Today we’d like to introduce you to Jess Summers.
Hi Jess, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’ve always known I wanted to be an entrepreneur, even if I didn’t know what that was when I was younger. When I was little I had a lemonade stand. In school, I was always the first one out trying to sell whatever it was for school fund raisers. In my teens I had an Etsy shop and through my early adult years, I tried several different forms of business including more Etsy shops and cake decorating.
Eventually, I landed on photography. It’s funny when I think about it because the one thing that was always super important to me in anything I had done before was how the images looked. I even took my own senior photos when I was in high school with a tripod and a 10 second timer.
My Photography career started with me doing wedding portraits. I think a lot of people start out there. I worked really hard for several years doing this. However after so many weddings and spending entire days on my feet I could tell I just wasn’t happy and to be super honest, really bored. Around this time, I started dabbling in photoshop. I’d look up tutorials and do them every day. I became so interested with the idea of composites and creating worlds and things that didn’t exist in the real world.
I started asking my bridal clients if I could create fun photos of them doing unusual things at their weddings. Maybe it was turning them into a zombie, running from dinosaurs… really whatever came to mind. Some brides were totally into it but a lot were not (and I get it) but eventually it pushed me to a point where I had to decided what was best for me. The simple answer there was to completely quit doing weddings and quit doing them ASAP!
It wasn’t an easy transition. It was quite hard to be honest. I had a lot of people telling me it was silly and that it wasn’t something that would work. That I wouldn’t make money doing what I wanted to do but I just went with it. Creating the business of my dreams. There have been multiple years now of me building my business and figuring it all out but I’m so happy I made the big jump to something that fully fills me up with happiness. Everyday I get to create something new and different play in photoshop and work with some amazing people.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Definitely not a smooth road. Lot’s of bumpy patches and road blocks ha! However, I get a weird thrill out of trying to figure problems out.
I’ve gone through tons of things like making sure everything I was doing was legal (not an easy job), trademarking my name after realizing it was quite popular, and figuring out processes and systems for my day to day activities.
A big notable struggle for me though was the fact that I’m not a traditional photographer and what I offer isn’t something someone usually googles or thinks that they can have. How do you get people to notice you when what you do is so niche. That is an ongoing one but always fun to sit down and strategize through.
Another one was valuing my work and time. I had a really hard time adding a price tag to what it was that I did. When I added a price to it and it went over a certain number I’d shutter with fear that no one would want it even when I knew I spent a serious amount of time on it. It took literally years and a whole lot of money work for me to be ok with charging an amount of money I could actually live on. My friends even tell me what I charge now should be higher but at least I’m on a good path now.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in Photography but I don’t do what you usually think of when you think about a photographer. I’m a composite photographer.
Meaning, I take photos of tons of things and put them all together into one image to create a really cool portrait. I spend a healthy amount of time with Photoshop as well.
A lot of my images are designed to tell you a fun little story with tons of details in them. I’m best known for images that have tons of deep punchy color and that are done in whimsical settings. Most of my work involves stepping out of the every day normal and letting our imaginations do the talking. Like what if a pumpkin was actually a car or what would it be like if I explored a new planet no one has ever been on with my family.
I think what sets me apart from others is that I’m not afraid to step into a world of full nonsense and tomfoolery. I actually thrive there. I love creating and dreaming up weird and unusual ideas then see them come to life during an edit. It’s not something you’ll get really anywhere else and I think that it’s not only what sets me apart from others but it’s also what I’m very proud of.
How do you think about happiness?
Oh, so many things make me happy! I’m an eternal optimist really.
I guess what truly makes me happy is experiences. Something weird and out of the box that gets my adrenaline going. Indoor skydiving, zorbing, snowboarding, zip-lining, I just love a good activity. I love it even more when I can share it with friends and people I love being around. Seeing everyone smile and having a good time really fills my happiness bucket.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@sayyestojess.com
- Website: https://www.sayyestojess.com/
- Instagram: Sayyestojess
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SayYesToJ3ss
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8O-uxFJdZ0680MBG89kt3w
Image Credits
Say Yes To Jess
