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Product Photography | Cruikshank Farms | Lima, Ohio

It’s not often when I sign up to do a collaboration through the Let’s Collab group on Facebook that I meet another local creative, and it’s even less often that the creative is a shop owner who runs their business out of the old Gomer, Ohio Post Office, but that is Jessica Cruikshank of Cruikshank Farms. Her shop is literally a hop, skip, and jump north of Lima, Ohio – and I was so excited to meet with her and be able to collaborate on some items from her adorable line of scents, wooden flowers, and metal work!

It all kind of conspired out of the fact that we just renovated our kitchen which was one heck of a project itself. We did it on the cheap; we bought a counter-top renewal kit, painted our cabinets and walls, and spent and entire week in the evenings just going full force on turning the Formica blue counter-top and back-splash into something our Millennial loving souls will cherish until we can afford something more high-end. My husband is a saint, and we seriously tested our marriage during this week. The end result is awesome (thank you Daisch transformations). I was so excited to be able to offer my new space for my brand and product photography, and when Jessica posted she was looking for someone local to Lima – well, the stars aligned!

I picked up the items from the actual Cruikshank homestead one morning my family decided to head into town to grab some IHOP and finish our Christmas shopping. Again, this is totally different than any other collaboration I have done – this is local so I had the opportunity to meet the creator and owner and she didn’t need to pay for shipping (we’ve also became Facebook friends and she’s given me advice on my daughter’s nasty cough).

So, I bet you’re wondering exactly what I got to photograph for Jessica, right? Well, she had me photograph an amazing candle, some soy warmer scents, a scent shot, an awesome wine rack that is made out of HORSE SHOES, and a wooden flower box that I got to customize by picking the wood stain and flower colors! You guysssssss, it is all so great. I can’t even explain. So, I’ll post the photos, of course.

I mean…..beautiful stuff, right?! Anyway, you should definitely go check out Cruikshank Farms – https://www.cruikshankfarms.com/ and if you go to their brick and mortar, say hi to Jessica for me! She’s a pretty great human, and I’m glad to call her a new [Facebook] friend!

Findlay Ohio Headshots | Lady Boss Headshots | Litzenberg Memorial Woods

If you know Kayla, you know that she puts her heart and soul into everything she does, and I was so excited to be able to provide her with headshots to help grow her makeup business – Glamour Without Guilt. Kayla is a Findlay, Ohio mom of two, full time speech language pathologist, and kick-butt entrepreneur running a successful Younique business!

I know Kayla fairly well, and I know she loves Litzenberg Woods. However, I wanted to shoot in some areas of the park that we don’t usually shoot at when we do her family portraits – so we shot at the front of the house and on the beautiful stone steps of the history Litzenberg home. Of course, being a working mom, we had to capture Kayla with Beckett – her partner in crime.  If you get a chance to catch Kayla live or follow her page, Beckett is ever-present. He LOVES mirroring his mom, and he steals the show!

Which photo of Kayla is your favorite? Tell me in the comments!

 

Being in the photography industry can sometimes be a little…competitive (to say the least). It feels discouraging some days when all you need is to talk to someone about editing, shooting, or what have you, and they’re states away online. Often times we hear these words “Community over Competition” being thrown out, but it can be difficult to follow if you’re having a hard time booking clients, see another photographer succeed when you are struggling, or a number of other reasons. Sometimes it is just really hard to put yourself into “check”.

However, I have found my little family, I think. I have one girl I went to high school with in Paulding County, and I adore her. We talk nearly daily, and her work is amazing. We work together often on weddings. Our children are the same age. I always recommend clients to her for boudoir. Andrea Schlueter and I often call each other “tog wives” – so obviously, I’m going to give her a shout out.

Another couple of ladies I’ve grown a little closer with in the last few months are Caitlin Zemlanski and Kambria Massie. We have children the same age, we’re photographers in the area, and we all love to help other small business succeed. So we went on this journey of planning a large group shoot with our girls (and I guess we’re doing it again – this time we will need a wine date after). But we’ve also created something else – we’ve created a space we can talk about business with each other. We can get and give advice. We can talk about mom things and business things in the same breath, and it’s really refreshing.

But, do you know what else I’m super excited about creating? An example. Not only for other area people in the same boat, but for my child. I’m so proud and excited that I can show her that women can be strong business owners, but I’m also super proud that I can show her that we can support and lift each other up – even if we are running the same type of business and may be “competition”. In the end, building a community that supports one another is way more important and good for the soul than being petty, dismissive, and passive to each other. We each have our own niche and we can shine and lift each other up.

I really am grateful for these women – Andrea, Caitlin, and Kambria. I’m not trying to be super mushy or anything – I’m just overjoyed that I’ve found my person(s).