Today we’d like to introduce you to Febian Shah.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I am a Boston based Wedding and Fashion Photographer. I was always fascinated with photography but could never afford to buy a camera. After securing my first job in America – seven years ago, I spoiled myself and bought a $200 second hand camera off of Craigslist. I immersed myself in the world of photography and got obsessed with it. I read every book/website I came across and started putting it in practice. Social media added fuel to the fire by supporting what I did.
I have been featured on BBC Travel, was on the front page of Boston Globe won the Boston Metro Photography challenge and various other awards which further helped me grow the brand.
While photography remains my second job, for my main job, I have co-founded and run a small financial startup that prices fixed income securities.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Having never worked under another photographer and lacking a professional degree, I still have a lot to learn about the business. Which means I often make faux pas on the business side – leaving money on the table or sticking to a style/genre of photography.
I refuse to stick to a style of photography to avoid stagnation. I am always pushing myself to explore different aspects of photography be it capturing newborn babies, documenting beautiful destination weddings or doing a high fashion editorial shoot. I believe you pick up transferrable skills at each of these jobs.
It can sometimes get difficult managing two full time jobs. But I managed to find myself the world’s most understanding wife who supports all my craziness. I could not have done this without her.
Febian Shah Photography – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
As far as the financial startup goes, we started as a small company trying to disrupt the biggest giants on Wall Street. We are currently in our fourth year and still going strong. Technologically, we have achieved something that was simply not possible to do 5 years ago. With big data and cloud services, we are giving the big players a run for their money. I lead the tech team at our company and am very proud of what we have accomplished in so little time.
For photography, I am most proud of connecting with the people. I often work with people who have never been in front of the camera and I find it extremely important to get them comfortable. Even when working with professional models, if you can build a rapport, you almost always get good images out of it. This is what I feel sets my business apart, I push to get genuine emotions out of clients and will never settle for fake, posed pictures.
Who else deserves credit – have you had mentors, supporters, cheerleaders, advocates, clients or teammates that have played a big role in your success or the success of the business? If so – who are they and what role did they plan / how did they help.
My wife. I would not be where I am without her. Period. She is my rock.
When I started the financial firm, I went for months and months on end without having a free evening. Not once has she complained about it. She is currently 9 months pregnant with our first child, and as luck will have it, work has been extremely stressful. I have barely managed to give her anytime, I am constantly feeling guilty about it and she is constantly assuring me that she supports me. I am not sure what I did to deserve her, but I couldn’t have asked for a better partner in life.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.febianshah.com
- Phone: 434.933.2426
- Email: contact@febianshah.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/febianshahphotography/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/febianshahphotography/
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