Today we’d like to introduce you to Lori Webre.
Hi Lori, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
2016- I was homeschooling my high school-aged kids and worked for Disney. Wondering what was next, I picked up an old passion after my husband gifted me my first DSLR and found cast activity classes through Disney for photography. They were fairly priced, and I was blessed with a wealth of knowledge from George Wilson. I also met a few new friends with whom I still keep in touch. I continued to take classes with them up until 2019. 2018/2019- I decided to take advantage of Disney’s Aspire program and worked toward a photography AA and possibly a BA in graphic art. I left Disney in 2021, 3 classes shy of my AA, but this year, I “aspire” to complete those last 3 classes for my photography AA. Do you need that as a photographer? No, but I love learning more about my passion, so it’s a bonus! Since 2016, I slowly started getting paid for my photography, starting as an event and production photographer for Central Florida Community Arts, which was dear to my heart due to my kids being a part of their youth programs. I am very grateful that CFCarts gave me my first paid gigs, leading to many more private sessions. It’s an exceptional organization! In 2021, after leaving Disney and no longer doing production photography for CFCarts, I began to see if I could get my photography off the ground and running. Still, it was not until Ear For Each Other, a social media page for furloughed and cast affected by the pandemic, that things started to take off. 2023 was a year of realizing I could do this and make a part-time income. But, for 2024, I hope to bring it closer to home in Clermont. I shot my first newborn session and fell in love with the baby(friends) and the session! This is a direction I want to pursue, and it helps that I will be a first-time grandmother any day now! I also do family, kids, themed, graduation, and boutique (small) wedding photography. My favorites are themed family, newborn, and kids’ photography.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
“When life gets blurry, adjust your focus” – Unknown.
No road in a passion is smooth. My creative side wishes to trample and stomp on the business side with dirty boots. In the past 2.5 years, I had a business partnership with a friend, and we stretched each other. It was an excellent learning experience that I loved to do. She and I learned so much about SEO and taxes. It has been a springboard for my photography- the business side. I learned that you will only beat the system with SEO if you are a large company that affords to have staff for that, and you know what? That’s okay! I spent those 2.5 years fighting that system and learned that I didn’t want it anyway and that I was grateful only to have that duty every other month because that’s how we split it up. I started off loving it- it is fun to create- but having to do it every single day or consistently takes the fun out of it (even when batch-making it all in a day or week). I am no longer here for that! My conscious decision not to do it makes me a happier person. My life is exponentially better for not stressing over posting regularly and being concerned with popularity. I am pleased with my work, and when a client loves my work, well, that’s all I need. And taxes make me cry. It reminds me of math in grammar school and how I needed tutoring. I cried the entire tutoring session, so I did not have to do more math. My poor mom traded babysitting hours for those tutoring sessions! That being said, I have quarterly taxes due this week!
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My business name is Gathering Stories Photography. It says it all. Everyone has a story. I have a story. I enjoy hearing yours! My goal for each person who books with me is to get to know them before the session. It makes for a smoother session and a better outcome. I will send questions I hope my client answers; it will likely spur conversation. One thing I miss about working at Disney is the conversations with people from different backgrounds. So, I do enjoy chatting with people! I am super proud of some photos I have taken in the past 7.5 years. One is an excellent capture of an orchestra conductor known for his animated actions and getting into the music- and I captured an animated moment against a very cool moon digital backdrop on a screen. They were playing a song from ET, my favorite childhood movie. I recall sitting dead center behind the conductor, just waiting for his living in that music. It was fun! I am proud that CFCarts used that image on the cover of a future program! I have 10 copies of that program. I take at most 1 or 2 sessions per week. Preferably 1. I do not like my work to overlap, and I put lots of effort into my editing, sometimes even getting all corny and making composites for my kid and kid-at-heart clients to enjoy! I do not slap on a filter and sharpen and be done with it. I do batch editing for practical purposes, but I hand edit every image. It does not translate into breaking the bank if contracted. I aspire to have a competitive yet reasonable fee structure and reciprocate that sentiment to other aspiring photographers.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Find a photographer who loves to share their craft. I am grateful for George Wilson Photography, which is just that. I hope he can start classes at Disney again soon. Like any other profession, you will find photographers who love sharing their ways and those who do not. It is all about constantly learning. Sign up for community classes, attend workshops, or do online workshops. I enjoy in-person photography workshops. I aspire to do one a year. I recently went to a Kelby One workshop at the convention center. I have done online workshops and am grateful to have friends who like to share that stuff. Just get around good people who share things that work for them.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gatheringstoriesphotography?igsh=MWt0cm1jbGNzcHZscg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lori.gatheringstories?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Other: https://unscriptedforphotographers.com/b/A6aQXpNuYwq51W
