We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rachel Mostofizadeh a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Rachel , we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
I think a lot of my confidence comes from the awesome support I get from my family, parents, sisters and brother, friends, and of course, my clients! Also, I think what they say about, “fake it till you make it” definitely has some veracity to it.
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 own and operate a photography business in the East Valley called Rachel Elizabeth Photography. I have a degree in Studio Art from the University of Arizona and I have been taking photo classes and lots and lots of photos since high school. I am originally from Northern New Hampshire but have called the desert southwest home off and on since 1998. I learned photography on film and still have several film cameras that I whip out for personal work now and then.
I started my family photography business 13 years ago in Nevada after working as a wedding photographer for a large photography company on The Strip and starting the photo and video department at an aviation company. My husband is a pilot and his job brought us to the valley in the spring of 2018. Before we made the decision to move, I did my research and could see with a simple Google search that the market was over-saturated and under-priced. I was pretty worried that my business might not survive the move. I had a few backup plans including going back to school to be a recreational or art therapist, or perhaps even an art teacher. Once we got here and settled I made my business Arizona-legal and did what I could to get the word out. I stayed super busy with my kids’ school and volunteering while I slowly built my business up again. I would travel back to Nevada several times a year and took the less busy moments to indulge in more photography and art classes. I am still lucky enough to travel to Nevada at least once a year, where I get to take photos of people that I have working with for 13 years!
Let me backtrack a little and say that I have a child with special needs. My daughter has a genetic disorder that presents a bit like autism. When my daughter was really little one of her friend’s moms told me that she never gets family photos done because she doesn’t want to handle the stress that would likely come with embarking on that endeavor with her own special needs child. She was worried about melt-downs and strong-will and all the things that can sometimes earn special needs families a sideways glance. That broke my heart and I started offering a discount to families with children, or members, with needs that are special, or that might need a little extra time, patience, and understanding. I wanted to attract those families and let them know that I am a safe space for them and that they deserve to have beautiful family photos!
It was sometime in 2020 that I randomly typed, “special needs photographer” into a search bar to see what would come up. I sifted through a lot of stuff there and eventually found an organization that was then called Special Kids Photography of America. It is now called Hearts&Lens. I immediately started the accreditation process with them. Once I completed that, I followed the City of Mesa’s lead and got my Autism Certification from IBCCES. I have been very proud to call Mesa home, as it is the first autism-certified city and such a phenomenal place to raise a kiddo who functions a little differently than others. I wanted to be a part of that welcoming and nurturing environment. My certification and accreditation is more of an invitation than anything. I tell folks all the time that if they have a photographer in their life who knows their family, and whose work they like, they should hire them. I understand that for a lot of people on the spectrum, new people are a stressor. Because of this, I often meet with families before their session so that I can be less of a “new person” but I do not have a miracle solution for winning everyone over. What I do have is understanding, patience, and a genuine love for the special needs community…as well as a few fun tricks and neat tools for helping the session go smoothly.
So now my business focuses on family photography and special needs family photography. But I still very much enjoy maternity, newborn, and senior photography. The cohesive theme of my work is big smiles, bright colors, and real life. A lot of my colleagues offer client closets (clothes that people can borrow for their sessions) and other styling options. While I do offer advice and input, I really stay away from too much guidance, as I want the photos to be a true depiction of the family and who they are at that point in time. The one thing I stress regarding “what to wear” is that comfort is key – for everyone. And that goes for the whole session. Sometimes I will leave a session thinking that the family – or at least one or two of them – probably think I am totally nuts. I am a talker and love sharing crazy stories with my clients. Somehow, I think my ease around people makes them relax and have fun and that is when the best photos happen. I love that most of my long-term clients have become friends and I really, really love watching my clients grow and change each year.
I take a pretty straightforward approach to everything in my life, including my work, and while that will probably never make me a millionaire, I can say without any doubt that I really and truly love what I do. I sometimes struggle with the technology that surrounds my work but I hope that I make up for it by trying my best and delivering amazing tangible memories to my people.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
In my life and in my business I have found that kindness, authenticity, and positivity have been super important. I really think that the world reacts to what I put out into it and having those three things on my side help keep me smiling.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
As a photographer, I think it is important to be pretty well-rounded. Where I have struggled with that is the business side of my business. I have had to force myself to be better with social media and accounting and sales. Those are not strengths for me, so I have had to focus on them a bit!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rachelelizphoto.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachelelizphoto/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rachelelizabethphoto/
Image Credits
Rachel Elizabeth Photography, LLC
