Today we’d like to introduce you to Lyndsi and Geoff Thornton.
We got our start back in 2007 when Geoff graduated from Brook’s Institute in Santa Barbara with his BA in Visual Journalism. He began his photography career shooting freelance surf, landscape, and travel photography across the world. He also worked at Transworld Surf, a magazine publication, and took wedding work on the side. Lyndsi received her BS in Business Management and an MS in Psychology. When we met in 2011, Lyndsi helped develop Geoff’s untamed freelance work into a structured business and started tagging along to shoots, learning the in’s and out’s of professional photography. For years, we traveled around the United States in our 1984 Westfalia, camping and taking photos at all the most beautiful spots around the country. Being on the road and seeing new things has always fueled our creativity. It was also on these long road trips where we dreamt about having our own photography business. But it REALLY wasn’t until we started planning our very own wedding in 2014 that the wheels began to turn for our husband and wife brand. We shot our first official wedding together in 2015 and it has been a snowball of incredible work ever since!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Professionally, it’s been pretty smooth. Geoff and I both love people. Getting to know someone’s story is what fuels our passion. This has helped us make great relationships with our clients and other wedding industry folks. Our inflow of work has been consistent pretty much from the beginning because of this!
Personally, it has been a challenge to balance running a small business with life; between family, other jobs early on, and having a baby, the juggling act is hard! It has been a learning experience of how to separate ourselves as business owners and a husband and wife team, and it’s taken years to develop healthy boundaries to make sure these two avenues of our life are thriving.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Geoff & Lyndsi Photography – what should we know?
We are primarily wedding photographers, but we also do a select number of family, maternity, newborn, and branding shoot throughout the year. There are two things that we are constantly getting feedback about and have become our niche: our clients love our ability to capture emotion and make you truly feel like you have stepped into their wedding day. Geoff’s photojournalism background has definitely shaped our style. He can make people laugh and then disappear into the background to allow the moments unfold at a natural pace. All the while Lyndsi provides direction and gentle encouragement from the foreground. We work very hard to get to know our clients. It’s super important to go into their day like old friends rather than just another vendor. We have said since the beginning that we want to love the people we work with and hope our couples feel the same. I think our personalities really set us apart from other wedding photographers in the industry. Being a wedding photographer is only half about your art, you also have to be a strong leader, be able to carry and guide a wedding day with tact, be ‘of-service’ to literally every guest and vendor, all while making sure you are getting great photos. I think we both do a great job of this!
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Firstly, we are each other’s biggest cheerleaders. We both get a little anxious before heading into a shoot or wedding and it’s so nice to always have each other to soften those emotions. It’s scary starting your own business! Especially early on, we were constantly having to reassure each other that we were on the right path and doing what we are meant to do.
Our parents are definitely our biggest cheerleaders outside of each other! Especially both of our moms. We became parents last March and would not have gotten through the last year without their physical, emotional, and logistical support.
Our wedding photographer and friend, Katie Shuler, gave us so much support early on and even had Lyndsi tag along to a few weddings to second shoot. She gave us a ton of encouragement and has even recommended clients to us over the years!
Also, every single one of our clients has played a role in our success, especially the early couples that trusted us when we didn’t have a ton of experience or a big portfolio to show for.
Pricing:
- Wedding packages start at $3,750
- Most of our couples are spending around $5,000 on our wedding photography services
- Portrait shoots (family, newborn, maternity, etc.) start at $500
Contact Info:
- Website: www.geoffandlyndsi.com
- Phone: 913-526-8301
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geoffandlyndsi/?hl=en
- Other: https://www.theknot.com/marketplace/geoff-and-lyndsi-photography-ventura-ca-2036746
Image Credit:
Kinsey Mhire (black and white photo of us); Kyle Sparks (head on photo of us with green background)
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