Check Out Tricia Harrison’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tricia Harrison.

Hi Tricia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Photography has always been a part of my life.

Whether I was going through stacks of snapshots of family photos or studying the National Geographic magazines my mom kept for her classrooms, I’ve always been inspired by images. Eventually, I started taking my camera around everywhere so I could document my own experiences — and keep in mind, it was a bigger deal hauling a camera around in the 80s and 90’s than it is now with cell phone cameras in everyone’s pockets!

The thing is, growing up, I never realized photography could be a real career. Even though my first job was at a 1-hour portrait studio in the mall, it felt like we were just a bunch of kids messing around. I finally bought my first DSLR after my second child was born and got back into taking pictures, discovering that I love documentary photography the most.

After years of capturing gorgeous candid of my kids and their friends, my friends started asking me to take family photos to use on their Christmas cards. This all eventually lead to me furthering my education in photography and business, so I felt confident in starting my own photography business

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I struggle with imposter syndrome, but I’ve learned to only compare myself to older versions of myself. There are so many people with experiences and skills and visions, so competing and comparing yourself to others will not help you — competing with yourself is the only real competition you win from.

I always knew I wanted to learn more about photography and needed accountability in a classroom setting. I took a black-and-white film class during my first try at college in the 90s, but completing a professional photographer program was a whole different challenge. I was almost 40 years old when I went back to college! I was twice the age as most of the students, I had a family with young kids that I still needed to attend to, and a household to run.

Colorado Mountain College in Glenwood Springs has an incredible professional photography program that allowed me to take classes during the day while the kids were in school. It was a challenge to get photography assignments finished outside of school hours while working part-time and taking care of my family, but thankfully I had a supportive husband and family to cheer me on — and even be my subjects if needed.

The biggest obstacle has been setting myself apart from all the photographers out there and learning how to run a sustainable and successful business. The way I was running my business before didn’t serve my clients or myself — I was overwhelming clients with too many options, and not offering them anyway to get their portraits professionally printed, which I felt strongly about changing because I’ve discovered that print labs have varying degrees of quality.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I specialize in high school senior portraits, children, and family portraiture. In wanting to separate myself from other photographers and offer my clients a different experience, I have started specializing in custom and personalized wall art. I help my clients from start to finished product, holding their hand the whole time: I get to know my clients and who I’m photographing before we meet up on location.

I help my clients with wardrobe colors that fit their style and I propose different location ideas. I see what kind of custom artwork they want, where they might hang it, and what size works best for the space. I offer their custom artwork on metal, framed canvas, acrylic, or in a traditional frame. I use only professional labs and my clients never have to worry about if the colors or cropping is correct. I make sure the piece is perfect before my client receives their artwork. Not everyone has wall space for big artwork so I also offer heirloom albums and matted prints in custom handmade display boxes from Italy, and my clients usually buy a combination of products.

I believe that portraits are meant to be displayed, viewed, and cherished — not hidden on a jump drive in some drawer or lost forever to a crashed hard drive. I am proud to make that happen for my clients, who value portrait photography.

We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success to me is having happy clients who are over the moon about the quality, beauty, and joy that the custom artwork on their walls brings them every day.

I love having the freedom to work and give back to the community that supports my business.

Pricing:

• My creative fees start at $185

Contact Info:

• Website: www.TriciaHarrisonCreative.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/TriciaHarrisonCreative/ 

Image Credits
@TriciaHarrisonCreative