Today we’d like to introduce you to Tayler Areas.
Hi Tayler, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I can definitely say with the most confidence that I am exactly where I’m supposed to be. My journey into photography started in February 2020. I had been in the makeup world for ten years before ever picking up a camera and shooting weddings. I worked for an amazing cosmetics company and fell in love with the art world and I mean everything art fashion, makeup, trends, textures, lighting. I had a new look and obsession on the world doing makeup. Then the world shifted (literally). My career with makeup came to an end as I found myself wanting to create a business of my own. Starting in April 2020, I created a balloon business where I did the most beautiful balloon installations for all types of events. I knew starting a business by myself was going to be a learning curve so with the help of social media, I was aligned and found a group for small business’ a collective group ran by an amazing woman bringing together small business around our area to learn from each other and help each other through the trail and tribulations of running a business.
Through joining this group, I was extremely blessed and was given an opportunity to work for an amazing wedding planner/stylist by the name of Little Brownn Suitcase. She had taken me under her wing and taught me so many things about the ins and outs of styling and planning traditional and micro weddings. While also teaching me the way to run a business through a seamless workflow. I worked with LBS for almost two years and it was February 2020 where I had been really interested with photography being surrounded by many vendors in the wedding industry. I had such a fascination with the wedding photographers I would get to work with. I bought my first Camera that February and with the help of my co-worker, I was able to second shoot weddings to get my feet wet. Boy, when I tell you the first wedding I was documenting, I was obsessed, I mean totally feeling in my element. I always remember the first time I picked up a makeup brush and that feeling of passion when I discovered makeup was a form of artistry I knew I was going to be a part of. It was the exact feeling I had when I snapped that first wedding shot. I knew at that moment Photography was my passion and that I would do anything to make it my career. I had taken everything I had learned from doing makeup, creating balloon installations, running logistics for weddings and put all that into creating Tayler Irene photography where I now am a full-time Wedding, Elopement and Portrait Photographer.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I wouldn’t say it’s been a smooth road but just a little bumpy. Before going full time into my photography, I went through a lot of different career options knowing I was meant to work as an entrepreneur. But going from being a professional makeup artist to a balloon installation artist to running logistic for a wedding planner/stylist, there definitely has been hard days. The biggest struggle through this life process has been trusting myself and having patience because if three years ago you would’ve told me id be running a full-time photography business, I would’ve laughed. So I would say yes, the struggle is trusting that all the experiences I was going through were going to take me to my dream.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a wedding, elopement and portrait photographer. I specialize in elopement and destinations weddings. I create in a modern and timeless outlook on love. Documenting love stories is what I do best because honestly, I am a huge lover of love. When creating Tayler Irene Photography, I promised I would run my business in the most authentic way by being me and just me. I love that I have created a business where my couples feel like family because they become so comfortable with sharing their most intimate moments of love with me and they know that I never take that for granted and they know that they can trust my process when it comes to creating. When creating and documenting the most important days for my couples, what makes my process unique is the way I look at my canvas because of my background in the makeup & fashion world, I look at every image with shadows and highlights I am never scared to creating in bright light or dark shadows. I love the capture of the details because every detail creates the full picture and every item should be captured in its own beauty. My experiences through the last three years have given me a huge picture inside the wedding world from being a wedding makeup artist to running logistics for a wedding planner/stylist to being a balloon vendor for events all those experiences have come along with me to creating the most beautiful timeless images.
How do you define success?
Such a huge question and I’m not sure if I have an exact answer for this question. I will say that success is up to you, there’s no one who I know that ever feels truly successful because as an entrepreneur, our success road never stops. There will always be new opportunities and new goals. But I think I will feel successful when I can start giving back to people when I can start taking all my experiences and help others achieve their dreams or even just help along their journey.
Contact Info:
- Email: taylerareas@gmail.com
- Instagram: @taylerirenephotography
- Facebook: taylerirenephotography
- Other: https://pin.it/5UZa2nj
