Today we’d like to introduce you to Susannah McLeod.
Susannah, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I have always been someone who documents life, from writing in journals to saving torn movie stubs, and photography became a big part of capturing life as I grew up. I always had a camera around to take photos of silly moments with friends- graduating from disposable cameras to a point-and-shoot to my Mom giving me my very own DSLR for Christmas 2009. At that point, I had recently graduated from college, moved to New York City and was pursuing a career in Musical Theatre. “Wait a minute! I thought I was reading about your photography business,” you may be thinking. I’m getting there… but my path has definitely been a bit untraditional. For as long as I can remember, I have loved theatre and music. I performed in school plays, sang in the church choir, and made my friends/cousins/neighbors/anyonewhowouldletmebossthemaround put on “shows” whenever possible.
In NYC, I met my future wife, Chloe. In addition to theatre, another love we share is travel. Theatre jobs frequently satisfied the travel “itch” but often forced us apart from one another. After a year of a mostly long-distance relationship, we decided to take a break from the NYC theatre life to start our own travel video webseries. Looking back, it was a rather ambitious undertaking, as neither of us had any video production knowledge and relatively little experience on-camera, but we were determined. We packed up our lives and “Sus & Chlo on the Go” was born.
We quickly learned that it was a lot of work to research, film, shoot, host, produce and edit an entire series ourselves- but we had a blast doing it. We had a successful Kickstarter campaign, road-tripped across the country, fully produced eight full-length episodes, and didn’t kill each other in the process. During our travels, we fell in love with Colorado and decided to relocate to Denver. I got an internship at the Open Media Foundation (OMF) to continue to improve my video production skills. I’m incredibly proud of “Sus & Chlo on the Go,” though it was becoming challenging to sustain, so a few months later, when I was offered a full-time job as Video Production Manager at OMF, I couldn’t turn it down.
The learning curve was steep but I am so grateful for all that I learned during my time there, and I had the chance to work with many amazing Colorado nonprofits. I was also starting to realize how much I prefer the medium of photography over videography. There’s something about what can be captured in a single moment that moves me more than a video of a moment can… and in discovering that, I knew I wanted to make a change and start moving in the direction of photography. I began to build a portfolio, took a few classes at the Small Business Development Center and Mi Casa Resource Center, and less than six months later, I quit my job at OMF and took the leap to launch McLeod9 Creative.
Great, 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?
Overall I’ve been very fortunate in building my photography business. As may be evident from my story, my “struggle” was finding the clarity that this was something I wanted to do as a job- not only a hobby. In addition to growing my photography business, I still want theatre to be a part of my life- so to find a healthy (and financially sustainable!) way to balance both is an ongoing challenge for me.
However, because I am an actor as well, and actors are required to have printed headshots for most auditions, I have a built-in network of friends and friends-of-friends who are potential headshot clients. I also have some built-in event photography clients from my time working with OMF, which thankfully doesn’t offer much in the way of photography services so I didn’t feel like I was poaching clients! Other branches of photography have required finding clients and building a portfolio from the ground up, so that has definitely been more of a challenge, but one that I’ve enjoyed. Variety is the spice of life! Well, for me, anyway.
In terms of advice for someone thinking about starting their own business, the biggest thing for me has been not to fixate on the idea that there is only one “right” way or path. I sometimes struggle with a sense of imposter syndrome because my path has been so untraditional and because I’m also balancing a second career in theatre. But I have finally begun to trust that when life takes unexpected turns, those new forks in the road can lead me to places equally, if not more, fulfilling than the original path may have. To be honest, it’s not always easy. At the moment, I’m practicing a lot of deep breathing to trust in that idea, with Coronavirus and all of its economic effects looming and uncertain. I imagine we all are. The other three pieces of advice I’d have are 1. Don’t be afraid to fail. Even if you do, there is always an opportunity for growth. 2. Know your value. and 3. It never hurts to ask.
Please tell us about McLeod9 Creative.
McLeod9 Creative offers a wide variety of photographic services: actor and corporate headshots, event coverage, promo shots for businesses, wedding photography, family portraits, and almost anything in between. While I’m aware that it could be potentially helpful for my business to focus on one branch of photography and “specialize,” I love to mix it up! That said, the common thread between all of my shoots is the focus on people as my subjects. I like people. A lot. And I love trying to capture the essence of the people on the other side of my lens. (Side note: I think it’s also why I am drawn to acting- getting a chance to explore people via character.) What sets me apart is that I am good at making people feel comfortable in front of the camera. That may be because I’m a total goofball and don’t take myself too seriously, but it also helps that I love what I do and I think other people can sense that. The “cloud nine” pun in my business name represents the sense of well-being that I am always hoping to give my clients.
In addition, the strong, Scottish name McLeod (pronounced “Mick. Cloud, with an emphasis on cloud, btw) is in tribute to my parents, who’ve inspired me. My Mom has always been fiercely adventurous and pursued her dreams, unapologetically. She taught me the meaning of the word “persevere.” My Dad was always my biggest cheerleader, encouraging me to pursue the things I loved. His big smile and frequent laughter were contagious, and I am grateful to have gotten both of those traits from him.
Do you recommend any apps, books or podcasts that have been helpful to you?
Anything Brene Brown has written is gold; I take advantage of the free videos on Fitness Blender (staying active keeps me sane!); I used Scrib’d almost daily for books, plays, and audiobooks; and Instagram is the primary app I use to follow hundreds of fellow photographers and share much of my own work.
Pricing:
- Headshots, Family Portraits, Theatre Production, and Promo Shots: $300
- Events: $175 for the first hour, $125 for each additional
- Weddings: Packages start at $1,500
Contact Info:
- Address: 150 Grant St
Apt 2
Denver, CO
80203 - Website: www.mcleod9creative.com
- Phone: 706.840.3912
- Email: mcleod9creative@gmail.com
- Instagram: @mcleod9creative
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/mcleod9creative
Image Credit:
Photo credits (for shots of me): Marco Robinson Photo, Natalie McLeod, Chloe McLeod, and Green Lion Images.
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