Meet Sara Walsh | Lead Photographer | Owner of Soulshine Photography

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sara Walsh and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
Being a good technical photograher is very important, but that doesn’t translate when working with people. Being a “people person” is SUPER important when working with families, young children, and weddings. There is a psychological component to making it work so that you capture the most honest photos. This is even more important when it comes to weddings because tension, anxiety, excitement, etc. all become part of the equation. Your job is to capture it all, not just the first kiss! You HAVE to gain the trust of those you photograph, so that takes people skills. You’re going to be dealing with personalities from across the spectrum, so you need to know how to roll with the punches. That, coupled with good technical skills, is a good recipe for a successful photography business.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started out, like many photographers, just doing “favors” for friends. Then one day someone asked me why I did this for free and it made me realize that I was talented. I eventually started taking formal classes which introduced me to other wedding photographers who offered me the opportunity to work alongside them, for free, but I was allowed to use the photos I took to build my portfolio. From there it was more about building my confidence to fly on my own, which happened after a year and a half of working for free.

When I started charging for my services, I was still working full-time which was hard. I was working non-stop, a while being a mother too. It was exhausting. Then, after being laid off from a job I loved, I decided that this was the Universe’s way of telling me that it was time to do photography full time, so I took a leap of faith from the Universal nudge and jumped into it. It was VERY scary!

It’s never been totally steady and I do worry during the downtimes, but knowing that it’s typically feast or famine, I have become accustomed to that stress. Every job comes with its own set of stressors and I will take these over working for someone else ANYDAY!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We would start by having breakfast at Lucille’s in Boulder, then drive up to Nederland, grab some coffee at The Train Cars Coffee shop and then drive the Peak to Peak Hwy. Once in Estes Park, we’d have lunch at the Estes Park Brewery before heading into RMNP. We’d drive up to Bear Lake and then hike up to Emerald Lake! Then we’d come back to the hotel and soak in he jacuzzi.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
The Denver Betties! This is a group of local Colorado women, all professional photographers, who help each other succeed with their own personal business. Our main source of communication is a FB group, but they always organizing events to help us all improve our skills, borrow/sell equipment, get advice about locations/permits, swap services, critique one another’s work, and even share gig leads. The Betties believe in empowering one another, rather than competing with one another.

Website: https://www.soulshine-photography.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soulshinephotographycolorado/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/soulshine.photography

Other: https://www.pinterest.com/SoulshineSara/_created/

Image Credits
You can just list them as Soulshine Photography clients.