Today we’d like to introduce you to Estefani Mendoza.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Estefani. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I never dreamed of being a photographer nonetheless a freelance graphic designer. I wanted to be a nurse. To have an “actual” career with a safe pay and health benefits.
Fortunately, my plan crumbled before me. I get frustrated easily, mostly because I have a bad habit of being a perfectionist (which I’m working on). I love my church and being fully involved made me want to improve certain things like – Marketing. I was frustrated that my church was not being portrayed as well, as I would see others do. That’s when I grabbed a camera.
Jesus has a funny of way of working in our lives. Like I said, I didn’t want to be a lame photographer, I actually wanted to make a difference. Poor me though, if only I knew that the moment I picked up that camera, all that ridiculous thinking would shift.
It was late 2012 when that happened, Instagram was barely becoming a “thing” and church photography in our Hispanic culture was thought irrelevant. Good thing my pastor gave me the green light and I started to experiment with angles, lighting, composition… I started to self-teach until I achieved the techniques that robbed my attention. I would find myself initiating research on how to do a double exposure than figure out the procedures of a patient undergoing anesthesia.
From then on, it was just a matter of “failing forward” as people now call it. I made a horrible decision that led to major mistakes which resulted in my dream of attending UT Health got crushed. I didn’t know what I was going to do. That’s where it pays off to have rad friends.
“I don’t know why you’re going for nursing, you don’t look like you even fit in that field,” Galilea said. “You’re doing all this photography and graphic design work for churches and you’re getting paid for it, why don’t you just choose a major that relates to your creativity and at the same time you’re going to school you can make money to pay for UH?”
She couldn’t be any more accurate. I changed my major, risked the “safe pay and health benefits” and decided that I can help and impact people just as much as a nurse. Now, I might not help care for you the way a nurse does but I do have the privilege to deliver candid moments that you will care for.
Heart & Soul Studio Design wasn’t born from a desire to get “famous”. Obviously, as a businesswoman, you want your company to be known but for the quality of service provided, ensuring that I give you my heart and soul. I’ve struggled and it has not been easy, mostly everything you see is because Youtube was there to teach me in late hours of the night and because people decided to trust me.
There’s no way I’ll take that for granted, I’m thankful for each opportunity of growth because there’s no such cap to it – most importantly though, I’m grateful for the people in my life (you know who you are) that have supported me through it all. If there is one thing certain, no person is ever self-made.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
If you are ever going through a “smooth” road, it’s definitely not leading you anywhere. One of the biggest struggles have been being young and being a college student, it led people to believe that I was not “credible” or “experienced” enough.
Fortunately, it always served me as a motivation to prove those people wrong. It simply increased my hunger to learn more and do more even if that meant sacrificing time with my family and friends or not purchasing new clothes, or accessories that I wanted.
The first couple of months of launching Heart & Soul Studio design was financially tough because my parents were certainly not going to purchase all my tech gear (they were already helping with my school tuition), all the money I’d make I’d simply re-invest it in better gear.
Heart & Soul Studio Design – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Specifically, I do photography and graphic design. I’m no expert, but if there’s something that can set me apart from others is the grit of reminding myself that anything and everything is ‘figureoutable’. In other words, if I don’t know something, I’m figuring it out.
I’m proud of Heart & Soul Studio Design mostly because unintentionally it has evolved an organic and caring feel to it which wouldn’t be possible without my clients.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success has such a broad definition with multiple meanings to individuals, personally, though, I define my success with how my clients express themselves after their experience in working with us. That to me means everything.
Another way is when I get referred, I always say that I love compliments and I’m so grateful for them, but there’s no better form of flattery than when I get referred.
Pricing:
- Portraits: $130/hr
- Family Lifestyle: $200/hr
- Engagement or Maternity: $160
- Weddings: $1200/8hr (Package includes Engagement Session)
Contact Info:
- Website: www.heartandsoulsd.com
- Email: heartandsoulsd@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heartandsoul.sd/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heartandsoul.sd/?ref=bookmarks
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/emendoeza
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
