I cannot believe that another week has passed and it is already Friday- where did the time go? :) I do love Friday’s though, because you know what that means- another installment of Be Inspired! I am so excited about this week’s interview with a fabulous photographer I have been connecting with via Facebook. She is Stacey Long of Fifteen81 Photography & Design, based out of Ohio. Not only is she uber talented, she’s also a total comedian who keeps me laughing much of my work day. :) Happy Friday everybody! Enjoy!!
My name is Stacey Long and I am super awesome, at least that is what I tell myself every morning! I am a photographer/graphic designer/mom/girlfriend living in the middle of Amish Country.
What are 3 things we should know about you?
1. I have an incredibly short attention span, friends refer to it as being squirrelcentric
2. My 10 yr old daughter is my best friend, no joke and she is my main source of inspiration
3. I am a DIY/craft junkie, I love trying new crafts but usually lose interest in them once I “master” them. Craziest crafting was to embroider a self portrait, never doing that again!
Define your style in 5 words:
I’m at the tail end of my 1st year and I honestly don’t think I have really arrived at my style yet. I usually let the photos dictate how I’m going to edit them, some scream for more of a vintage feel, others need to be bright and vibrant, so yeah, I dont really know just yet.
What is your specialty?
In regards to photography at the present time I’d say kids are my strong point right now.
In design I’m a fan of creating marketing materials, I am a paper fanatic so anytime I am able to do something creative with a piece of paper I get all giddy.
What inspires your work?
Photography- first and foremost my subject is the main inspiration, it’s their personality, their likes and dislikes that is going to determine the look and feel of their photos. Secondly, I am inspired each and every day by all of the other Showiteers, their work, their passion and their spirit is infectious and I am beyond thankful for them.
Where is your dream location to do a shoot or wedding?
I’m going to tie my dream location into my dream shoot, I would LOVE to have a shoot with ballet dancers in some crazy awesome forest, preferably in California, where ever they have those GIANT redwoods. I suppose a wedding in that location would be cool too but I just adore how graceful and beautiful dancers are.
Divulge one of your dreams for your business:
I have so many dreams for my business and there are so many layers that I want to add to it. The most important thing though is to be able to create a business that benefits others, giving back is incredibly important to me. Every month I pick one organization to donate some of my proceeds to and, as I said before, I’m at the tale end of my first year, so I’m not able to donate that much, so my dream is to get to the point where my donations could make a significant difference.
What do you love most about being a photographer?
Oh so much but mainly just capturing those moments that you dont usually notice in day to day life.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Happy. Thats it really. I’m not a planner. The more I try to plan things out the more sidetracked I get. I like to just go with the flow as cheesy as that sounds but seriously I feel as though if I were to get some “dream life” plan in my head then I would pass up so many opportunties so yeah all I know is that in 5 years I will be happy where ever I am.
As a fellow Showiteer, tell us what you love about Showit:
Whoa, ok, I’m warning ya, this is going to be a long answer… So at the beginning of the year I decided that I needed to up the ante and quit using WordPress as my main site because, seriously, how was I going to attract more clients without an actual website? So, I started looking around which was incredibly frustrating to me because I knew I wanted to be able to design my own site and really just needed someone to code it for me and to find someone I trusted that much, oh goodness! I knew a couple of the photog “friends” I met through CreativeLive workshops used Showit, so I did a bit more research about them and I was sold! On my birthday I decided to give myself the best present I could possibly give myself and I signed up for Showit. When I signed up I knew I would be able to get a site that was exactly what I wanted but what I wasn’t expecting was to become a part of an amazing community, no scratch that, an amazing family. Being in the creative industry can be a bit tough at times since there is so much competition, egos and- ugh- childlike behavior, so to see how passionate and welcoming other Showiteers are was an absolute breath of freah air. They inspire me, motivate me, support me and I heart them. Plus, the Showit Studs are ever so helpful and entertaining.
If you could meet anyone in the world, who would it be & why?
Anyone and everyone. We all have a pretty incredible story to tell and I’d love to hear them all.
What advice do you have for new photographers?
Sign up for Showit, seriously. Other than that, always educate yourself. Never think you are too awesome to help someone. Never let someone make you feel like junk. Never make someone feel like junk. Never stop trying to improve your craft . Always step out of your comfort zone. Support, contribute to and help build the photographers community.
Stacey, thank you so much for your amazing interview! :) You are a true inspiration! We are so grateful to you for choosing to be a part of Be Inspired! I hope to meet you someday soon! :)
Be sure follow Stacey:
Website: http://fifteen81.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fifteen81?ref=ts
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/fifteen81
