Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Ronquille.
Hi Lauren, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started out with an interest in photography when I was five. I remember carrying around a little digital camera and taking pictures of the most random things. When I got into middle school, I joined the yearbook and newspaper staff. From there my passion for photography really took off and I found myself behind my camera all the time. I was always the girl that wanted to be behind the camera taking pictures of what was happening instead of being involved in whatever activity was going on. When I got into high school, I continued to do yearbook and absolutely fell in love. From that second, I was always behind a camera, always trying to be in the yearbook room, wanting to do anything and everything I could to be around a camera. I knew I wanted to do something with photography for the rest of my life so when it came for time to choose a college I struggled. I really debated what I was going to do. I knew I absolutely wanted a college degree. I grew up in a single-parent household where my mom worked her butt off to provide for me and my two siblings and she was a huge motivator for me. I saw how she worked so hard and obtained different certifications to provide for us so I knew that college would open doors for me that I felt like would otherwise be missed. When I started applying to schools, I looked at different programs between art schools and different universities. I applied to and got accepted to several schools and was faced with the decision of where to go and what to do. Finances were a big part of my decision to come to Dallas. I got accepted to the University of North Texas at Dallas and not only was it affordable but it seemed like a good distance from where I lived and it was a small school which had a huge appeal to me since I was moving by myself.
After coming to The University of North Texas at Dallas I realized how much I love Dallas. I started out as a business major but after JagFest, an event where all the programs in the school showcased what they were about, I found the program I belonged in – Communication and Technology. After transferring into the program, I never looked back. I struggled to make it work not only financially but mentally as well. I moved to Dallas with no friends, no family, and no support system to go to school and it was terrifying. I worked 3-4 jobs at a time while I got my degree and often wondered if it was going to all be worth it – if it was going to pay off one day. Once I graduated in December of 2018, I started working in the Marketing field. I loved it but I quickly realized that the thing I loved the most about Marketing was being behind a camera.
With the support of my fiancé, I made the decision to jump to full-time photography. It was terrifying to jump. I didn’t know if it would work out. I didn’t know if I could pay my bills doing just photography but I knew that that was what I wanted. I’m so relieved to say now that I have been doing photography full-time for more than a year.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Absolutely not. Not only was the jump to full-time photography scary but it was hard to find my footing at first. It was really difficult to build my brand the way that I wanted and I really struggled with self-doubt. Deep down I think I knew that I could do it and I would be successful but the anxiety of what if affected me more than I’d like to admit. There have been several late-night panic attacks, several motivational talks from my fiancé and my mentor, as well as several days filled with doubt and the idea of not being enough.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a photographer. I specialize in weddings but I also do boudoir, portraits, families, and really anything I can to be behind my camera. I’m very prideful of my work. I pour my heart and soul into every single shoot I do. I honestly believe that I’m doing what I was meant to do. Not only do I have a formal education in digital production but I have more than 10 years of real-world experience in photography. I believe in giving the absolute best experience to my clients as well. I view each and every one of my clients as a friend and I strive to give them the best work but I also keep them laughing the entire time and I make sure that everyone is having a good time and they’re comfortable. I think that’s something that really sets photographers apart is having the people skills to keep everyone in front of the camera comfortable whether it’s their first shoot or their hundredth shoot.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I believe you have to take risks in life to truly challenge yourself and live to your full potential. It’s easy to sit behind your fear and sit in a comfortable position but it takes true courage to jump into the unknown and allow yourself to be uncomfortable. In the past, I think I would have stuck with a corporate position because it was safe but I did this leadership training in college that changed how I viewed the idea of being safe versus being happy. It was called Heart of a Leader and in it something was unlocked in me. I was still scared but I knew that I needed to be vulnerable and 100% myself and I knew that I would have to jump into the deep end. It was so humbling and so empowering to go through that training. Moving to Dallas by myself was a risk I took, jumping into full-time photography was a huge risk I took. I know I’ll take more risks in the future – I just don’t know what those risks are yet.
Pricing:
- Pricing starts at $1200 for weddings
- 10 hours of coverage
- One Photographer
- Unlimited Professionally Edited Photos
- 24-48 hour Sneak Peak and 1 week turnaround time for entire gallery
Contact Info:
- Website: Laurensphotoshoots.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurens_photo_shoots/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurenphotoshoots
