Today we’d like to introduce you to Veronica and Seth Engelson.
Hi Veronica and Seth, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
First things first, hi! We’re Veronica + Seth a husband and wife photography + videography team and the faces behind Southern City Photography! Back in 2016, when everything was just getting started, it was just Veronica taking pictures for family, friends and offering up free sessions via some local Facebook groups for practice, but since then, so much has changed! For starters, Seth has joined the team, making us a little dynamic duo with a soul mission of providing couples with an amazing, super fun, and memorable photography experience! And since there are two faces behind Southern City Photography, we wanted to make sure to include both voices!
Veronica – For me, my love of photography and basically all things creative came at a very young age. Growing up, my dad worked as a lead video editor for Channel 7 News in Chicago and on weekends, he was photographing/videoing weddings, and it always fascinated me! So when it came time to start choosing electives in middle school and high school, I took that chance to fill my schedule with electives that fueled my creative juices and that I thought could help me in the long run if I decided to pursue photography as an adult. I learned everything from adobe suite editing, creative writing, film photography, and so much more. Most semesters I would even forgo study hall and lunch just to squeeze in another elective!
In college, I focused on earning my Mass Communications degree with a minor in New Media Production while also working 3 part-time jobs, but it pained me to be away from photography. Once I graduated I decided to pursue my passion for photography in my spare time by doing a session here and there. Flash forward to me a few years out of college, I was sitting at my desk at my corporate job, and it dawned on me – I’m not built for a 9-5 job, and I was miserable. So with the love and support of my then fiancé (now hubby) Seth, I built up the courage to quit that job and, for lack of a better phrase, go “into the unknown.” (any Disney fans out there?) Since walking away from my corporate job, I’ve never looked back or regretted that decision, and now every day I wake up thankful that I get to do what I love, which is documenting madly in love couples!
Seth – My journey to photography/videography was definitely not as grand, and there were no epiphanies for me. My backstory is basically that I grew up playing videogames, building computers, and not skipping my study hall/lunch in school to pursue more homework. I’ve always been fine with my 9-5 computer job, especially since I work from home, but seeing Veronica’s passion for photography sparked my interest. I started by tagging along with her to sessions, acting like a fly on the wall and carrying camera equipment, but after a little while, we decided that two is better than one and that we both have something to offer, so we built up Southern City Photography. Of course, Veronica, along with help from Google, had to teach me all of the basics, but I picked it up quickly, and now I’m the lead videographer as well!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Veronica – Running your own business in any capacity is hard, and the road will always be bumpy and you’ll maybe even find a few large potholes along the way, but that’s just the way it goes! But I think the biggest struggle for me, especially starting out, was just the fear that couples wouldn’t want what we had to offer and that everyone would wind up booking with someone else, and after investing so much of our time, money, and our hearts and souls into getting Southern City Photography up and running, that was definitely a scary thing to think about. Thankfully that wasn’t the case and we have the most amazing clients! It’s definitely still something I struggle with from time to time, but there’s a piece of advice that I was given that I always think back on, which is – there is a photographer out there for every couple, but that not every photographer will be for every couple. That notion has really helped me in times where a couple maybe does decide to go with another photographer. It helps me to not play the comparison game with others in the industry or think of them as competition, it also has allowed me to hold my head high and not think lesser of myself and what I have to offer. There are so many reasons why a couple may decide to go with another photographer – pricing, editing style, availability, etc. and it’s important to remember that everything happens for a reason and that maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.
Seth – Let me start out by saying, I don’t believe that I was naturally born with a creative eye, it’s something that I’ve had to train myself to have. So when I decided to take the jump into the videography side of things, I was basically throwing myself into the deep end of the swimming pool with no floaties in sight! I started out offering free add-on videos to our clients so there wouldn’t be any major expectations while I learned the trade and hone in on extending our photography style into a video format. Along the way, I’ve become so much more confident and I’m proud to say that videography is now something we officially offer!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Veronica – Seth and I are a husband and wife photography and videography duo that specialize in capturing the madly in love! We pride ourselves on creating natural movement and moments with no stiff and awkward posing in sight! We know that most couples aren’t professional models and rarely find themselves in front of anything but the tiny selfie camera that can be found on the front of their phone, which is why our number one goal is comfort and connection, not only between us and our couples but between the couple themselves throughout a session, elopement or wedding. I’d say, based on feedback, that we’re definitely best known for the overall experience that we provide our couples with, which just so happens to also be the thing that we’re most proud of! Creating a wonderful experience from start to finish isn’t just a goal but an absolute must and always being there for our couples whenever they need us is key.
We also make sure that we make every session, whether it’s just a couples session or an engagement session, a heck of a great time! One way that we’re able to do this is by getting to know what our couples like, what hobbies they share in, what a dream date would look like to them, and then we incorporate that into their session! One example of this is we planned an entire session based around one of our couple’s love for the outdoors and watersports. We hiked some trails, rented a few canoes to go explore, and ended the session with them having a beachside hang out on a blanket, playing cards and drinking margaritas at sunset. I mean, come on! Who doesn’t want their session to feel more like a date than an actual photography session!? Another way that we try to provide an amazing experience is by only booking a few weddings in a single month and in most cases only one wedding a weekend. It allows us to give our undivided attention to our couples along with our very best on their wedding day!
The photography industry, especially when it comes to wedding photography, has a lot of different options and approaches, but I think that our drive and motivation to make every couple feel like they’re our top priority and that we’re there for them every step of the way is what sets us apart from all of the others. We really get to know our couples and who they are as people leading up to their engagement sessions and weddings and that kind of connection helps us create an experience that they’ll remember and cherish forever. Simply put – to us, less equivalates to more – and what we mean by that is, we take on less bookings, not to benefit ourselves, but to benefit our amazing and wonderful clients, which is why we run our business the way that we do! We may take on less, but our clients get so much more that way! Seth – What she said!
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Veronica – We’ve made it super easy to get in touch with us! All anyone has to do is really pick a social platform to start a conversation with us on – Instagram, Facebook, or our handy dandy inquiry form that can be found on our website! As far as support goes, every creative always appreciates it when there are new faces following along on their social platforms, I know we do! We always try to bring our personalities to life on our social platforms, especially over on our Instagram account, where you can expect to see not only our work in photo/video form, but also our life accompanied by storytimes, tips/tricks, and much more! You can also expect to see clips from our daily life with our larger-than-life Bernese Mountain Dog Coda and our lab shepherd mix Remy on our Instagram stories.
Seth – I’d also just like to add that no matter the platform, you can also expect my cringe-worthy dad jokes so that in and of itself is a pretty good reason to check out our platforms, in my opinion!
Pricing:
- Elopements – Starting at $975
- Weddings – Starting at $1,995
- Video Add-On’s – Starting at $825
- Adventure Sessions – Starting at $300
Contact Info:
- Email: southerncityphotography@gmail.com
- Website: www.southerncityphotography.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/southerncityphotography
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/southerncityphotography
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCpGbVNYSUAP09VjbiujmVkA
Image Credits
Southern City Photography
