Gabby de Janasz Interviews Sandra Coan: Odd Jobs, Standing out and Staying Consistent in Your Photography Career
This episode was such a treat. My good friend and old studio manager Gabby de Janasz took my place and interviewed me! Gabby used to assist my sister-in-law with her photography business, and that's how we met. She worked with me for 5 years, and you may recognize her from being in my book!
HIGHLIGHTS
I had a lot of jobs before becoming a photographer.
I studied history and philosophy in college. My college job was being a tour guide in Europe. After college, I got a job as a barista. I really loved traveling and thought I may work in the travel industry.
Another job I had was being a passenger on a cruise ship and reporting what I liked and didn't like about the cruise. I also was a teacher, which is a job that may not surprise you. As you can see, I worked a lot of different jobs before landing on photography and photography education.
I picked up a lot of skills from these jobs that I apply to what I do now. Of course, I still teach and love teaching business and marketing and artificial lighting. On the tours, I loved to make people feel seen and safe, and that's something I took into my photography business. I enjoy making people feel comfortable and themselves.
Photography was something I always did and loved. We actually had a dark room in my house growing up! I loved watching my dad develop pictures and started using a camera in the third grade. It was a passion of mine but something I never considered as a job.
My first class was The Missing Link.
I started selling The Missing Link because when I went to learn studio learning, there was nothing like what I wanted to create. All the existing content involved large studios, lots of equipment, and half-naked women, and that wasn't how I wanted to learn.
I didn't like the look of typical studio lighting and shot film, so I had to figure it out on my own. It took a lot of experimenting and creating my own method, and then it blew my mind. I thought everyone needs to know artificial lighting.
I began selling the course, and then my education career took off.
How do you find what makes you stand out?
This is a tough question. I believe that being in business is like being in therapy. The person you are when you start your business is not the same person you'll be in the end. You need to be very self-aware and notice what you enjoy and lean into that. That is what makes you unique!
Figuring out what you do is a journey. It takes time and guidance and sometimes talking it through, but the only one who can figure that out is you.
Consistency is everything.
Your portfolio should show your clients what to expect from you. You need to be able to consistently produce images that reflect your style. Consistency is important in your style and portfolio and also in your marketing—you need to post consistently in order to see results.
Consistency doesn't mean you need to post once a day. You can also post once a week or once a month—choose a frequency that you can stick with!
You can follow Gabby on Instagram here. If you like episodes like this, send me a DM and let me know!
