfeeding, Mommy & Me, etc.) What sets me apart from others is the experience I provide for my clients. I offer a complete client closet for Maternity, Motherhood, and Children, hundreds of options for newborn sessions, fully inclusive cake smashes, and more. I provide all my clients with a positive, accepting, uplifting experience. I pride myself on the experience I provide for my clients and consistent and open communication with fair and competitive pricing. What I am most proud of when it comes to my brand is being an autistic woman and someone who battles chronic illness but never gives up. I am entirely self-made. I have learned most of everything I know, including photography and editing skills, branding, advertising, and website design. I learned a lot about photography from my dad but have grown so much on my own. What readers should know about my brand is that it is all-inclusive and open to everyone with zero discrimination. I offer only encouragement, empowering, and uplifting experiences to my clients. I believe in showing kindness and positivity to everyone I meet.
We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I define success as happiness with the art I create and the work I provide to clients. I define it as seeing a huge smile come across my client’s faces when they receive their completed gallery. The positive feedback lets me know I positively affected my clients’ lives and have them continuously use me for their photography needs.
Pricing:
- Maternity starting at $485 +Tax
- Newborns Sessions starting at $400 +Tax
- Children’s portraits including Cake-Smashes starting at $250 +Tax
- Couples starting at $250 +Tax and Wedding packages starting at $1,000 +Tax
- Family Portraits starting at $250 +Tax
Contact Info:
- Website: https://luniniphotographyllc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lunini_photography
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LuniniPhotography
Image Credits
Headshots photographed by: Jessica Gray with White Ivy Photography LLC, Edited by myself: Lunini Photography LLC
