{Planny Pants}: Vendors Uncorked! Wedding Photographer, Cincinnati, OH

It’s time…. I would have loved to post this earlier today but work and appointments got in the way. So I’m posting now… hoping all of you awesome readers will still click over to the blog tonight!

One of the greatest parts about this Vendor’s Uncorked series is not only that I get to introduce to you great vendors… but… you also get to meet some of the coolest, awesomest people I know! Yes, I just made up the word awesomest!

Today is no exception. Meet Jacalyn… btw… I don’t think there’s a single person that’s met her that doesn’t love her…

She just exudes cool, classy, and dramatic…. you know like if you looked up the definition of jazz hands in the dictionary… you might just find this picture! lol!

Jacalyn is the owner of JMM Photography and one of Cincinnati’s top photographers. She is fantabulous at what she does and honestly…. it’s because she loves what she does so freakin’ much!

Here’s a little of her work… but seriously this is just the tip of the awesomeberg. Yes… I made that word up too. Check it…

So yeah… here’s what she has to say….

· Hi Kellie! Here is my snippet on the “Vendors Uncorked” Love the idea behind this Kell and am so honored you asked me to partake!

o Let's try this.... start here.
* What is your job/business?

o I am Jacalyn Mains- sole owner of JMM Photography. I am a wedding and boudoir photographer. What I am not is a photographer that will jump at the chance to photograph absolutely anything. I’d rather be excellent at one thing than mediocre at many. I find that I am inspired by the energy surrounding a wedding as well as the essence of a woman celebrating her beauty and thrive on woman power- so I’ve chosen to hone my skills and focus on those two types of photography, wedding and boudoir, because they stimulate my creative juices and keep my job fun! I have a studio/consult space in Newport, KY that I share with four other wedding vendors (all women and all pure awesome.)

o
* What drives you to do what you do every day?

o When I first got into photography and decided to turn it into a career instead of a side gig, I said one thing to myself that remains true today. If I am going to be away from my family, my children, and the ones I love most by working, then it will only be at a “job” that I love, plain and simple. It isn’t worth it to be absent from what matters most to me to do something that I hate. So, for me, that is photography. I know not everybody has that luxury and I thank my lucky stars every day that I do. I am an artist- you know, one of those creative types that marches to the beat of their own drum. I am proud of that and think that that is what makes me a unique person and unique artist. The only way to be fulfilled in my life, as a person who positively contributes as a member of society, is to express my creative nature through the lens. It is what makes sense to me, it is how I see the world, it is how I capture others.

o
* What is a common misunderstanding from couples in your line of work?

o I think that many potential clients don’t realize that when we are meeting, I am interviewing them as much as they are interviewing me. I don’t want to work with just anybody. For the wedding day to be “the perfect storm” our personalities need to mesh and our thoughts on the day need to be in sync. For example, if you are a super control freak bride who wants to dictate my every move- you are absolutely not the bride for me. I want to be trusted in the craft that I do. I need that trust and I work hard to earn it. I tell my clients that I am with them all day and, in fact, I usually see the bride more so than she’ll see her own fiancé on her wedding day. It sounds crazy, but it is true! So, we need to get along and, in my eyes, we need to be friends. I am looking for clients that I simply click with and know that in the end, our relationship will extend beyond their wedding day. Some people think this is strictly business, but for me, it isn’t. It’s personal.

o
* What is a common complaint you hear from couples about something that you do… and what is the reason why you do it this way?

o Ok Kell- I really don’t have a response for this one. I’m not saying I’ve NEVER gotten a complaint, but when I have, it is something specific to the couple and not to my work (not tooting my own horn here, but just stating the facts). If I had had a reoccurring complaint, then I would have changed the way I did said offense.

o
* What are some of the things you do that contribute to your bottom line?

o Lenses to me are like- I don’t know, say shoes, to the average woman! You simply can’t have too many!!! I believe having a variety of lenses to choose from helps keep the way I shoot fresh and ever evolving. But the list goes on and I’m only going to mention a few things here as I don’t want to bore you but…..I attend a photography conference once a year to keep apprise to new products and to further educate myself. Not to mention the hard cost of the albums I offer! I want the best and have expensive taste- what can I say? I work hard to present my clients with albums that they maybe have never seen before, or that has a unique quality to it. It is something I am attracted to and feel that my idea client is as well. Oh, and I gotta give some love to Rachel, my assistant and second photographer. I have to pay her too! She works hard!

o
* What are some little known facts about your particular industry that brides really should know?

o Despite what you may think, a lot of the photographers in this industry (especially the woman) are friends! I meet with 3 other female photographers once a month for breakfast or lunch and we talk shop (and about our personal lives too). We might be in direct competition with each other, but that totally doesn’t matter. All four of us realize that there are enough brides to go around and that not every bride is for me! I love knowing other ladies in the industry well enough on a personal and professional level to be able to confidently refer them to brides that have contacted me and their date is already booked.

o
* If you lived in a perfect world… engaged couples would…. __________________________?

o Absolutely, completely, and blindly trust and have faith in me. Simply put- just let me do my job. I know that seems like a lot to ask when there are people out there who aren’t trustworthy. However, know that there are good people out there, good vendors who have a lot invested in their integrity and in the relationships they build with their clients. My very favorite thing to hear from my clients is, “Jacalyn, just do what you do!” Then I am like, “Hell yeah! It is on!”

So there you have it. Here’s a few more shots to wet your picture palette before we go… I always tease her that she can make cheese look good!