Matt’s last interview from SYNC is with Carla Lynn and you need to listen to this one! Carla is bilingual and hearing impaired. She is from Bolivia and came to the US (Nashville, TN) at 18 years old with her new son. She worked 3 jobs and met her husband at one of them. You DO NOT want to miss Carla’s inspirational story. Carla photographs 140 seniors a year and is bummed the rules don’t allow her to go to prom with her street team (model program). Authenticity is what is working for Carla in her business. We should never stop learning, we don’t ever know everything. Carla’s husband is her tech guy, payroll department, etc – just like Matt is to Allison. Make sure you buy a leaf blower (you have to listen to find out why). Rachel Martin taught Carla at Texas School and that was the turning point in her business. Don’t miss what happened next in Carla’s story.

Online Resource:

Creative Live

Books:

Finish: Give Yourself the Gift of Done – Jon Acuff  (https://amzn.to/2XY1ai3)

The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World (https://amzn.to/2GRrVis)

Love Does – Bob Goff (https://amzn.to/2GTrdkQ)

Follow Carla

@carlalynn (instagram)

https://www.carlalynnphotography.com/

Read Full Transcript

Transcription was done by Temi.com which means it’s an AI generated transcript. The transcript may contain spelling, grammar and other errors, and is not a substitute for watching the video.

[00:01] This is Carla Lynn and you’re listening from nothing to pop it.

[00:05] Welcome to from nothing to profit of photographers podcast with Matt and Kaia. We’re each week they talk to photographers about what is working in their business now so you can swipe those ideas and grow your business faster.

[00:22] Hey everybody. So Matt Hogan here, um, one, I think this will be the final interview from sync. Um, I’m with my friend Carla Lynn and so I’ll go out with a bang, right? Go ahead and do this. I can go out with a bang. We got that. Okay. So I have to tell you this crazy story. So I met Carla two year, not, not last year, but the year before. And so I was hosting the Millers Lounge and you had come out to hang out with us and we had like free beer or something like that. And we’re talking about pricing and say yes, Joe was there. Yeah. Yes. And so, um, we were talking and you, and you said, you know, I, I, I want, I want to figure out how to sell my albums better when we’re talking about this. And I was like, and you were talking about how good, you know, just like what you were doing.

[01:06] And I was like, well, sounds like you’ve got all figured out. And then I said, how many albums do you sell? And you said, you said, I don’t know. I saw him to like 80% of my clients. And I was like, why aren’t you talking to me about cells of your selling your albums to 80% of the clients? You probably should be teaching everybody here. But anyways, um, I do remember that. And so as one of those things that I just think, yeah, obviously you guys do really well and your business and I think you’re more humble than then you probably should be. Cause I know you guys really kicked butt. So anyway, so I just, thanks for being on this interview. I, I’m so excited. I know. And, and Carlos says she’s never done a podcast like this. So I’m just going to Mike, I feel like I’m a big time person, but this guide, okay, I’m just going to throw curve balls that are left or right.

[01:43] It says that she thinks it’s just doesn’t know it’s coming anyways. Okay. I introduced you. I don’t, I know you from here, but tell us like, tell us about your studio, where you’re from, all that stuff too. Okay. So, um, I guess I will start with, I’m from Bolivia, South America and I have lived between both countries. My hose, I, I am bilingual. I speak Spanish and English. Should we do this whole thing in Spanish? I can’t speak that much. So you might try that and Spanish, if anybody understands what we’re saying. I don’t, I don’t know enough Spanish to keep up with you. Um, so I am bilingual. I lived in both countries. I am hearing impaired. I have lost more of my hearing, progressively started about 30%. Now I have less than 10% of that and both of my ear. And when, when did this, when did it start from birth.

[02:28] Okay. Nope. Damage from birth. Okay. So you may catch my slurred speech at times. Um, I do here right now. So when I hear myself and I do videos, I’m like, oh my God, do I really sound like this? But anyways, so it’s a good thing. I know here my stuff right now, I’m just like talking to you, you better. Um, but I do need it. Listen to this podcast once you play it back. But anyway, so, um, I was in Bali, I went to Bolivia to do high school and then, um, I actually got pregnant with my son when I just started my year of high school is, I’m 17 years old just starting and I went to a private school and they told me I would not be able to stay in graduate with my senior class. So I, um, finished my junior year, got my credits early and I came to the states with my baby, a suitcase and my mom came to help me and I was 18 years old.

[03:18] Where did you move to? When I moved to Nashville, Tennessee and that’s where I still am. Yup. I came, I was 18 years old when I moved here. My brother lived in Nashville. Um, I needed a male figure in my life to just kinda be there to help me get through it. And I was determined to come and give Sebastian a better opportunity. I wanted him to have a chance. I was like 24, now he’s 23. He’s 23 went now. And so, um, I had them on Christmas Day. Oh Wow. So I have to share that because it wasn’t where they wanted to put in seasons of my life. And um, the Lord gave me a blessing. He’s really blessed me and showed me that he was there with me in the midst of it all. Yeah. So I am 18 years old, no senior year, three jobs.

[04:01] Um, I worked doing data entry, I worked doing retail, and then my third job was at Chuckie cheese at nighttime. So once I put Sebastian to sleep, I could go clean the bathrooms and new restaurants. I could have tokens and free pizza to take him. So I had to share that story because it is how I met my husband. Um, and so he was my boss. Don’t ever date your boss. I dated my boss and John and so anyhow, I married him. We have been now married for 20 years. We’re celebrating 21 years of marriage and I have another son, so we have another son. My husband ended up adopting Sebastian at the age of three. Cool. So that was really a big thing for us. Does your husband speak Spanish? My child does not know Spanish. Your husband? No, my husband’s a green guy.

[04:53] He’s American white boy knows Spanish, but he doesn’t have his name in Spanish. That means the mad at him. So just know that one. Um, but now no Spanish. My kids don’t know Spanish either. We just stuck to English, which shame on me. I know publish shouldn’t have done that. But you know what, I’m not perfect. I own it. So it is what it is. So then how did you end up in the photography? So I um, I started, my kids were little, we’re going to Disney world. My mom, my husband’s like, you need to get a camera. So he gets me a digital, like one of the first kind of level STI or something. So that’s what I had. And we go to Disney world and I take a million pictures and he does that so that I can delete the ones we don’t like so that he’s not spending a fortune and all the film.

[05:38] Right. Which is what we were doing. And I didn’t even really realize that I had this talent. And so, um, I just like taking pictures with my kids on the trip. And then our son played little league, so we started, I would take pictures of him playing baseball and then just posted them in, showing them. And people would literally say, Hey, can you do my child in sports? Can you do my family photos? So I literally had the title of a mum with the Kimma. Yeah. So I’m taking you way back. Right, right, right. Cause now I know that’s not the case anymore. You’re like, no, no, it is not the case anymore. I was a mom at that came for a long time. I did it part time. I did it on this side and I kept the little league portion because it was a good gig that I got where I just photograph the kids when they’re planning to ball games and stuff.

[06:24] Yeah. But I ended up having to, I worked for the, so I’m taking you to about 11 years ago, 1112 years ago, and I worked full time and I’m actually managing and medical practice and so I have a great title, like 25 employees. I am, I work with my doctors and my nurse practitioners. I dress with a cute every day. I have authority title, everything that people would say, this woman has got it, she’s successful and I was broken. I was empty. I actually thought I didn’t want to stay married anymore. I thought I wanted to, I was going to allow my family to become broken and I had to walk away from that to find myself and I was already doing photography in this side, but it wasn’t a full time thing. Yeah. And so I can honest, right. And consider yourself a photographer at that point.

[07:16] Like yes, I did consider myself a photographer, but kind of like the shooting barn photographers because you’re not with charging $75 for all 150 fully we touch image cause you’re not felt like I had to do a lot to give them for the money. Cause you know, I thought they needed a lot of images to get something of value and worth. And so, um, so yeah, I consider myself a photographer in quotation marks, you know what I mean? Yeah. And so, um, I hit rock bottom. I walk away from that and I kid you not, the Lord uses this talent. He had given me all along that I didn’t know to restore me, restore my marriage, my family and say we’re going to do something different. And so I decided to then pursue photography full time. So we’re about 10, 11 years now, 10 years.

[08:07] And I’m like, okay, I can do this. And I had people telling me, no, you can’t, you can’t make a living at it. And it’s a hobby. And some like, oh, just watch me. So, um, and I had to try, I had to give it my all because at the end of the day I felt like I needed to be able to look at myself in the mirror and say I did everything I could and it didn’t work so well. Obviously it has worked out as it has. I have, I mean, I worked out of my home for a while. We did that for a couple of years, but then we quickly got tired of having cereal every single night because we had clients coming into our home and we couldn’t have it smelling like Taco night, you know, so though, a lot of limitations. So I decided to find a space brick and mortar space, retail space, and my husband was freaked out.

[08:54] He’s a numbers guy, analytical, everything needs to add up. Everything needs to make sense. While we’re doing that, I’m like, no, we have to just try this. So I had agreed with him, even if I didn’t earn a paycheck for three years, I had to try this. And so I, um, we gotta be to space. And immediately my husband realized she can do this. So I was there for three years, had shared space with two other photographers and then realize I liked being alone and like being in control of my own space. And so then, um, I went through this place where I asked my own self a lot of questions about who I was as a person. Yeah. What God wanted me and how I needed to manage the gifts that he had given me and then decided to take the leap and go by myself into my own space where I have been for the last three years.

[09:42] Awesome. So yeah. And you do mostly high school seniors? I do, I do. Just high school seniors pretty much. I do little league still on the side, but I do high school seniors. Um, for the last three years in a row I’ve done 140 seniors. So the non contract seniors you’re doing just fine for yourself? Yes. So I talk too much. I did talk to much. Right. Somebody telling me that dead. Okay. So the next question is just like, what’s working now in your business? So like when you think about your business, what’s working now? What’s working out at what’s working good? Um, I’ll tell you, one of the things for me has been just being authentic mouth entity, being real and sharing that to my street team. So my model program, my street team program that I have has been very, very successful for me in my area.

[10:30] It started really as a marketing thing, trying to reach out to the kids in this school is because in my area or the schools have a contract with their school photographers so I can’t go and drop off any brochures or any inflammation. So I had to decide how I could get my name out there. And so at first I would created my street team. Yeah. Um, because the, my clientele is not modeled light material so to speak, even though the definition of models, it’s really changing in the industry. Um, but you know, not like blonde and tall, blonde, tall size zero. Yeah. It’s not my client. My client is a girl that is quirky, that is on struggles with social anxiety, may even have depression. Um, my girl is the one that is walking down the hallway and nobodies glances at her. Yeah. My girl is the one that doesn’t have a prom date.

[11:19] So we’re trying to figure out how to let me be her palm date. But the school was not letting me get in that one because I’m not 20. Got To be under 21. Dang it. Anyways. Um, so that is my client. And so I have these group, but what started as marketing for me with these group of girls has really turned into so much deeper. So it’s building more relationships and teaching these girls or it is okay to be who they are and teaching them to be authentic and true and to know that they are in nap. So I can imagine that they don’t get looks in the hallway. Um, and dates and prom dates. I’ve heard they have pictures taken by you cause I’ve seen your work and it’s excellent. So they probably get a lot of, a lot more attention after people see their pictures because you’re right, they don’t realize how I see them.

[12:07] So I have to show them to and show them and teach them to see themselves different. Yeah. Yeah. I think so. They just do all the chattering for me, which is awesome. That’s really cool. Okay. So let’s just let, let, you’re not talking too much. Uh, so let’s talk about the industry. Okay. Um, and just general, like what are you fired up about in the industry or what, where do you see the industry going or talk about the industry? What do you, when you think of the industry, what do you think about? One of the things that I do love about our industry is I feel like we, especially having been here at sync and hearing the speakers that we’ve had here is really about the connections with the people. That it’s about how we make in them, how will make them feel. Sure. And to me that’s just so much more important than others.

[12:58] The lighting, yes. And all that kind of stuff up for like, it really boils down to what is the impact of that photo having on that person. What kind of impact are you having? So I think that to me is huge. And I worked really hard to come out of the digital world into artwork and products for the home. Cause at first you were just to turn the burner, always a shooting by $75. Carlin is $75 and 50 images retouched. We all want that deal. Now what’s funny is I have had a client, I have photographed all three of her children do that entire span. Her first child with at $75 shooting bone and the latch arts spend $4,000. Right? Isn’t that amazing? So talk about, so talk about your journey and turn into products and stuff like that. So, um, you know, when I first started I was shooting heroin.

[13:43] I didn’t know that there was a whole world out there to pricing. I didn’t know that Ashley, you had to charge more. I could charge for it. Then I just, I don’t know. I lived in my little bubble. I’ve, I just didn’t know there was more to it. But I started going to conferences, educating myself, asking people, learning. Um, I think that’s really important that people need to continue to do in the industry. I don’t know that we have enough of that. I think some people, some of us think we just know it all and we don’t need to keep learning. I don’t think anybody ever stops learning. Right. And when I wear at sync right now, and it’s so interesting because you see a lot of people like here that have been around forever and you realize that you’re sitting next to him, the class that they, they’re, they’re still learning.

[14:21] And so you hope that you continue to be like them or they’re in the industry for 25 years and they’re still learning. Absolutely. I don’t think we ever stopped funding. If we think we have thought, if we think we know it all, then we become way too overly confident about herself then someone who’s going to be better than us at some point. Cause we never stopped. And if you don’t stop learning and changing you, you would still be a Chucky cheese cheese. I know. And you wouldn’t be Carla check he at one point. That was pretty cool. I love being Chucky the kids would start crying and one off and it was the thing for me just to chase those children. Was that the horse nightmare anyway, doing that stuff, I probably still have nightmares about it. They’re like, they’re all like, they’re like your son’s age.

[15:02] They’re like in their twenties probably. They’re probably telling their friends right now. There’s this lady dressed up and chuck e cheese and if she would chase us, but change it from meek. I went from digital damages while my client, we’re not printing, which ironically that story I just told you, if that client had $75 TD once I did who had the two children and a high transition geopolitics, she hands me the CD and says, I need you to order prints from me now. I was like, oh my God, it’s such a me. It was like, oh my gosh, got to do this. Um, and even my own brother had taken a photograph that I had taken up his girls and Cancun and he went and printed it off at Walgreens. He had it setting in his home in eight by 10. And I want, I came over to his house and I look at it and it looks blue.

[15:46] It was green or blue, green, blue. And I look at that thing, you know, I mean if my own brother did it, all he had to do was ask me is they’ll go, hey, just automated by no, he went to Walgreens and get it. So he did it then why would I, why would anybody asked you it definitely. So then it was my image, my time. I work, my effort, my talent, my passion, it’s green and blue, like I can’t have this. So to me that was a turning point. And then, um, I literally just took a leap of faith and walked away from it thinking that they really wanted to digital buys, which they don’t, I think they want the digital files because they feel like they want to have something forever because these are important to them. I don’t think they want the digital file as a product, most of them, but you know, but think about it like when you purchase something, you, if you could have all the