Next Week: Sarah Q

Davina: I need to say that I'm overwhelmed and thrilled that all of these women have so quickly and generously given their time to this series. What I know from these women (some personally, some just from their blogs) I have been inspired by...and now, to have them be so open and real has been such a gift.

Please welcome them warmly, say hello in the comments, or leave a question if you'd like.

Sheye, welcome to the Women and Business series. I'm so grateful that you've taken the time to share.

Davina: What brought you to photography?

Sheye: I'd always loved photography but for some years it was just a hobby that I dabbled in, and not particularly well. I did a few short courses to try and understand "the technicals" as I loved film but found it confusing and expensive, never getting consistent results.

Like so many of you here, having my own children really inspired me to want to take great photos of them and luckily digital photography and the internet came about at the same time. I got to shoot every day, research whatever I didn't understand online and share what I created for feedback. I also got the opportunity to second shoot a wedding long before I was qualified to do so but decided to go with the smoke and mirrors approach and see if I actually could pull it off. Luckily, I did and gained so much from the experience!

I never imagined I'd move into my own photography business but I now see anyone can do just that with practice, determination and confidence.

You definitely have a gift for writing. Will you share a little of that process?

Thankyou so much :) I'm a very open person by nature, I really do just speak from the heart.

I have always felt passionate about the "mother myth" - where modern society demands that we need to be the perfect mother, wife, friend, daughter, employee and so on but the reality is very difficult to pull off well every single day, made harder by the fact that women often feel "less than" for supposedly not measuring up. I started my blog with the intention of sharing the good and not so good days of parenting and that is still my goal, regardless of the unexpected journey we now find ourselves on.

The challenges of motherhood and grief are two topics that are not discussed openly enough and I like to think that the sharing of my experiences might help another reader not feel so alone on their harder days.

Your blog is touching, real, poignant, and funny. I start reading one post and it's never enough. I can't stop reading. What are your 5 best tips for having a great blog?

It's a surprising thing to me, that I can continue to be "real" and that clients still book via my blog - almost all of my business is built on blog readers now. I initially wondered whether having such a personal element in my writing would deter potential clients from wanting to book me but, luckily, it seems to be just the opposite :) Having said all this, I think my own situation is a little unique so I'll give general tips about what I believe are important elements of all good photoblogs and what I perceive has helped build my own blog traffic.

1. Brand yourself. There are thousands of photography blogs out there so you need to offer something a little different to keep readers coming back. Write about the things that you're passionate about, share links to sites you love and give your blog a stamp of your personality. If you're not sure where to start, write a list of your favorite things, see what's stored in your online favorites, ask friends how they'd describe you. All of these things can help you create a sense of who you are via your blog. I don't believe it's enough to just share your latest client photos, unless they're consistently amazing images and even then readers want a sense of the person behind the camera. Sharing a photo of yourself gives a more personal element and helps readers connect with you.

2. Discover your niche. Be selective with your content. Decide who you're writing for and ensure your posts are regularly appealing to that audience. If you're just writing for close family, it's fine to describe your childrens school concert but on the whole, that won't be appealing to the masses - unless you present it with (a few) great images or a funny anecdote. Think about what you would love to read if you didn't know you and be strict about it. Aspire to have every post fresh, interesting and creative. You may not always pull it off but aim for it.

3. Presentation is key. A creative banner is enough to give your blog some style but if you can afford it, have a custom blog designed. Some are not that expensive and it will give instant appeal and individuality to your site. Again, this is an opportunity to share your own style and personality and build your brand so think carefully about what you want to convey. Don't be influenced by the masses of similar looking photoblogs out there - the aim is to have yours stand out so if anything, try for something totally different to the norm. When I did my blog redesign last year, I pulled together so many different elements from everywhere - not just the design but the navigation and functionality. In the months beforehand, as I browsed other sites, I bookmarked anything that had an appealing element to it and eventually got to incorporate much of it into my own site design. Be confident enough to do something unexpected.

4. Be honest but professional. While I encourage incorporating personality and warmth into your blog, you still need to keep professional in content, layout and writing skills. Present your thoughts in a way that is not offensive to any particular group, keep subject matter uplifting or inspiring and be gracious. Make sure your grammar and spelling is correct and avoid slang. Re-read your post as if you were presenting it out loud to an audience to make sure it flows well - people read as if they can hear your voice so to type "ha ha" or "LOL" doesn't work so well. If you're not good at writing, keep it brief and let your images do to the talking until you feel more comfortable with your writing style and your target audience.

5. Blog often. If growing blog traffic is the goal, it's a surefire way to help. People will only keep coming back for a short while without new content so even if you only blog once a week, do it consistently. If you really don't have anything to share, find some great links, post some pictures sets that have inspired you (credit of course), give a mini lesson in Photoshop or tips for taking good photos..You need to offer something to your readers each and every time whether it be inspiration, food for thought or a little insight into what makes up you. There is always something to blog :)

What are 5 best tips on how to manage being a mom, photographer, business woman, and writer/blogger?

As I've mentioned, I do think it's an incredibly difficult job to manage everything well - especially if you're anything like me and not particularly organized by nature. It's taken some time to find balance with everything and I still fall short some days. These would be the things I've found to be imporant:

1. Don't overcommit. When starting out, I was so honored and excited to be asked to take some-ones photos, I would fit in clients where-ever possible. It took some time to work out just how many shoots a month I could manage without impacting too greatly on the family. Now that I'm doing the workshops, I have had to limit my time spent shooting further again which means saying no much more than yes lately but is the only way to keep on top of work and family. I have learnt that it's far better to bring less income into a happy relaxed home.

2. Find routine. This is not my strong point but I do know how important it is. My days flow so much better if I have a set time for proofing, blogging and time with family. If the kids know that I will be off the computer at a planned time, they are much more patient..If I know I have 2 hours to work, I feel more focused than if I have no end time set in place.

3. Family come first. This is easy to say but I really have discovered that if I put family on hold for photography, I don't feel good about life. While I adore photography and get so much from blogging, ultimately I started this journey because of my family..they are who inspire me and the intention was to capture what they do each day. It wouldn't make sense for the capturing to be more important than the doing and I try hard to remember this when I have to choose one over the other on any given day. Our personal situation is such that I know that time with our kids is such a gift, even the grumpy stressful days are blessings and I don't ever want to look back and think that I, or they, missed out because something else was more important.

If clients are waiting on orders, I split my day so that I can still meet deadlines but also have time with the kids. It's all about balance and it's a constant challenge to find it and keep it. We still need to be women with passions and interests as well as Mums though so I do my best to incorporate all of my loves in a way that everyone is happy with.

4. Design your business in a way that works for you and your family. Going back ten years, if you wanted to run your own business, this is exactly what you would do but now days, we research so much online and see first hand how everyone else does it, often forming our own model from there. Not only does it mean you'll end up offering the same thing as a dozen photographers in your area, what works for other people will often not be the best approach for you so try it out but if it's not working, change it without second guessing.

5. Ultimately, remember what really matters. It's so easy to stress out trying to juggle it all but one thing is true: There is always enough time for the important things.

What are a couple of the biggest things you've learned over the past couple of years?

Professionally:
Step outside the square. In the early days I was both inspired and disheartened by other photographers work..Over time I've developed my own style and found the confidence to believe in what I do..to not compare with others and to see that we all have something different to offer. There will always be other people doing amazing things but don't let their journey impact on your own. Take what you need in the form of inspiration but always come back to what's true to you and work on doing it the very best way you can.

Personally:
Life is not always fair. I don't mean that to sound tragic or dramatic but I don't believe we're raised to know this. I think we believe it's our right in life to have happiness ever after - that we are somehow entitled to only good things. Life can be wonderful, rewarding and beauty full but it can also be unexpected, tragic and extraordinarily challenging at times. I had an incredibly blessed life before losing Ava so it was a terrible shock to find out that bad things don't only happen to other people. I now know to expect the unexpected and to be grateful for what is in place today, just in case it changes tomorrow. This knowledge has been freeing in some ways.

The absolute non-importance of material things. Prior to losing Ava, I placed too much emphasis on external things - a beautiful home, the right handbag and everything in-between. We all do, as a society. I still love nice things of course but I'm under no illusion that happiness is tied to material items in any way. I love that I can take pleasure from shopping and browsing magazines but I also know that what truly makes my heart sing cannot be bought.

That I can survive just about anything. Of course, losing a child was our very worst fear realized so to be the other side of that and still be able to laugh and celebrate and look forward is such a blessing. Two years ago I really believed I would never smile again, that our family would never see another truly happy day. I do smile and we are happy and I have a new sense of what I can withstand. It makes the small stuff even smaller and the joys much richer.

What does a day in your life look like?

Oh no, can I make this up?? :p

We're not a "grocery store on Wednesdays" type of family. We kind of make it up as we go so there isn't a very typical day. I'm almost always the first one up each day, no matter how late I go to bed I can't sleep in. I use this time to answer email that's come in overnight until the chaos begins and then it's just getting the kids fed and ready for school - like every other crazy household at that time of day! My husband works from home too so on a school day, we'll drop the kids off and often go for a coffee before heading home to start our working day. We feel very lucky to be able to have this time together. We're back to sharing an office at the moment, I couldn't get to my office away from home often enough so let it go.. I like that we sit side by side and chat about our own projects and give each other input. Often we'll pick the boys up from school together and go out for a milkshake afterwards before Ivy gets in from daycare. She goes three days a week. My father in law makes the dinner for the children (lucky, I know!) so we manage to get them to bed reasonably early most nights. I'm not a fan of television so I'm often working at night and aim for bed before midnight..I call it my Cinderella rule :)

Thanks so much, Sheye.

To see more of Sheye's work, blogs, sites, and workshops go to:

www.sheyerosemeyer.com

www.sheyerosemeyer.com/blog

www.avarosemeyer.com

www.eyecandyworkshops.com

All images in this post are Copyright by Sheye Rosemeyer.