Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Grier.
Hi Laura, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
When I look back at my origin and my background and how I have fused together the things that I am passionate about (like color, love, travel and adventure) into my work. It all starts to make sense as to why I have chosen to describe myself the way that I do today. I am a Travel Photographer specializing in Destination Weddings and Adventure Photography. I am a thrill seeker and obsessed with travel and documenting new experiences. You could call me a Photo-Anthropologist. The entire reason I became a photographer was because I was obsessed with watching Jacques Cousteau and the National Geographic channel at a young age. I actually thought I wanted to be a Zoologist or an Archaeologist my whole childhood because to me that meant being Indiana Jones☺ My three sisters and I had a very unusual upbringing. Growing up, both of my parents worked for the CIA and we were stationed all over the world. At a young age, I was living in Jakarta, Indonesia and Thailand and I was constantly around new languages and cultures. I realized there is a huge world outside of my bubble and it has created this wanderlust/travel bug within me that will always influence my work. I will never forget what it was like when I was 17, rummaging through my mom’s closet trying to find my fake ID that she had confiscated, only to find all six of her alias fake ID’s. Talk about unexpected! But my life has been full of travel and the unexpected and from a young age, I realized that I could combine the adventure of being an archaeologist with my obsession for National Geographic and become a Photographer and nothing has gotten in my way since.
I graduated at 17 years old and went to Syracuse University for Commercial Photography and Fine Art Photography. That same year a book came out called La Chapelle Land, a coffee table book by the famous photographer David La Chapelle, that would forever influence me, my photography, and my outlook on how to create an image. I was so impacted by his work and it evoked strong emotions in me through his use of color. He was able to express emotion, excitement, and glamour even in his darkest imagery. Even when he pushed the envelope with a controversial image, there was still this perfection and beauty where you couldn’t stop looking at the photo. It stood alone as a single art piece. I realized that there was just so much THOUGHT put into every aspect of the image. As a photojournalist (and especially at a wedding), there are so many elements out of our control when capturing the day, but I found that I could still apply some of those techniques through the use of color, controlling my light and backgrounds, and in post-production editing an image in a way that evokes the same emotions for the viewers.
I fell into weddings accidentally. I was working for a headshot studio and shooting fashion and I was asked to assist with weddings and once I did it, I fell in LOVE. I loved that I felt like a photojournalist (which is my background) but that I was covering happy moments and not war and death. I also loved that it was a steady, lucrative job for a photographer and that there will never be a shortage of weddings.
When I went out on my own and founded Beautiful Day Photography, I had to ask myself, “What kind of business do I want to have?”. If I truly wanted to be Indiana Jones and to have this life of adventure, I would have to focus on destination weddings.
Since then, I have been a Los Angeles and Miami based Photojournalist, Travel Writer, and owner of both Beautiful Day Photography and Laura Grier Travel, featuring my Fine Art Prints, travel workshops, and behind-the-scenes of jetsetting around the world. My photography has taken me to all 7 continents. I have been published countless times in over 25 different magazines and has been a platform speaker for Canon, Samys Camera, WPPI, WIPA, Zenfolio, Step Up Women’s Network, and the Wedding MBA Conference.
The most satisfying work that I have done in my career has been through my work with Novica, National Geographic’s catalog that represents global artisans who are practicing “Vanishing Arts”. Through Nat Geo over the past 15 years, I have traveled numerous times to Peru and quickly fell in love with the culture and people. Passionate about mentoring, women’s education, photography and travel, I lead travel workshops, expeditions, and I am an ambassador for sustainable travel brands like Impact Travel Alliance and Travel with Meaning.
Currently, I have fused all of my passions into one passion project Co-founding Andeana Hats with Pats Krysiak. The mission behind the creation of Andeana Hats is to empower women, help support global artisans to continue their vanishing crafts, and enable them to support themselves and lead their communities out of poverty.
I have been honored by the Embassy of Peru in Washington D.C. for my dedication to helping the Quechua people in Peru and some of my photography work is on permanent display there.
As a member of the Female Founder Collective, National Geographic’s Women of Impact, and the Good Market, I continue to find innovative ways to create sustainable income opportunities for the artisans by launching with my business partner, Pats Krysiak, “Mayu Mission” a non-profit that leads philanthropic trips and projects in Peru.
Our first Andeana Origin trip launched in 2020 and was featured by Forbes as an origin trip lead by successful Women Founders and also by Matador Network as a company that actually gives back. We are excited to relaunch our philanthropic journeys in 2023 through Mayu Mission!
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?
My very first challenge was funding my dreams. I supported my photography dreams in college and my first year after graduating when I moved to Los Angeles through bartending. I even lived in my car for the first few weeks while I bartended and saved up money for photo shoots and a home. Focusing on a life of travel, I have worked hard to build my body of work and persona as a Travel /Adventure Photographer. It all started with just getting out there and doing it long before I was getting paid to shoot overseas. In my 20s, I lived off credit cards to support my travel and photography habits, which paid off. I hustled and worked very hard, and then eventually, the referrals snowballed, and I didn’t have to search for work anymore, and people were finding me. I had a few breaks, including going on the T.V. show Wheel of Fortune when I was 21, and I won $7,000, allowing me to buy my first camera! That was so fun and unexpected!
My biggest personal challenge throughout my career has been learning to say NO. I need to value my time both professionally and personally. To try to do it all and be everywhere at once, I sometimes spread myself too thin. Hiring assistants or interns to help, ensuring I have days off, and providing my clients’ value and respect for those days off are super important. The problem is I LOVE and am passionate about all my projects and business ventures. It can sometimes be challenging to distinguish between work, play, and passion because they can blend.
Currently, with my new social enterprise, Andeana Hats, the challenge here is our entire business is run by myself and my business partner Pats down in Peru. We are two females working 24/7 unpaid to get this business off the ground. Working internationally in different countries, continents, and time zones with Quechua artisans who speak an ancient language, cannot be reached via email, and live high in the Andes in remote villages is challenging to say the least. There are some significant obstacles! Not only is there a language barrier and cultural barrier, but there is a geographical barrier. So, to say our logistics are SUPER challenging is an understatement, and we have self-funded our entire business.
We are now seeking financial help to scale our business. So, we were finding ways to fund our dreams by getting creative during times like Covid when borders were shut down. There will always be challenges that we will grow and learn from, and we are excited to face them!
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?
My energy, crazy ideas, and zest for adventure, travel, and bringing people together on the far ends of the Earth are what set me apart☺. Also, my super vibrant photography style and dramatic Goddess shoots have become my “special sauce.”.
When I went out on my own and founded my wedding photography business, I wanted to be Indiana Jones and to have this life of adventure, so I began to focus my energy on destination weddings. But how would I book destination weddings? How would I convince a client to spend more to have a photographer fly out with them? I had to ask myself WHAT made me different and unique, and the answer was that I am giving them a VIBRANT EXPERIENCE not only through my imagery but with the service I provide. I love to travel and have adventures and will do whatever it takes to get to shot. I LOVE to tell a story that takes them on a surreal journey of their wedding that looks as beautiful and glamorous as they have envisioned it themselves. For my couples, they are experiencing their weddings with heightened emotions, like they are on a high, so I feel like I just enhance my images to match their vision. I am there every step of the way, filtering their wedding through my eyes, and THAT is my selling point.
When my client hires me, they are hiring all of ME, not just my photography services. I am present capturing the fun, beauty, and adventure of the ENTIRE experience of the trip, not just the wedding day itself. Branding myself as an EXPERIENCE, not just as a vendor. This notion has followed me throughout ALL of my businesses, both leading travel workshops and expeditions to co-founding Andeana Hats, and even when I am hosting intimate gatherings with my friends:) Excited for the next part of my journey to keep that sense of wanderlust adventure and curiousness in everything I do. To keep going and growing!
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I think having Tenacity is a super important trait when it comes to networking and putting yourself out there. As a teenager, I set out to do what I loved (photography) and found my own voice along the way that ultimately led me back to my dreams as a kid of being an adventurer. I became a photographer because of my obsession with watching National Geographic on TV as a child and my love of adventure and travel. I never thought my path would take me to Weddings and that I would LOVE weddings so much. And 13 years later, little did I know my weddings would take me all over the world and then lead me back to National Geographic. There is a lot that is out of control or unknown to us in our lives. I AM blessed and I AM lucky, but I create my own luck and I always have. And we all can. It’s all about positioning yourself to be in front of the right door when it opens…
My best advice, in one sentence, for launching a venture is… You have to LOVE it and you have to be prepared to focus a lot of energy on it. If you go into it thinking it is a “side project” it will never grow larger or be more successful than that vision. It’s not about who is the most busy, who makes the most money, or who has the most followers. If you are doing exactly what you love, sharing ideas and collaborating with others, and are fearless about putting yourself out there, you WILL live the lifestyle that you want to lead and your life will work for you.
We now live in a digital age that didn’t exist when I first started my business, where you can stalk and message the CEO of a company you want to work for or put your art and thoughts out there instantaneously to thousands of people and build a community of followers. Networking and social media are essentially the same things, but I STILL believe in a good old-fashioned handshake, phone call, and cup of coffee in person with someone:). That holds way more weight than sending your resume to someone.
Persistence and many coffee meetings got me through the door with the right people throughout my career, and I feel like assisting someone you admire will teach you more than any classroom will so volunteer your time to test out different jobs and careers and learn what they are really like to do behind the scenes and not just glorified on social media! I have found many mentors this way that have continued to mentor me and be a great friends and connectors throughout my career this way.
Pricing:
- Alpaca Wool Hats $195
- Hand-woven Palm Hats $135
- Photography Portrait Shoots $750
- Wedding Photography starting at $8500
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lauragrier.com.
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/lauragriertravel
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beautifuldayphotography
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/WanderlustLauraGrier
- Other: www.andeanahats.com. www.beautifulday.photography
Image Credits
Copyright and All images shot by Laura Grier BIO photo of Laura in the red hat was shot by Jessica Sterling
