I cannot believe this day has come… Today is my LAST DAY at my 9-5 job. I. Corrin, will be a full time wedding photographer after 3 PM today!

On a day to day basis, if you ask me what I do for a living, I will tell you that I am a wedding photographer, but in reality, I work a 9-5 job, I coach field hockey for a local high school, and I run my own business. For two plus years, I have been hustling behind the scenes working on my dream job, and now, I making my dream job a reality!

Let’s take it back a few years, back to when it all started. Very few of you know that I have been working multiple jobs for 2 plus years now, so you’re probably wondering what I have been doing this whole time. Well, here goes nothing…

My love for photography started in college, but my passion for wedding photography didn’t begin until after I graduated. Let me break up my life story into years after May 2014…

• 2014
  • June 2014, I photographed my very first wedding
  • July 2014 I started my first “big girl” job as an admissions counselor for Radford University! Photography was nothing I wanted to pursue full time, but I knew it was something I loved doing.
  • Overall, in 2014, I photographed 2 weddings. Yep, you read that right, just two.
• 2015
  • July 2015, I made a huge decision to move to Northern Virginia to no longer do long distance with MJ.
  • August 2015, I began my full time job as a Transcript Secretary for a local high school. This was the worst job I have ever worked and because of this job it was one of the worst years of my life. I was treated very poorly by the people I worked with and I cried a lot that year. Lots of self reflection happened!
  • BUT, in September of 2015, MJ proposed, so that was awesome.
  • Overall, in 2015, I photographed 6 weddings. I achieved my goal of doubling what I did the year before. (I hear you chuckling while you read that because it doesn’t seem like a big number, but for me that was a huge goal and I did it! Small wins, guys. Small wins.)
• 2016
  • July 2016, I changed jobs again because the position I was in made me the unhappiest I had ever been and was not worth the time or the effort. I became a TRT Assistant for a local elementary school and I became a field hockey coach for a local high school! (Yep, I now had three jobs. If you count planning a wedding, I had 4 jobs.)
  • In 2016, I became a second shooter for my friend and incredible wedding photographer, Audrey! It completely changed my business, and this truly made me realize that going full time could be an option for me.
  • Overall, in 2016, I photographed 22 weddings. Yep. I did it guys. I photographed 22 weddings. I worked my butt off and I achieved a goal I never thought I would accomplish!
• 2017
  • Three jobs, an upcoming wedding, and I was overwhelmed. SO OVERWHELMED.
  • After my wedding and summer break, my TRT assistant job started back up and so did field hockey and busy photography season… I knew something had to change…

Now, back to present time… I knew that I needed and wanted to create memories with my now husband. I needed to start taking care of me! Am I excited? OH YEAH! Am I nervous, scared, and kind of sick to my stomach? OH YEAH! I’m also so proud of myself for going out of my comfort zone to do what I believe is right… I am enough to do this!

This is one of the scariest things I have ever done. It’s so easy saying, “Yeah, I’m a wedding photographer”, but owning your own business and having that as your only source of income is scary and hard.

Here I am though! I’m going to struggle and regret and say every negative thought to myself, but I’m also going to love the opprotunity to love my business and give it the time it deserves! I’m going to allow myself to have a life after 5 PM. I’m going to be able to do chores, make dinner (every now and then), and give time to myself and my family!

I cannot wait!

Thank YOU. Thank YOU for believing in me and supporting me. I wouldn’t be here without YOU!

 

xoxo