Today we’d like to introduce you to Madeline Barr.
Hi Madeline, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My love for photography started young, when I became obsessed with a pink 110 film camera I was given for a trip to Disney World. In high school I bought an old Minolta film camera and spent my senior year of high school getting an old, forgotten dark room back up and running.
Inevitably I wound up in art school studying photography. As the “friend with a nice camera”, I ended up shooting a couple weddings in my early college years. I had no experience and was fully in over my head. I made a lot of creative and personal work in college, eventually finding myself creatively burnt out. I gave up on it for a while to work with animals as a dog walker and vet tech for 5 years.
A visit to visit my best friend in Seattle in 2014 sparked something that made we want to pick up a camera again. I also started to see that the nature of wedding photography was evolving into something a lot more artistic and creative than I had previously seen. From there, I shot anything and everything and started building my brand! While weddings were my focus for a while, I’ve been doing a lot of work outside the wedding world in recent years. I’m so grateful for ever opportunity to work with other artists and creatives!
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?
Imposter syndrome has always been a part of my journey as an artist. In college, someone once told me that if I didn’t see art like them, then I wasn’t REALLY an artist. This stuck in my head for along time and definitely held me back at so many points. I felt like such a failure anytime I worked for another photographer because my own brand was the goal. At one point I realized that I never actually thought I’d make enough money to do photography full time, yet that was exactly what I was doing. Working with others has only taught me how to be a better photographer, business owner and artist and I’m so grateful for the folks who helped me get where I am now!
Additionally, quitting your job and running your own business is always going to be way more work that you think. Art school didn’t have business classes and there is a lot of business brain you have to activate!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a photographer who shoots both film & digital! Film was my first love and inspires my digital work.
I’d like to think I’m known for making people comfortable in front of the camera! As someone who hates having her photo taken, I know how painful it can be. My number one goal during a shoot is to put everyone at ease and get photos that feel honest to who they are.
I’m the most proud of how beautiful I make people feel. A client recently told me “Honestly, we didn’t know we could have photos of us like this.” and I love being able to do that for people.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I’ve always been a goof and a performer. I love making people laugh, which is super helpful for photos 🙂
Pricing:
- Hourly Shoots start at $650
- Full Day Coverage starts at 5k
Contact Info:
- Website: www.madelinebarr.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/madelinebarrphoto
- Facebook: facebook.com/madelinebarrphoto
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madeline-barr-7a71419a/
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/madelinebarrphoto/
