Life & Work with Jennifer Lloyd

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Lloyd.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
As a first-generation Asian American and the daughter of a retired Command Sergeant Major in the U.S. Army, my family answered the call of duty and uprooted to several countries throughout my childhood. The experience of moving around, as well as caring for my 6 children, developed a commitment to education. I served as an elected School Board Director and was recognized by the State School Board with the Distinction Award.

Together, my husband Randy, and I, own Lloyd Enterprises Inc., which has been moving the earth for over 50 years in industrial, commercial, and residential developments. I started my own business in 2020, as a professional photographer and makeup artist during the Covid lockdown. It was once a creative hobby, then turned into my passion. My work has been featured online, in print, and onstage at numerous pageant systems, including the Miss Universe Organization, Mrs. America, Miss for America, and Mrs. World, for several designer and product campaigns, featured in NY Times Square, and published in Elle, Harper’s Bazaar and Marie Claire magazines.

My love for community drives my love to donate my time and talent, whether as an official sponsor or simply because I believe in empowering women to look and feel their best. It is just a part of who I am. Globally, I was nominated and heralded Best in Production 2021 and Brand Ambassador 2022 at the Global Beauty Awards.

Currently, I hold the distinguished title of Mrs. Korea World and will compete at the Mrs. World Pageant in December 2023 at the Westgate Resort in Las Vegas.

Like everything I commit to, I took on the role of “Momager” when my daughter, Lily, won Miss WA Teen USA 2019 and reveled in helping her have an amazing, fun-filled year of opportunities. Together, we established Smize Foundation, a 501 3c non-profit organization that feeds food-insecure and homeless children. My role as Volunteer Director allows me to recruit young teens and promote community service.

With a servant’s heart, I have a passion for helping other women become economically independent, and partnered with Dress for Success and served as the Chapter Vice-Chair for SCORE (a global nonprofit that mentors business entrepreneurs). Closer to home, I believe in the sanctity of marriage and raising up my children to know God and treat others with respect.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
As a business-minded woman, I really needed a creative outlet. Everything we knew of had changed during the pandemic – we couldn’t operate our non-profit, go to the office, and all our jobs were shut down. The Covid lockdown made me slow down and think about what I love doing. I love beauty and seeing beauty. I would buy fashion magazines as a child and post pages of my favorite models and ad’s all over my walls. I also spent many years working as a model (not making much money to even pay a bill) because I loved the production.

Covid made me realize my love of production and I made a courageous decision to buy the most expensive camera on the market. I had no previous experience with a professional camera and I thought it was going to be a simple transition to get started. I spent 20 years freelancing in makeup artistry and I thought that my work would transfer easily onto the camera. Even with the best camera and lens on the market, I had so much work ahead of me. I spent long nights reading tutorials and watching countless photographers on YouTube hoping I could grasp the idea of ISO, Aperture, and F stops. I failed countless times. My work did not represent my art and I struggled to share my work as I constantly compared myself to seasoned photographers in the beauty industry. I began obsessing about buying programs that could teach me the proper techniques in Photoshop and would spend weekends learning how to even skin tone. Photography is not just about the light, but how you capture the energy in the model, wardrobe, makeup, hair, location, ambiance, and most importantly, post-production.

It was my constant curiosity and persistence that kept me interested. I learned from every failed attempt and after 3 years of pushing through, I finally feel accomplished and proud of where I am. I often still compare my work, however, I’ve given myself the best gift of all, which is accepting where I am.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in beauty and my clients receive the most hands-on experience because I am also a hair and makeup artist. Most photographers, if not all, outsource. My background in makeup artistry gives me a unique advantage because I control the overall look.

My work is known in the pageant world as I sponsor several states and organizations. I started my business as a hobby, but when I realized that I fulfilled a need, it became my mission to help my clients achieve their goals. I believe God brings me the right people and sometimes I provide a free service to help someone in need.

A mother of a young woman asked me to help her daughter who was battling cancer. I was already booked out however when she told me that cancer spread up to her brain, I felt I needed to step in. Backstage at her pageant, a seasoned artist with a lot of social caches asked me if I was a real artist.

I’ll never forget how he made me feel. He could use his position to empower so many yet he criticized me and made fun of my client. I left that experience with a fire in my belly and committed my work to empower ALL women- every age, shape, size, height, and handicap.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
You don’t always have to have confidence, just a little courage.

Put yourself in spaces that spark your creativity and research online. I found so many inspiring photographers on social media and connected with the ones I really looked up to. It is an investment, but the best opportunity to learn.

Contact Info:

• Website: mrsjenniferlloyd.com
• Instagram: @mrsjenniferelloyd_artistry and @mrskoreaworld
• Facebook: Mrs. Jennifer E Lloyd Artistry

Image Credits
@mrsjenniferelloye_artistry