Today we’d like to introduce you to Summer Everill.
Hi Summer, 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 backstory with our readers?
While the path to become a photographer was not a direct one, it was one of the most organic and natural decisions and directions I’ve ever followed.
After graduating from UT Austin and getting my Graduate degree, I taught middle school math and then became a school Administrator for over ten years. Teaching for me was NOT the 8-3pm and then relax at home or during the summer type job. I put SO much energy, creativity, and work into it.
Fast forward over a decade, I am now a wife, stay at home mother of two and a successful photographer. After having very serious post partum eclampsia with significant health concerns and now lasting post partum anxiety, I desperately needed to find an outlet to be able to start to feel like myself again. While a career in education was intrinsically rewarding, for me there was no way I could continue in that field and be the best mom and a great administrator as it requires too much of my mental and emotional energy. All the while, I had been photo documenting our lives and found so much joy in not only taking the pictures but printing and creating storybooks about all the travels, vacations, birthdays, artwork, and all the special moments. My husband and a lifelong friend both really planted the seed in my head about turning this passion into a career. With their support and my father-in-law’s (an outstanding wildlife photographer) expertise and support, I thought I would roll the idea out slowly and see how I enjoyed it. Little did I know, with their support and the amazing group of women and moms that I have through FIT4MOM, my photography was in fact something everyone else was interested in also! I said Initially I would do photography for others as long as I still found joy and loving it as a passion, but once it became “work”, I would back off. I am happy to say, I am LOVING IT! Everything took off much quicker than I would have ever expected, and I am so grateful and thankful for it. I am shocked by how I am able to take a passion that is something that makes me feel like me and turn it into a career and feel incredibly lucky! It was a simple decision to name my company Moments By Summer as that is precisely what I love to capture- all the moments: beautiful, important, big, small and even silly and messy ones!
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?
I would describe my road to becoming a photographer as a whirlwind. When I made the decision to start Moments By Summer, I thought I would take my time and slowly ease into it and learn the business aspect. Clearly, I can not and would not ever complain, but the demand came so quickly for sessions of all types that went out the window, and it was trial by fire on the business side! One of the big challenges I have faced is having to learn on the fly how to use all of the business software independently and in my “spare time”; from creating and building my entire website, creating invoices, writing contracts, marketing, payment and financials in general, and then the output and delivery of the images to clients. That is NOT the piece of photography that I genuinely took into account of how much time it would require. The leg work and behind the scenes of all of those pieces has led to many, many late nights. In fact, I am still learning new things every day.
However, that leads to what I would say is one of the greatest challenges- work life balance. I was at a kid’s event recently and another photographer baby wearing her young child was there and very exhausted asked me, “How do you manage to be a full time mom and run a business successfully- it is so hard!” And that’s the truth- it IS hard, even with the amazing and supportive husband I have on my team because he works full time. There is a definite society pressure if you are a “stay at home mom” and that I put on myself which is a pressure to take your kids to all the things, be 100% engaged when you are all at home, and also maintain household duties. This leads to me completing the post processing part of my sessions to late nights. As trying to edit an image on my computer while making sure one toddler isn’t jumping off the kitchen counter and the other isn’t feeding the dog her breakfast just doesn’t work for me. It is a struggle that I am still working on how to balance, and it is hard. For moms that go into an office, I know it is very hard too as they have kids in daycare or nanny’s but clearly they want to spend time with their kids too; however, there is a strange limbo I am in since my work is not in an office(and I think just like the photographer mom above) where we feel pressure to do both, be engaged with our children all day but then fit in work somehow after. I am working to make sure I maintain that healthy balance for myself of work (and sleep!) and being a full time mom, but I am still excited and loving every minute of it! While my family is my priority, I know I feel my best and can be the best mother and wife when I have my own passions that I am also engaged in to maintain my own identity as not only a mother but now entrepreneur and photographer. I hope other women can take that little leap, to follow their passion and have that little piece of them be present that was before they were a mother, as it is so important to do something for yourself too!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a portrait photographer and specialize in all the moments that start from delicate newborn, to fun cake smash and milestone birthdays to graduation, anniversary, maternity, and family sessions. I think what I am known for and that sets me apart is that I am able to capture the natural and real moments for everyone. I attribute this to being in education previously and now being a mother. I am incredibly comfortable and not the least phased by the crying baby, the teeny tiny newborn, the rambunctious toddler, the shy or disinterested teen, or even the adults that are not keen on being in front of the camera. I meet the client where they are and my relaxed approach helps me connect and ease all my clients. I have also always had a creative flair, so my vision for creating original custom and aesthetically pleasing sets for my indoor sessions is also something that I hear positive feedback on frequently. I take photos both candid and prompted and posed to make sure to get those genuine smiles and laughs. I think it’s also important in my editing process that I only enhance and highlight the beauty of my images, so I choose not to add the popular social media filters or do body manipulations. It’s about capturing the moments as they are with a little touch of finesse!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.momentsbysummer.com
- Instagram: Www.instagram.com/momentsbysummer
- Facebook: Www.Facebook.com/momentsbysummer.com
Image Credits
MomentsbySummer
