Today we’d like to introduce you to KC Baslik.
Hi KC, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Photography has always been a love and passion of mine. While I was in high school, I took a few photography classes, but never thought about it as a way to make a living… so I let it go. When I was 21, I decided to join the Air Force in an effort to see and explore the world, which luckily I got to do!
I met my husband while I was stationed overseas, and we traveled to 17 different countries together. Nearing the end of my enlistment, we were blessed with finding out that we would be welcoming a baby to the world! After we found out about our bun in the oven, moving back to Arizona to be close to family and friends was an easy decision. We bought a house in Surprise, Arizona, and welcomed our beautiful daughter, Sunny!
From here, I knew that I needed to figure out a way to make money without having to be away from my daughter. I was already taking 1000 photos a day of Sunny on my phone, so for my birthday, I bought a camera! I remembered how much I enjoyed playing with camera settings and different lighting situations from my high school days.
My daughter gave me tons of practice, and eventually, I just started asking for models on Facebook for anyone who wanted free photos. I knew if I ever wanted to make money, I needed to practice not just my client experience but also different posing and what felt right. I knew I needed to build some type of portfolio for people to want to book with me.
A year ago, I made an Instagram and started advertising my work. The next thing I knew, people were wanting to book with me! I am still sharpening my skills and adding tools to my toolbox, but I am so grateful that I am making a living doing what I love.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Gosh, there have been so many struggles along the way, and they’re still are!
The first camera I bought was just not cutting it. I think it’s kind of important to start with something that really forces you to learn how it works though, that way when you do decide to upgrade things just are so much easier and make more sense.
Another struggle I faced was figuring out my editing style. There are SO many amazing photographers out there that each has their own unique style. It seemed as though, every time I looked a photographer’s work I would find myself saying “I really love that edit”.
I had to come to the realization that I can admire everyone’s work and think it’s all beautiful and brilliant, but I want my editing to flow with my personality. Warm, soft, and fun!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My job is to create and tell a story of your love (usually in a desert background)! While I photograph families, couples, and portraits, the work I am most proud of is when I work with couples. There is something about watching the connection between two people that gives me warm fuzzies.
The way the couple lights up when I give them a prompt because they know how the other person is going to react is priceless. I love seeing couples who have been together for a long time with the same routine in life, loosen up and just enjoy each other. I love seeing old hearts grow young again with flirtatious gestures like blowing raspberries on each other’s necks.
I think what sets me apart from others is my personality. I am just the type of person who says hi to everyone and wants to genuinely get to know you. Not because you booked a session with me, but because I love people.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
To me, what’s most important to my success is HOW I make my clients feel. I recently got a message that said, “Thank you so much, she felt so beautiful and she was so confident. You’re amazing” before the client had even seen the photos I took. That message meant the world to me because that is what I strive for.
I want my clients to feel beautiful and confident. I want my clients to feel so confident that when they get in the car to leave their session they say to themselves “I killed that session”. In my opinion, when your clients leave your session feeling this way, there is no way they don’t like their photos because they look at them and remember the way you made them feel!
If your client gets in the car and is unsure of how the session went and feeling scared to get their gallery back, it’s likely because the photographer made them feel that way. It’s more likely that when they get their gallery back they will not be happy with the photos because they look at them and remember the feeling of uncertainty.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://kcbphotography24.mypixieset.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kcb.photo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kcbphotography-103319321854471
- Other: https://book.usesession.com/i/duAYFuuPl
