At some point or another, Life gives you a glimpse into what
your purpose truly is. It might be that you’re a pharmacist — but you really want to be a flower farmer. For photographer Tamara Lackey, her passion for photography was always a calling, but it wasn’t until the birth of her baby that she decided to F (stop) it and and focus towards a career in capturing moments. Now, Tamara is an award-winning photographer who has photographed everything from babies to former President Barack Obama. Here’s how she learned to call the shots.
How did you get into photography?
In college, I studied Fine Art History and Mass Communications. I went into management consulting and. I had to learn how to code COBOL and C++. I did that for almost five years, and paid back all my student loans and learned a lot about organizational design and development. I would spend a lot of time studying how to make processes more efficient with companies. I loved it even though I didn’t think I would.
Even though my whole background was in business, I kept thinking about going back to college and studying again. The whole idea of traveling through Europe taking pictures was exciting but I had none of that beauty in my life.
Were you taking pictures throughout this time, though?
I was but they all sucked! The people I photographed all had great expressions; I always knew to look for the emotion in an image, but the exposure was off and they were very poor technically.
After I got pregnant, I started working on photography, because I had that time to sit, relax, and get more creative. My baby came along, and I photographed every breath that she took, and then decided I wanted to figure out how to do this professionally. So I went to the library, checked out 100 books, and taught myself how to shoot.
How did you balance the business with a new baby?
We literally bought a house that had an unfinished 600 square foot space, with the intention of turning it into my studio so I could work from home and be with my baby. And so that’s what we did. I worked out this extremely complicated schedule that allowed me to basically feel as little guilt as possible. First thing in the morning, I’d be with my baby, get her all ready, then a sitter would come for two hours so I could work. Then I would take over and put my baby down for a nap, work for that chunk of time, then a sitter would come back. I shot on the weekends, when my husband was home. It was a little insane, and I would think to myself, as my baby was crawling across my keyboard, ”Look at us bonding. I’m a great mother!” After about two years of this, I felt like something had to give, and I didn’t want it to be my mind.
I also recognized that I was completely abandoning all my learning and knowledge about organization and making things smarter, faster, and more efficient. So I cleared my schedule for a full weekend where it was completely whiteboard and marker, and then spent the next two weeks not doing any photography-related stuff, but restructuring the way I was running my business. And that changed everything. The next year, my profits went up 100%. I ended up moving into a commercial space studio where I still am today. I hired an assistant studio manager, and now there’s 14 of us.
So I would say that as a photographer, I went into it as a creative outlet, but I wasn’t going to take it to the next level until I made that business foundation really smart and tough,
How did you get your first clients?
I said to everybody I knew, “I’d love to photograph you and I’ll give you a serious discount.” That’s how I started. Don’t start out by saying, “I’ll do everything for free.” I raised my prices 12 times during the first year. By the time I entered my third year, they were significantly higher.
I was also looking at the fact that things like charging a session fee isn’t really much money, even if it’s a high session fee. The part that really makes a difference is sitting down and consulting with clients in terms of looking at the images. How can they use them? What can they do with them? Handing out a DVD is actually more of a disservice in some respects, because people don’t really know what to do with these things. They put it into a drawer and then maybe six months later they’re like, “Okay, let me print one out and give it to Uncle Fred.”
How did you take the business from shooting clients to working with magazines?
So great question. A few things. One, I started working. I got a call from some guy who was moving from Berlin, Germany to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and now is here in New York. He works with a major company that distributes to Getty in Europe. And he said, “I’m moving to Chapel Hill. I like your work. Would you want to shoot for us?” So I did some stock photography that got picked up by a bunch of magazines, including Parenting.
So if you had to say, what do you love shooting the most?
I love kids. I love their energy. I photographed weddings for quite some time, and it can be a smart business model if you’re doing it well. But I think you gravitate towards what you love. After photographing children for a while, I’ll do an adult shoot, and I’m always shocked that they do exactly what I want! [laughs]
Speaking of adults, there are some pretty impressive (and presidential) folks you’ve shot.
I wanted to photograph President Barack Obama and I made it my goal. I didn’t have a connection; I was just a fan. So I started crafting a plan. He was on the final leg of his campaign and I ended up working for the campaign, shooting some press things and their meet and greets.
I kept working for that portrait, though. And by the time I finally got it, I was like, “This is why I’m a photographer.” President Obama gave me that twinkle in his eye while I was shooting him, which I was thrilled about! I got exactly what I wanted — I wanted it to be just him and I, I wanted him to be presidential and looking at me. And I wanted that smile, because I love his smile.
I was also able to photograph Michelle Obama and Maya Angelou and Hillary Clinton, too, which was great, because she exudes sweetness..
Let’s talk about your role as a mom.
I have three kids, Sophie, Caleb, and Anna Elisa. Caleb was adopted from Ethiopia at 9-months-old, and Anna Lisa was adopted from Ecuador at three and a half. They are seriously best buds.
And if you weren’t already busy enough, you also have your own show, too.
The reDefine Show with Tamara Lackey stems from the fact that I was having the most interesting conversations and I wanted to share these experiences with other people. I’m a big believer in the idea of mentoring and I offer mentor sources to help share what I’ve learned along the way.
Then there are other parts of my life where I wish I’d had someone to talk to first. I wanted to create a show that was focused on people sharing ideas about things that work for them, and help them work better. We talk about favorite gear, gadgets, or how to run a business without getting overwhelmed.
The conversations have been very interesting because they’re a combination of tactical tips and then more meaningful dialogue about what people care about. We talk about what defines a good day, or what success really means, and then really break that down a bit more thoughtfully. In my experience, the things that motivate you or create change, aren’t always these big moments. The smaller moments are the ones that count.