Meet Ruthie Cordia

We were lucky to catch up with Ruthie Cordia recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ruthie, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

In the photographer industry one of the biggest obstacles is overcoming imposter syndrome. It’s a field where even when you find your niche there is bound to be someone with one almost identical to you, or better. Comparison is your greatest enemy no matter what your job is. Looking only at the outside will have you thinking that everyone else grass is greener. When all you can really do is do your best to get as good as you can at what you do. Imposter syndrome doesn’t have a time stamp, especially with photography. Ive seen some people start out and have it figured out. in a few months. Others can take years or even longer. Do not let this discourage you in any way. It is all part of the process.

How did I overcome it? The truth is some days the thoughts tend to creep up in the back of my mind. “Am I doing the right poses?” “Should I change my editing style?” “Why don’t I feel successful?” Our mind is our biggest enemy. There are small successes everyday. First photoshoot, success. First paid wedding, success. So many firsts that should all be celebrated. Even picking up your camera for the first time is a success. While the thoughts do occasionally come back, what helped me get through the period of imposter syndrome was focusing on myself. I got better and more confident when I stopped looking at every other photographer and instead worked and grew my own business.

It is important as a photographer to attempt to make friends/mentors in the industry. As well as liking/commenting/following other photographers. Now I know what you’re thinking, I just told you to focus on yourself and now I’m saying to go and look at other photographers work. Here’s the thing though. While you shouldn’t be focusing so much on other peoples work that you discredit your own, you should also try to be supportive of them. The photography industry is a community that most people inside support each other and lift each other up. While supporting someone else you will begin to feel better, it can take your mind off some of those other thoughts. Instead of comparing your work to theirs just take a look at what they have. Is there something that inspires you?

I used to dread seeing other photographers work pop up. Comparing it to my own and being unhappy with the slow progress. Whereas now I enjoy seeing others feeds, their work, their stories. I get inspired for ways to make my own more unique to me. When it comes to photographers I like to think of us as a bunch of pixels in an image. We take inspiration from one another while also lifting each other up when posting about our work. It takes practice to understand. It doesn’t happen overnight. Overcoming imposter syndrome isn’t just about one thing. It’s a combination of practicing to not compare your work, understanding that while the process can be slow at times you are still making progress, and supporting other photographers is a strength.

– Ruthie Cordia

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

Hello, my name is Ruthie. Im the face behind the lens at Open Lens Photography. I am a part time photographer hoping to one day be full time. I love what I do and getting to be able to capture one of a kind photos makes me happier than anything else. The goal is to continue to grow my business and teach others and bring more people into the photography world. Recently, I’ve been busy busy busy. Between weddings and a 20hr road trip to Grand Teton National Park to do a wedding session for my best friend and her new husband. I would do it all over again. The work, no spare time, little sleep. I cannot tell you guys how worth it, it is to just stick with what you’re doing because you will begin to see progress and growth.

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?

When it comes to photography three areas of knowledge that come to mind are knowing your gear, learning your editing style, and how to pose clients.

Gear: Its not about the camera it’s about the photographer behind it. You don’t need the most expensive gear, or even new gear. What you need is to understand how it works. As a photographer our greatest strength is shooting in manual mode. Where you adjust the settings to YOUR needs. It seems scary at first. How do you even navigate it? Every camera is different which means a lot of you will have a different experience than I did. One of the biggest things I will say is that it’s okay if you don’t have someone teaching you. I didn’t when I first began this business. I learned through videos from other photographers on YouTube and TikTok. All you need to do is look up “how to shoot (insert camera model) in manual mode.” It’s that simple. The rest of understanding comes from practice. Test it out at free sessions with friends/family. You’ll be surprised how easy it is once you’ve had practice with it.

Editing: Finding your editing style comes with time. Some photographers create their own presets, I am not one of them. I was not gifted that strong suit and some of you won’t have it either, and that’s okay. Two tips: Use Lightroom Classic. I know it seems intimidating at first but switch to it, run through tutorials, better yourself and your business. Do not fall for $4 preset packs online. If you need help finding better presets look through photographers pages. Loads of them have their own preset. Chances are if there is a photographer you like they might have their own preset that they sell. This is not always the case, you can also find presets that I’ve personally bought/used on my website in the blog section.

Posing: Posing is such a big thing that is not talked about enough. You can be amazing with your gear and editing but if you struggle with coming up with poses and what shots to take it could be holding your business back. Do the research, you won’t regret it. Even if you’re already great with posing it’s a nonstop learning process. There are little index card type booklets you can buy with posing ideas as well as online posting help books. If you do not want to spend money while trying to learn posing go to Pinterest and TikTok. TikTok is good for showing poses in real time. Photographers often post their behind the scenes that you can watch and on top of that majority of us post videos helping newer photographers with posing. Pinterest is good if you’re more of a “look at the picture and try it” type of person. It’s important that we try not to actually copy each other but when you’re new to the business it is completely okay to use inspiration. I still get inspired by other photographers on a daily basis. Just attempt to put your own spin on things even while learning from others.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I am always looking for partners/people to collaborate with!

What I am looking for?

Shadow Photographer at Weddings:
I would absolutely love to have a beginner second photographer shadow me at a wedding. This is a great thing to do especially if you’re wanting to get in some wedding experience without being the main photographer. It would not be paid and would be just for the experience. Brides will typically never turn down extra photos during their big day.

Second photographer for Weddings:
I am looking for a second photographer, typically for ceremony time. Sometimes would be an entire day. This option would be paid for their time!

Collabs!
I would love to collab with the following:
– Florists/Flower Shops
– Boutiques
– Wedding Venues
– Bakeries (Wedding Cakes)
– Other Photographers
– Event Companies

These collabs could be paid collabs or trade collabs. If you’re unsure what a trade collab is, basically we trade services. It would be like I take photos for a photographer and In return they do some branding photos for me. Another example would be me doing photos for a florist who did a wedding or event and then in return they would gift me a free bouquet. Trade collabs can work with all kinds of things so if you didn’t see your specialty on the list but want to reach out for a possible collab please don’t hesitate.

I can be contacted in multiple ways.
Website: https://openlensphotographyrc.mypixieset.com
Email: open.lens.photography.rc@gmail.com
Facebook: Open Lens Photography

Contact Info:

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