Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Boedeker Elmore.
Jennifer, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
When I was a Sophomore in high school, I took a photography course. It was 1989, and I needed a “real camera,” but we didn’t have disposable income. My dad brought me to a pawn shop, and bought me a Pentax K1000. I had always known I was an artist, but when I got behind the camera, I found my favorite way to express myself creatively. I got a Canon SLR for graduation, and continued taking Photography courses.
During College, I got my first job as a Photographer working for a large Photography company in Austin, Texas. I loved working as a photographer, but I struggled with the pressure of shooting peoples “once in a lifetime” moments. I had anxiety about potentially missing the pivotal shot, or worse still, not doing a good job on an entire event. Luckily, I was never faced with that situation, but that didn’t ease the tension for me. I got to the point where I was eventually only doing freelance shoots for close friends, so that photography was enjoyable for me again.
When digital photography emerged, I resisted converting to digital, because I feared that the quality would suffer. In 2005, I was approached by an acquaintance to do a high pressure shoot that I didn’t want to do. By way of a polite No, I quoted her a price that would surely get declined. To my surprise, she immediately agreed! It had been several years since I had updated my gear, so I reluctantly borrowed a digital SLR from my Aunt who was also a photographer. The shoot went great, but better still, I discovered that the DSLR removed a great deal of my anxiety about whether or not I was capturing the images the I intended. I had the sudden realization that this was indeed what I was meant to be doing. I established jenXphotography within the next 6 months.
Has it been a smooth road?
It’s been a smooth road, in the sense that the business has grown organically without having to be forced. There have certainly been struggles, but I try to consider them challenges. That is actually one of the things that I like most about photography. It is constantly challenging me to continue to learn and evolve.
The one aspect of business that I do struggle with is making the time for administration details. I enjoy being challenged to be the best I can be creatively from one shoot to the next, but I didn’t anticipate the amount of “office” time that it would take to run a successful business. Trading the darkroom for a desk has been a shift in the labor that doesn’t usually stimulate the creative imagination.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with jenXphotography – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I specialize in shooting adventures, like destination weddings and corporate vacations. I call them jenXpeditions. I’m known for “making moments legendary;” Whether it be from horseback, or from piloting a drone, You can count on me to be working to catch the most extraordinary image possible in any given condition.
I’m the most proud of growing my business in a direction that gives me opportunities to celebrate loving life. When I established my company, my goals were about having a flexible schedule and bringing in a minimal income for my family. When I’m out capturing something spectacular, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for continually exceeding my original expectations of myself and ambitions for my company.
The thing that sets me apart from other travel photographers is creating relationships with my clients that make me part of the entourage. I become a part of an event in a way that makes it possible for me to tell the whole story from the inside.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
What I love the most about Dallas is my roots. My family, The Boedeker’s, started businesses in Dallas in the late 1800’s. In Dallas, I have a since of family and community that I would be incapable of recreating anywhere else in the world.
The thing I like least about our city is its topography! The cost of living, and the conveniences of urban life, afford opportunities for my family that would be unmatched elsewhere. That being said, the tollways just don’t feed the soul like other parts of our planet. While I enjoy a good urban adventure, it can’t compete with the splendor of oceans and mountains.
Contact Info:
- Website: jenXphotography.com jenXpeditions.com
- Phone: 214-457-3308
- Email: jenXphotography@yahoo.com
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/jen_X_photography
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/jenXphotographer
- Twitter: @jenXphotography
Image Credit:
jenXphotography
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