Today we’d like to introduce you to Monica.
Hi Monica, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My foundation has always been motherhood.
I’m a mother myself, and so much of the way I see photography has been shaped by my own experience of raising my son and realizing just how quickly life moves. Motherhood has taught me that some of the moments that feel ordinary while we’re living them eventually become the ones we would give anything to go back and see again. The little hands, changing faces, missing teeth, the way your child fits into your arms at a certain age, those things don’t stay the same for very long.
That realization became a huge part of why I photograph the way I do.
I didn’t want to create photographs that only showed what a family looked like. I wanted people to be able to look at an image years later and remember what that season of their life felt like.
Over time, that became the foundation of Lavi & Co. Photography and the work I’m known for today. My focus has grown into motherhood, families, children, and the progression of families over time. I’ve always been drawn to imagery that feels natural, emotional, and honest rather than overly posed or perfect. I want children to be children. I want mothers to actually exist in the photographs instead of always being the person behind the camera. I want families to recognize themselves.
My own motherhood journey has influenced that more than anything. Raising my son while building a business has required me to grow, pivot, and redefine success many times. There have been seasons where I could pour heavily into photography and seasons where motherhood and life needed more of me. Instead of seeing those seasons as interruptions to my career, I’ve learned to see them as part of the reason my work has the depth it does today.
As my son has gotten older, I’ve also become even more aware of progression. You don’t always notice your child changing when you see them every day, but photographs make those tiny transitions visible. That has shifted my business toward not just photographing a single milestone, but documenting families consistently through different seasons of their lives.
Today, I’m much more intentional about the work I take on and the experience I want to create. I’m less interested in chasing what photography is “supposed” to look like and more interested in creating something that feels meaningful to the people in front of my camera.
At the heart of everything I do is still the same idea that started it all: life changes quickly, especially when you’re raising children. Photographs give us a way to hold onto a little piece of it.
And I think becoming a mother is ultimately what taught me just how valuable that is.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road, and I think one of the biggest things I’ve had to learn is that building a creative business and building a sustainable creative business are two very different things.
Photography is something I deeply love, but it is also a business. There have been seasons where I’ve had to navigate inconsistent income, rising costs, changing client needs, and the pressure that comes with working in an industry where it can sometimes feel like you always have to be creating, booking, posting, and growing. It took time for me to understand that being busy doesn’t necessarily mean you’re building something healthy or sustainable.
Motherhood has added another layer to that. I’ve built much of my business while raising my son, and there have been plenty of moments where I’ve had to choose where my energy needed to go. Sometimes the business had to adjust around motherhood, not the other way around. That hasn’t always been easy, but it has helped me become much more intentional about the kind of business and life I actually want.
I’ve also had to learn not to measure my success against what other photographers are doing. The creative industry moves quickly. There is always a new trend, a new way you’re supposed to market yourself, or someone who appears to be doing more. At some point, I realized I didn’t want to build a business that looked successful from the outside but left me exhausted behind the scenes.
There have been pivots, slow seasons, financial lessons, moments of doubt, and plenty of figuring things out as I went. But those experiences have also given me clarity. I’ve learned to create stronger boundaries, value my time differently, become more selective about the work I take on, and build my business around the life I actually have rather than constantly trying to keep up with someone else’s version of success.
I think the struggles have ultimately made both my work and my business more honest. I’m still growing and figuring things out, but these days I’m much less interested in doing everything. I’m interested in doing meaningful work, serving families well, being present for my own family, and building something I can continue to love for a long time.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a completely self-taught photographer. I’ve never taken a photography class or followed a traditional path into the industry. Everything I know has come from years of photographing, experimenting, studying light, making mistakes, and allowing my style to evolve naturally.
My foundation is motherhood and family photography, and natural light is a huge part of how I see my work. I’ve always looked at light as almost dreamlike. Real family life isn’t always soft or peaceful, it can be loud, messy, exhausting and moving incredibly fast, but there are these little moments within it that feel almost magical. I want my photographs to feel like that.
Natural light changes everything for me. The way it falls across a room, wraps around a child, or catches a mother holding her baby can turn a completely ordinary moment into something you want to remember forever.
More than anything, I value growing with my clients. I’ve been able to photograph families through different stages and watch their children grow in front of my camera. That matters to me because eventually the photographs become more than individual sessions, together, they become a visual history of a family.
That’s what I’m most proud of. I’m not trying to photograph a perfect version of family life. I want to preserve the way it felt, maybe even a little dreamier than it felt while you were in the middle of living it.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
So many people deserve credit. My family has been a huge part of this journey, along with a small circle of photographer friends who have become some of my biggest cheerleaders. Having people in the same industry who understand the highs, the slow seasons, the creative blocks, and everything that comes with running your own business has been invaluable.
There have also been people who have literally come with me to sessions just to watch my son so I could work. Those are the things people don’t always see behind a small business. Sometimes support looks like encouragement, and sometimes it looks like someone sitting nearby with your child while you photograph another family.
My son deserves a lot of credit too. He has grown up alongside this business in so many ways. He’s been patient through sessions, editing, location scouting, and all the moving pieces that come with having a photographer for a mom. In many ways, watching him grow has also shaped the way I photograph other families and why preserving these seasons means so much to me.
I’m also incredibly grateful for the studio managers and spaces that have welcomed me and my clients over the years. They help create the environments where I’m able to bring my vision to life.
And, of course, my clients. The families who trusted me in the beginning, came back as I grew, referred their friends, and continued allowing me to document their lives are the reason I’ve been able to keep doing this. Photography may have my name attached to it, but there has always been a community of people behind it.
Contact Info:
- Website: lavicophotography.mypixiesetcom
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lavicophotography/
