Meet Caitlin Ebbing

We were lucky to catch up with Caitlin Ebbing recently and have shared our conversation below.

Caitlin, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I am a believer that our purpose or calling in life isn’t always fulfilled in our vocation. Some people never enter their dream career, or find out their dream job isn’t actually where they thrive, or perhaps aren’t in the work force at all. When we have the mentality that we are destined for a single purpose and that purpose should be fulfilled in a specific job or role, reality often leaves us with missed expectations, disappointment, and lack of fulfillment in life. We get so focused on the outcome, that it is easy to lose sight of enjoying the process. Sometimes our purpose is more vague or even fluid based on the season of life we are in. For me personally, I have found my purpose in simply being the best human I can try to be and all areas. As a business owner, I always want my clients to feel valued, comfortable, and confident so I communicate in a way that honors them and sets them at ease, while still maintaining my professionalism and confidence in my work. As a wife, I want to love and respect my husband and try to put the needs of our marriage before my own desires. As a mom, I hope to raise my son with positive self worth, discipline and love so he can be a successful and independent adult one day. As a friend, I want others to feel valued and know that they don’t have to do life alone. As a faithful follower of Jesus Christ, my goal is to act humbly and be light in a dark, difficult world. My purpose is to do my best to represent my faith well. From the outside looking in, I want people to know what there is something different about me, something that sets me apart from the way that most people act, talk, or express themselves in a positive way. I have a joy, kindness, peace and hope that only God can give, when I die, THAT is what I will be known for. Sharing that with others is my purpose.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

In 2020 I launched my photography business, Caitlin Ebbing Photography. In the rural part of Southern Arizona, we are surrounded by beautiful, high-desert landscape and gorgeous mountain views. I get to work with a variety of clients and document basically all seasons of life: families, expecting parents, newborns, seniors, engagements, weddings, celebratory events, school portraits, and even more. I am a creative and absolutely love putting together beautiful backdrop sets and creating art through portraits. Helping clients get comfortable and have fun during a session is one of my favorite parts of my job. Not everyone goes into a session with confidence, so being able to show them how beautiful they are is so rewarding. Putting families at ease with wild little ones or stubborn teens is all part of creating a positive experience for my clients, and I love getting to turn those moments into captured memories that they have forever.

In addition to photography, I recently started my certification process to become a childbirth educator with CAPPA. After my own experience with infertility, recurrent pregnancy loss, and then having our son, I have developed a passion for helping women thrive in their fertility journey and have a positive birth experience. Some women have a lot of fear surrounding birth, especially an unmedicated or natural birth. What I have found is that a lot of fear comes from misinformation or lack of understanding their birth choices. My goal as a childbirth educator is to inform women about their body’s natural ability to birth, educate them on all their birth choices (what they are and why they matter), and empower them with personal autonomy so they can be confident in their decisions and have a positive birth experience regardless of the outcome. While I am still completing my certification, I have launched my new business, Bloom Birth Education, which will consist of both in-person and online classes, guides, and other resources for parents.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Looking back, the three most impactful things in my photography journey have been to: master the craft, know my worth, and value people.

As a newbie photographer, I had a natural eye for the art, but still made a lot of mistakes in composition, light, posing, marketing, business management, and client experience. Educating myself and learning from my failures has really helped me hone my skills and create work I am proud of. With any craft, education and hands on practice plays a major role and mastering the art. When I was just getting started as a hobby photographer and was considering making it a side hustle, I took advantage of all the free resources I could to learn the basics of using manual mode, creating good composition, how to pose clients, working in different lighting scenarios, editing, as well as the business side of marketing, identifying and attracting my ideal client, setting myself up for success when it comes to pricing and budget, business and time management, and just basic customer service. I practiced photography on affordable beginner equipment until I was confident and once I decided to pull the trigger and start a business, I invested in professional equipment, client management software, and more. As a professional I constantly assess myself, whether it is my client-experience or the work product, and see what I did well and what could be improved. I will never perfect the art because there will always be new things to learn, but I can try to come close and give it my best. My clients deserve it, and I will always do better when I improve on my weaknesses.

Understanding my worth as a photographer, business owner and overall just as a human, makes the biggest impact on how I handle failure, burnout, competition, and so much more. I can bounce back from my mistakes because I know they don’t define me, they are just an opportunity to grow. I embrace community over competition because supporting other entrepreneurs in their journey is so much more life-giving than letting it intimidate me or tear me down. If a potential client books with someone else, I choose not to let it get into my head. Maybe they weren’t my ideal client, maybe we wouldn’t have been a good fit, maybe they had the best possible experience with someone else, and that’s what should matter. I can happily let leads go, knowing that there are so many other talented artists and it leaves my schedule open for booking with my ideal clients. Knowing my worth helps me price myself in a way that feels marketable, ethical, and allows me to contribute to my household income while still maintaining boundaries so I have a sense of work-life balance. When imposter-syndrome hits or I compare myself to others, I know that there is so much more to everyone’s story that isn’t seen in public. What works for one person, might not work for me, and that’s okay. At the end of the day, my job isn’t my identity and I know I am valuable as I am without being “successful” in everyone else’ eyes.

Finally, shifting my focus off of being the most “successful” and instead just valuing people has shaped how I interact with other local photographers and potential clients. I am intentional to never bad-mouth other creatives in the industry, regardless of our differences or the negative things I might see or hear. Everyone choosrd to run their business a little differently, and that’s okay. We all make mistakes, including myself. Judging other photographers based on their mistakes is not a fair assessment of their skill or passion and doesn’t value them as a human being. If I were to find myself in the middle of a disagreement or misunderstanding, I would hope that we could all act like adults and handle things with clear and positive communication instead of immature passive aggression online. Not only is that the right thing to do, but creating enemies in the industry is never what I want to be remembered for. I happily refer clients out that aren’t a good fit or maybe I can’t be available for, hoping that maybe that other photographer will do the same for me in the future. I know I appreciate support from other creatives, so that is want I want to give as well. The same is true for potential and past clients. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen photographers go online and complain about their clients to other photographers, and it honestly is heart breaking. We can’t assume everyone knows proper photography etiquette or perhaps someone has a lot going on in their personal life that makes them less than enjoyable to interact with. If I burn a bridge with a client, I know that will end up hurting my overall reputation even if I think I am in the right. Instead I choose to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and treat them with the same respect I hope be treated with.

If you knew you only had a decade of life left, how would you spend that decade?

I know all too well that life is short and we are never guaranteed tomorrow. Time is our most valuable resource, and I hope to spend it well. At the end of the day, I want to invest my time in something that has the most return on investment: people. People are the ones who remember us, tell our stories, and hopefully we had some small impact on. If I knew my time was limited, I would prioritize those most important to me, make memories that can be looked back on fondly, and create a legacy I can be proud of. If I had a decade left on this earth, I would try to spend every moment being present and engaged. Focus on the positive things more than the negative. I would still take on work as a way to provide for my family and be extra intentional to leave each client with a positive memory and experience. I would try to help as many women as possible feel confident in their pregnancy journey and equip them with the tools to be empowered to make decisions and have a positive birth experience. I would tell my loved ones of my affection and take all the videos and pictures I could to be remembered by. I would remind them of God’s love for them and the hope and grace only He provides, should they choose to trust and surrender their lives to Him. Jesus is the source of life for me and I want everyone else to get the chance to feel the peace and joy that I have experienced through a relationship with Him. So even though my body might pass away, the life that awaits for me in eternity will be even better and I hope to see you there.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.caitlinebbingphotography.com
• Instagram: @caitlinebbingphoto
• Facebook: Caitlin Ebbing Photography

Image Credits

Caitlin Ebbing Photography and Rachel Tripp from LMK Photography