Networking Photo Shoot I By Joy Moon

Last month I did something a little out of the ordinary for myself. I reached out to a fellow photographer (whom I had never met or spoken to before) about meeting up and exchanging photos with one another. I could tell she was new to the business, like me, and also lived in my area. You see, I had heard about other photographers and business entrepreneurs exchanging photos and/or products with one another as a way to network and market each other’s materials. I had never had professional photos taken of myself and knew I needed a few for my website. So I took a chance and sent Joy a message, and boy am I glad I did!

She was so sweet! She was totally game to meet up with me right from the start. She also wanted to get to know fellow photographers and was interested in exchanging photos. (Lucky me!) We messaged back and forth and decided to meet the following weekend down in Half Moon Bay. Neither of us had done a session there before and it felt like a nice “in between” spot for both our locations.

Needless to say, Joy was an absolute…can I say it…JOY to be around! Hahaha, I had to. Forgive me. Or don’t. It’s fine.

Like I said, we never met before. But most photographers are used to this; meeting a new person for the first time and photographing them. Only this time I wasn’t just photographing her. She was also photographing me!

We met at Wavecrest Open Space, a gorgeous location that would be fabulous for families, engagements, you name it! Open fields, swept cypress, sandy cliffs that overlook a golden beach with the blue abyss of the Pacific just beyond. We walked and talked, discussed how we got into photography, our families, stories of photographing past friends and clients. Eventually we had to take our cameras out and start snapping photos. It was awkward at first (I’m terrible in front of a camera! Or at least that’s what I tell myself.) but became super fun super quickly. We played with light, took turns photographing one another in different locations, showed each other our captures on the tiny screens of our cameras. I had so much fun with her! (And I’m pretty sure she had a good time, too. 😉 ) It has been so long since I’ve had the opportunity to be creative with another photographer. Probably since 2016 when I was in Southeast Asia with my filmmaker friends. (That’s a story for another day. But if you’re curious about it, you can check out our Youtube page here. Please keep in mind that it is old and not updated.)

So I want to give a huge shoutout and THANK YOU to Joy Moon for meeting up, sharing stories, and being creative with me. It’s literally one of my favorite things to do! That’s why I’m always snapping photos of my boyfriend when we’re adventuring on the weekends.

If you’re a creative in California’s Bay Area and would like to meet up and collaborate on something (even if you’re not a photographer!), please send me a message. I love getting creative and supporting other small business owners, especially if you’re newer to the biz. I think building relationships is one of the most important foundations to starting and maintaining a successful small business. It’s something I am actively trying to improve in my own business.

Please enjoy these photos I took of Joy and check out her website here! You’ll see the images she took of me splattered around my own site as well.

We were just warming up here. As you can tell, it was a bit blustery (and cold)!

She’s such a natural in front of the camera. Model worth fo sho!

We could not get enough of this light!!!! I’ll admit a lot of my photos have that hazy glow from the sun even though it was behind the trees. I think it works for most of them but I was definitely using it too much by the end! Whoops.