Meet Joey Winn Hansen

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Joey Winn Hansen. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Joey Winn, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

Before I became a professional photographer, I went to school to become a registered nurse. I received my Bachelor and Masters of Science in Nursing. I have been a registered nurse now for 17 years. Most of my time has been spent working in critical care units. As you can imagine, I often worked with families that were dealing with losing their loved ones. I’ve held the hands and comforted the families of many beautiful souls that have passed.

Frequently, I walked into patient rooms and the walls would be covered in photographs. Family members would bring in old photographs and albums of their loved ones because they wanted to share their story and reflect on their lives. Occasionally, I would hear from a family the regret of not taking more photographs. This is when I found my purpose. I wanted to be able to share my love of storytelling and capturing the most important moments in life. I wanted families to be able to have tangible memories of their loved ones even after they were gone.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I have been a certified professional photographer for the past 6 years. I specialize in newborn, children, family, maternity, and branding photography. My brand focuses on the connection and love between families and preserving the magic of their story. I love watching families grow not only in their family size, but also in their love for one another. I love bringing images alive in fine art print and albums that will help preserve a family’s legacy.

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?

The most impactful part of my journey into photography actually began in my nursing career. I learned a great deal of knowledge about customer experience and service from my patients. During times when patients are not at their best, families often feel overwhelmed and look to nurses for answers. This can make for high stress levels. Providing excellent care to be able to navigate the situation can have the ability to make the experience positive or negative. I bring that same level of customer experience into my workflow, process, and delivery in my business.

Having a great amount of grit has also impacted how I grew my business. During difficult times, there were more times than I can count that I could have just thrown in the towel and gone back to nursing, but I imagined what may come and the dreams I had worked so hard to achieve. Grit is how I continued to learn photography and grow my business while I continued to work full time as a nurse.

Lastly, having a great amount of patience is a quality that I bring from my nursing career. I photograph newborns and children and to be honest, they are unpredictable. I can plan out a session on paper and what photographs I want to capture, but ultimately it comes down to the newborns and children to drive the session. Navigating a child who is happy, shy, hungry, or tired just comes with the territory and you have to learn to be patient and pivot when necessary.

My advice to individuals who are early in their journey would to be open minded about who you are and what you can accomplish. It’s great to know your strengths and weaknesses and if you don’t know what they are, practice putting yourself in situations that take you out of your comfort zone. For example, I attend networking socials without knowing a single soul and it has made me grow in so many aspects. It also made me realize what I needed to focus on to improve.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I would love to collaborate with women clothing and children-based brands. I currently have a child’s modeling team and work with a children’s bamboo clothing company. I try to creative a positive experience for the kids and their parents by using play, having fun, and creating a no pressure environment. I also work with local women’s boutiques with the goal to elevate their brand. Potential collaborators can reach me by visiting my website at www.joeywinn.com

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Joey Winn Hansen

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