Today we’d like to introduce you to Celestina Luna.
Hi Celestina, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
I have been dabbling in photography for about 6 years. The last 2 years I have really stepped up my game and poured my all into my craft.
As a kid, I thought I was talentless. Looking back now I see I was a child who indeed had a talent and passion but lacked the means and understanding of having a passion in an environment that only promotes survival. I have always loved taking pictures since I was a kid. I used to walk to the local corner store and purchase a disposable camera and take pictures of my family and friends. Funny thing is I don’t recall remembering this as an art or passion, it was just fun at the time! When I was a teen my dad surprised me with a camcorder for Christmas, which I took with me everywhere and ended up capturing some of the most treasured pieces of digital media my family has. You see, my older brother passed away from cancer when he was only 23 years old- At that time people weren’t taking photos like they do now, so we only have a hand full of photographs to hold onto, plus a couple of home videos. After losing him, and gaining my son some years later, the passion of photography clicked inside me.! I knew I had capture my son’s every moment! Although I didn’t realize my passion had talent until a friend saw a photo I took of my son on my desk and was impressed and suggested I do this professionally, “Hmm… professional photography? Do I dare?”, was my exact thought.
Finally, I purchased my first DLSR in 2015. At last! I couldn’t believe it, my own actual professional camera! It took years of photographing my children, family, friends, not to mention, friends of friends for FREE to fully learn my camera and the different aspects of photography which I am still learning with every session I take on.
Currently, I am working towards my goal of being a full-time professional photographer. As an introvert, I would have thought landscape or product photography would be my go-to niche but I can’t deny myself, I fell in love with love, and photographing families, people, and emotion has forced me to step out of my comfort zone and into a world in which sometimes, I fail to even recognize myself!
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?
The road, of course, is and was not a smooth one. For a while at the beginning, I felt like I couldn’t book a paying session to save my life. I did free session after free session to grow my skills as a photographer. I eventually decided to take a little bit of time off in attempt to have a more in-depth understanding of my gear as well as moving from posing to prompting my clients and figuring out my editing style. Once I felt confident in the knowledge I gained, I did several more free sessions, made more mistakes, therefore made more adjustments. All the time and effort put into growing my skills and education started to pay off as my client base started expanding! I am still not done growing and learning the industry and what it takes to market yourself. Occasionally I still have to maneuver through obstacles, but with every obstacle comes an opportunity to grow as a person and as an up-and-coming artist.
My main struggle is that I am severely introverted. Being around crowds and strangers usually has me running for the hills, but having learned how to step out of my comfort zone and to genuinely love interacting with my clients was essential to being successful as an introverted entrepreneur. Sometimes, I can end up getting in my way own way when trying to take my business to the next level, but this is something I work on day and night and pride myself on how far I’ve come as an introvert.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a natural light, lifestyle photographer based in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. I specialize in family photography as well as couple’s and solo portraits. I strive to establish relationships with my clients and make sure their session is stress-free and fun! Being my client’s personal hype woman is top priority for me, this is how we create gold! The communication is fantastic between my clients and I. When we finally meet in person on the day of the shoot, it feels like we already know one another- relationships with your clientele is so important!
I am most proud of how far I have come from my very first photoshoot, where I had absolutely no idea what I was doing to now, where I have all the confidence in the world when it comes to putting together a photoshoot that achieves a beautiful gallery with the help of my clients. Stepping out of my comfort zone to hype my clients up in order to produce genuine emotion is also something I am very proud of myself for.
How do you define success?
Success- it’s the ultimate goal. Success to me means we have achieved what we set out to. For me, success would look like being a full-time photographer with my own studio and eventually mentoring beginner photographers.
Contact Info:
- Email: celestinalunaphotography@gmail.com
- Website: https://celestinalunaphotography.myportfolio.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celestinalunaphotography/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/celestinalunaphotography/
Image Credits:
Celestina Luna Photography
