March 30, 2017

Meet Jessi Becker of Jessi Marri Photography in Southwest

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessi Becker.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I began in photography when I was in high school in Las Vegas, NV. I was literally addicted to taking pictures of everything that surrounded me. I would shoot everyday and take my film to the school darkroom to develop and print. Starting in film photography gave me a great appreciation for the advanced technology that is available to us today. I quickly went from film to a DSLR and have been a digital photographer now for the last 10 years.

At the age of 18 I moved to Tampa, FL and met a new photographer that was just getting started in the area where I lived. I had never shot a wedding before and neither had she but she had just booked her first one. I volunteered to assist her on the wedding day and take some pictures. We both shot our first wedding together there on the beautiful beach in Clearwater. I quite literally fell in love with love that day. I have spent the last 10 and a half years pursuing this career where I get to document love and the story of love for couples on one of the most important days of their lives. I spent three years documenting weddings there in Tampa and son realized that I was ready to move to a larger city where there was much more opportunity.

In 2010 I made the move to Houston, TX. It’s so funny because growing up my friends always told me that I should have been born in Texas. I have always driven a truck and I LOVE country music. It’s amusing that ultimately I did end up in this great state. I went full time with my photography studio 2 years after moving to Houston. My theory of being more successful in a big city definitely paid off. Every single year that I have been in business here I have done better than the year before. In the beginning, I was a one man show. I did literally everything from the emails, marketing, advertising, blogging, social posting, and shooting to clients meetings, networking events, sales sessions, etc. I quickly realized that if I truly wanted my business to be great I would need to grow my team. I began utilizing interns and hired staff to accommodate for my company growth.

In the beginning, I offered photography only as an individual. Today, as a team, we are offering photography, videography AND photobooth as well as a full selection of professional products including wedding albums of all kinds, prints, metal prints, canvas and even custom frames of all sizes. My team has gone from one person to eight people working together to provide one of the best services in the wedding industry in Houston. Over the course of the seven years that I have been in Houston we have pulled in numerous awards and been recognized from various publications all over. Houston has been really good to me and I am so fortunate to get to do something every day that I am so in love with. I am surrounded by a team of amazingly talented individuals.

I have always been a believer that hard work and determination pay off. The entrepreneur walk is not an easy one. There are so many obstacles that you face and have to overcome on a daily basis. There is nothing in the world like living your dream though and if you’re persistent and refuse to quit you get to live your dream each and every single day.

Has it been a smooth road?
It has been a journey. There are a lot of things that you have to face as an artist entrepreneur that perhaps any other entrepreneur might not face. For example, you have to constantly validate to people WHY you are worth what you are charging. I mean, my job is really easy right? All I have to do is stand around all day and click a button, right? WRONG! My camera is so nice and advanced…. it must do all the work for me right? Like it requires no real ability or creativity to be a good photographer if you just have a really nice camera right? WRONG AGAIN!

People crack me up! There is so much more to running a successful photography studio than just standing around and clicking a button all day! Think of it this way. We have all the responsibility of being a business owner and ON TOP of all of that we have to be creative (which is not always easy believe it or not) and CREATE something that we see in our head out of what is literally in front of us. And on top of creating this image that we see in our mind we have to be a MASTER of our craft, KNOW the camera and all of it ability like the back of our hand, MANAGE all the people that are involved in the shoot, etc. Photography is no joke! Yes it an a VERY fun job and I love it more than anything BUT there is still a lot of work involved.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Jessi Marri Photography – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My company specializes in weddings. Even though we shoot a bunch of other things including corporate events, headshots, family, children, newborns, etc. the only thing that I actively market for is weddings. It just makes me so happy to be a part of such a momentous day for someone. I am literally capturing memories that will live on in this family for years and years to come. It is an enormous responsibility but such a joy!

I am most known for my extreme organization when it comes to the timeline of events in respect to photography of the wedding day. I have a link that I have my cents fill out on my website which includes tons of details, a complete timeline from start to finish, as well as the family formal shot list. This ensures that there is no photograph that is left out and not thought about. Using this method has enables us to be extremely quick and efficient on the day so that all of the other events of the day flow smoothly and on schedule.

I am also just a naturally calm person so all of brides really appreciate my soothing presence when I am working with them on the day. I have a knack for making them feel relaxed and comfortable so we are able to get great photos and they enjoy themselves. A lot of women have this idea in their head as to how this whole thing is going to go and it never fails I always get calls after the wedding day from the brides saying thank you and how much easier I made it for them than what they thought initially. Having done weddings for the last 10+ years has made me extremely efficient.

I am really proud in particular of one award that I won this past year which was Hall of Fame for Best of Weddings with the Knot. You have to win Best of Weddings 4 years in a row in order to make it into the Hall of Fame and I finally got it. These awards are based strictly on client reviews so to achieve amazing reviews and happy clients that take the time to write these words for you for 4 years in a row is a big task. When I learned what this award was several years ago it was always that one that I really wanted so bad! I wanted to prove to myself, to all my clients and to the world that I was a fantastic photographer and business owner.

One other award that I will mention that I think is pretty cool is being rated one of the top 25 wedding photographers in Houston for the last 2 years in a row with Expertise. We were also rated one of the top 20 wedding videography companies in Houston this past year as well with Expertise.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love Houston so much. I love that it is huge and expansive. I love that there is so much diversity here. I love that the opportunity is never ending and that in a city where there are over 2000 professional photographers we are ALL able to be successful and thrive here. I will never leave this city. I am declaring myself a TX girl!

I dislike the TRAFFIC! Haha!

Pricing notes:

My company is mid-high level company. We are attainable to everyone that truly values documenting these moments in an artistic way.
All pricing is the same regardless of the size of the wedding.

Contact Info: