Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Tine.
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 expressing myself artistically from a young age but I borrowed my dad’s Nikon F3 when I was about 14 and became totally hooked. I started out taking artsy black and white photos of nearly everything and everyone that crossed my path, and soon I progressed to photographing local bands. When all of my gear and photographs burned up in a fire, though, I stopped shooting and as time passed without a camera in my hand, I became convinced that I had never been very good at photography, anyway.
About 8 years later, I started dating a photographer who thought, based on the composition of my cellphone shots, that I was probably photographically skilled and he let me borrow a camera and lens that he wasn’t using. He took me to an abandoned school to take some pictures and as soon as I saw my first photo in nearly a decade on the camera’s screen, I was hooked. I started taking lots of self portraits and eventually transitioned to taking photos of other people, first for artistic release and then for my income, as well. Last year, I also started using my photography to impact social justice issues, opening a series about emotional abuse to a crowd of nearly 500 people and I am really excited about all of social justice projects that I hope to create.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
As a self taught photographer, conquering self doubt took a lot of time and effort. As a pretty humble person, it was also really tough to figure out my “brand” so, I was really appreciative when my clients started telling me how fun and relaxed it was to shoot with me and I realized that happy and fun shoots are my brand! I am also terrible at marketing and had a difficult time getting my name out into the world but thankfully, with each 5 star review from my clients, my website started popping up in more and more internet searches and I started receiving lots of inquiries. Being a photographer is also really expensive, especially putting on gallery shows and the lack of a steady paycheck can be really scary. But, I am thrilled every day that I get to earn a living doing what I love!
Rachel Tine Photography – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
According to my clients, my genuine nature and my friendly and fun personality really set me apart from others. Nearly all of my clients begin our first shoot by telling me how much they dread having their photo taken and how much they hate the way they look in photos, but leave the session telling me how much fun they had and how much they like the way the photos turned out. I thoroughly enjoy meeting and interacting with my clients and bringing out their genuine personalities in beautiful photos.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
I think that, if you feel genuinely good about what you’re doing and most people respond really positively to it, then you’re successful.
Pricing:
- My portrait rate is $100 per retouched photo.
Contact Info:
- Address: 50 Terminal St. Building 2
Suite 719
Charlestown, MA 02129 - Website: http://www.racheltinephotography.com/
- Phone: 617-299-0062
- Email: racheltine@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abandoned_beauty/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RachelTinePhotography
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DecayedBeauty
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rachel-tine-photography-boston
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