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

Hi Larissa, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
Work life balance is incredibly important to me, not only do I balance my photography lifestyle with my personal life, I also work part time as an aesthetics nurse. I haven’t always had the easiest schedule to maintain. One year ago I was working night shift as a bedside nurse at a Denver hospital, photographing as many families, couples and weddings as I could, finishing my service with the Army Nurse Corps and fueling my social life only when it was convenient. I was starting to feel burnt out in every aspect of my life. Big changes had to be made. I finished my commitment to the Army in March and in the same week left my nursing job that I was so comfortable in to become an aesthetics nurse. While I was turning my world upside down I realized I couldn’t continue photography and nursing at the same rate, one was going to have to be placed on the back burner. After countless chats with my dog, husband and friends I knew I had to limit my nursing career to two days a week in order to conserve energy and passion for photography. I think we all need to give ourselves a little grace in terms of work life balance. Most people are accessible at all times via social media, texting or email. I’m making a conscious effort every single day to reserve time to spend with myself and my partner. I am doing my best to set boundaries and communicate transparently with my clients. I’m learning that I don’t always have to make myself available solely because notifications are instant.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My passion within photography is holiday family photos and intimate weddings. I live for the chaos of family photos. One of the children runs away almost instantly, another one has his finger deep in a nostril and the third is looking straight into the lens in every single frame but the texts I receive after delivering the album is my greatest pride. I aim for every parent to cry happy tears when they see their family captured in such an organic way. Intimate or micro weddings speak for themselves. The love in a small group is almost tangible. The stressors from traditional weddings don’t exist and it is all about the couple becoming a single unit. My brand is all about the in between moments with a few posed photos to frame on the fireplace mantle. Everything I learned about shooting and editing is free on youtube. I wouldn’t say it was easy but it also wasn’t an overnight process. I started at a snail’s pace, only doing photos for friends to see if it would take off. I followed local photographers and attended their content days in order to learn from their experience. I hire a different photographer each year for our family photos to learn from them and grow in the community. I know the term ‘community over competition’ is overused but I truly believe in it. I’m always here to help and I love to be challenged when photographing other artists and new landscapes. I want the world to know that I seek to capture you and your loved ones at this moment in time. Organically yourselves.

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?
Breakfast burritos at Tamale Kitchen and Santiagos to compare. A tattoo appointment with any of the ladies at Love You Tattoo in Boulder (owned by @CoriJamesTattoo.
Lunch and happy hour at Postino.
Dinner with @Donna_in_Dnvr anywhere she recommends.
Later night drinks at The Arvada Tavern and SchoolHouse.

Hopefully they come on the weekend of @Craft_Colorado ‘s event and we’ll spend an entire day meeting local artists.

If they’re out of state we have to climb Mt Bierstadt for the photos and have a summit beer from Upslope.
Paddle Boarding or ice skating at Evergreen Lake depending on the time of year.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have a close knit group of female entrepreneur friends who make anything seem possible. Cori, Nilaja, Jena, Donna, Vani and so many more.

Website: LarissaJohnsonPhoto.com

Instagram: LarissaJohnsonPhoto

Image Credits
All images by me.

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutColorado is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.