Meet Brooke Confer | Wedding + Elopement Photographer

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

Hi Brooke, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
My work life balance has changed a ton since I started my business 6 years ago. When I first started, I took any and every inquiry that came my way. It was what I needed to do at the time to get experience and get my name out there, but I learned over time that it wasn’t sustainable. I found myself getting burnt out every year and I couldn’t understand why, because this job is a dream! I’ve learned that I can’t give my best to my clients if I’m stretched too thin, so now I do my best to take on projects that I’m excited about, and try to work with clients that I click really well with. I also limit the number of shoots I take per week and overall just make sure I have enough rest and play time in my schedule! My creative brain simply doesn’t work if other parts of my life are too overwhelmed. Saying no is really hard for me, so it’s definitely something I’m still figuring out, but I can already see how my work and mindset are both changing because of this new balance.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
One thing that has always been true since I started photography is that I get excited about capturing love. The giddy excitement on a wedding day is something that will never get old to me. The energy in the air and the joy in each image are like fuel to my soul. Every wedding day is exciting, but one thing I’ve learned about myself is that I thrive in intimate wedding settings. An environment that is low pressure for the couple is so fun for me – when they feel more themselves, I feel I’m able to capture them more authentically. Intimate weddings are usually a little bit slower paced with only the closest friends and family around, and there are typically so many sweet moments in these days because the couple is able to spend more intentional time with each other and the people there. So I’ve recently started making the transition to shooting mostly intimate weddings and elopements, which I’m really excited about!

I’ve grown a lot in my art over the last 6 years. I’ve learned how to put my clients at ease in front of the camera so they feel like themselves. I’ve learned to slow down and lean into a moment instead of trying to direct it. I’ve learned to use light and editing to enhance the way a photo makes you feel. All of these are things that took time and practice – and I’m still learning! I think one of my biggest challenges has always been accepting that it takes time to reach goals – it takes time to learn how to direct couples in a way that will result in natural-feeling photos. It takes time to find your shooting and editing style (and this is something that is constantly evolving). It takes time to grow a following and reach outside your local circles. We live in an immediate gratification world, so learning to have patience in those areas has been big for me.

When I first started shooting, I put pressure on myself for every shoot to be epic or pinterest worthy and let me tell you, that was stressful. My goal now is to just tell the truth with my photos. I don’t want to force people to act a certain way around it each other, I want them to simply be. They may not always be the most “beautiful” photos I’ve ever taken, but what’s important to me now is that the clients look at their photos and think “yes, that’s us”, and that’s beautiful in it’s own way.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Ooo I can only pick one? So many people have helped me on this journey! My husband (fiancé at the time) bought me my first DSLR, and I truly don’t think I would be a photographer today if he hadn’t! I always thought it would just be a hobby for me and never would have bought a camera for myself, but he saw the joy photography brought me and gave me that little push I needed to give it a shot. He has been supportive of my career ever since that moment, even though it usually means that I take lots of trips without him and am busy shooting weddings for most of our weekends.

Website: https://brookeconfer.com/

Instagram: @brookeconferphoto

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brookeconferphoto