We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Niah Kalpak a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Niah, so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Gosh, this is one of the biggest issues that isn’t talked about much or enough in the creative world. When you first start taking photos, you bring Pinterest photos screenshotted on your phone to sessions, and later on, you learn to take a picture OF your phone on your camera so you don’t look like you don’t know what you’re doing, or you look at reels and screenshots of prompts other photographers use, all to help you. While you do this, you slowly start to feel like nothing you do is your own. Nothing you create is because of your own creativity- it’s someone else’s. You start to question your worth in your craft; discouragement settles in the pit of your stomach and the dread hits you on the way to your photoshoot or wedding. You start to compare yourself to people that have multiple sessions a week when you struggle to get one. When you see people having Pinterest worthy weddings in fun places, and you barely get inquiries. When you see how much others charge and you feel stuck at your price range because you don’t have enough bookings with that pricing. When you see others buying the new equipment, and you can’t afford it. All of these things make you feel like you’re not good enough to be in the creative world. I think it is safe to say that every creative gets to this point someday at their career, and getting over it is hard.
Comparison is the thief of all joy, and comparison is the root of imposter syndrome. I started to hit this rut right when I started booking my own weddings as a lead shooter- which should be an exciting time! Which it was- but I started seeing people my age booking way higher caliber weddings than me, and more of them, and I got discouraged. I started nit-picking myself and finding a routine in my posing and my locations, and it made me feel uncreative. It might sound cliche, but what pulled me out of this was the words of encouragement from my friends and family. I am fortunate enough that have friends and family that are so supportive of my work and what I create. Hearing words of encouragement from clients that say that they will always want to use you for future milestone moments passed the engagement session. Hearing that SOMEBODY other than myself liked my work helped me realize that I am better than I thought. Having clients believe in me and my work is something that I took for granted. I got to a place where I started believing that it’s a talent to know how to set a camera, take a good picture, and know how to edit. Finding the joy and progress in your work NOW makes you appreciate yourself and what you can do even more.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am a photographer that focuses on weddings, engagement sessions, college and high school senior sessions, and lifestyle photography! I find my job super special because people choose ME to capture these coveted times and moments in their lives- I’ll never get over it. I take pride in my keen eye for detail and my passion for capturing authentic, emotional moments. My style is a mix of documentary and fine art photography, which results in stunning, timeless images that capture the essence of the moment.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The first skill that I feel like I have that has been impactful on my journey is good people skills. I am super good at reading people and reading when they are uncomfortable or having a good time. I always prioritize clients feelings and needs over my own during sessions and weddings, and it comes in handy being able to read a room- or person. It’s not often, but sometimes I get going with fun poses that I think are cute that require a little (okay maybe a lot) of PDA, and sometimes you get those couples that just aren’t into that! And we have to adjust, which brings me to my second quality I think it important.
Being able to prioritize clients needs over my own creative “wants” is key to creating a successful client- creative experience. Like I mentioned before, we see those iconic wedding photos that we strive to take one day, and we try to implement poses, prompts, and locations into our sessions to reach our goals, but sometimes clients don’t want it. They’re okay with the field and one outfit or the simple, posed, printed for grandma’s fridge photos. We must be able to readjust our mind set and get what THEY want, and figure out how to get those creative shots in a different way.
The last quality I feel like I have is not taking things personally. Now… this has taken A LOT of personal work. As a recovering people pleaser, I used to get super upset when people would inquire with me and not end up booking. I would beat myself up and think that I didn’t say the right things or I just wasn’t good enough. Or I’ve had people tell me that they are “looking for a different style” and that would make me upset. I have come to terms that not everyone will like my photography enough to validate spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on. I’m not going to have the style everyone will want for their wedding, and that’s okay! Taking these comments as just comments and not attacking criticism is super important to have. I’m not saying you won’t get your feelings hurt a little, but not allowing it to set you back from doing your best or feeling like you need to change your whole style is key to sticking to what YOU like.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
It is super easy to get overwhelmed as a freelancer. You have no steady income, so any chance you get of making money, you’re probably going to take it- especially at the beginning. It is super easy for “no” to be a rare word in your vocabulary. Which, maybe this is a controversial answer, but saying “no” doesn’t always fix being overwhelmed. Working for yourself has lots of perks, but you also have to be super disciplined with your time management to get it all done. We work on weekends, we work during the week, you have no real “hours” so you can work straight through the night if you want to. No one is there when somethings due or if it’s overdue, there’s not much that can happen besides the client just getting a little annoyed or maybe a bad review (which still means something, but you know). Whenever you find yourself with such little time with your turnaround times, change them! Make them a little longer. It’s okay to give photos back a little longer than a week or two. Upping your turnaround times just means you’re getting more busy and more people are appreciating your work! Take this as a good sign, but know what seasons and months are going to be more busy, and adjust with that and I think it will help a lot.
Getting overwhelmed with workload is super common, and I get overwhelmed a lot with everything I have going on, but what grounds me is prioritizing me time, and time with my friends. There are times where I’m getting really close to a deadline coming up, but my friends want me to hang out with them, and honestly, I usually just go hang out with my friends. This doesn’t mean that I don’t care about my deadlines or turn around times, but I know that hanging out with my friends makes me forget about the stress for a little bit. Yeah, of course the next day it all kind of comes back until everything’s checked off the list, but I always know it will get done. There are times that I elect to stay home so I can work, maybe after a couple too many “Sure I’ll go” responses in the group chat, but I never regret it. I encourage you to set work hours for yourself for times that you won’t work past so you have time to be out in the world instead of staring at your screen. Another tip is keeping your clients updated with what’s going on. If you gave them a 2 week turnaround time, and you know you aren’t going to make it for whatever reason, tell them! They will always respect your honesty and updates over you not telling them what’s going on because you’re embarrassed. I respect the hustle of anyone that shows passion for what they do, but remember that your friends and family miss you- don’t let them say that too much; this is something that I have been having to work on myself.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.niahgraycephotofilm.mypixieset.com
- Instagram: @niahgrayce.photofilm
- Facebook: Niah Grayce Photo+Film
Image Credits
Niah Grayce Photo+Film
