Today we’d like to introduce you to Joy LeDuc.
Joy, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I grew up in Hawaii, where books connected me to other parts of the world from my little island in the Pacific. Naturally, I thought that I wanted to be a storyteller and went to school for writing. Then I began pairing my writing with photography and it felt like the circle was complete.
Originally, my photography consisted of still life portraits, but I really fell in love with it when I began pointing my camera at people. Friends began asking me to photograph their families, and I instantly recognized that family photography gives you the license to play with light and movement in ways that corporate photography usually doesn’t. I began meeting more local families and found that storytelling is truly a part of capturing a family during a specific, fleeting moment in their lives.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
People are always a little surprised that I use the word “romantic” to describe my style of family photography, but when they sit with my work for a while they begin to see what I mean. I usually hold my sessions during the last two hours of the day–what’s referred to as golden hour–and use only natural light.
I also encourage my families to interact and focus on each other during our time together, which brings out their true beauty. Mothers often come back to me and say, “You made me look so pretty!” The reality is that they’re glowing because they’re in love, both with their children and their spouses.
What would you recommend to an artist new to the city, or to art, in terms of meeting and connecting with other artists and creatives?
For a few years, I was seriously into the lifestyle blogging circuit–I even ran a small blogging conference in Portland, Oregon called The Hello Sessions. The greatest thing that I learned from those experiences is that there is enough for everyone. If you believe in building community rather than focusing on competition, you’ll not only have so much more success but you’ll also have so much more fun in your business!
It’s important to take the time to invest in relationships with other artists. Get offline and go to local meetup events. Go to other artists’ shows and strike up conversations. You know how sometimes you follow someone on Instagram and you just know you’d be friends? Shoot them a direct message and start a conversation, then get together for lunch or coffee.
As artists, I think it’s easy to believe that if we aren’t working on our businesses then our time isn’t being well spent. The reality is that you need these experiences and relationships in order to continue to feel truly fulfilled with your business.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
The best way to keep up with me is on Instagram (@joyleducphotos), where I post daily about my work, events that I’ll be at, and special offers that I’m running. Recently, I had a pop-up studio outside of my friend Michelle Barrett’s store Kind Goods in Maynard, where I took free portraits of kids and dogs. It was such a blast! I’m hoping to do more events like those this summer, and I’ll post about them on my Instagram account.
Meet Michelle Barrett of Kind Goods and Michelle Barrett Ceramics in Metro West
Contact Info:
- Website: www.joyleducphotography.com
- Email: joy@joyleducphotography.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joyleducphotos/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joyleducphotography/
Image Credit:
All photos are taken by me.
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager 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.
