It’s Thanksgiving week, and if you're anything like me—and most photographers I know—you’re probably feeling a strange mix of gratitude, pressure, comparison, and reflection. This slower season in our photography businesses gives us a rare chance to breathe and think about where we’ve been and where we’re going.
In this episode, I’m kicking off a four-part series designed specifically for photographers navigating the end of the year with intention. And we’re starting with something foundational: gratitude.
Whether you’re questioning if you did enough this year, wondering how to set goals for your photography business in 2026, or just need to quiet that inner critic, this episode is for you. I’ll walk you through how gratitude can reframe your mindset, fuel your momentum, and help you move forward without burnout.
I'm also sharing the exact journaling prompts I use to reflect on the year—ones that help me reconnect with why I started this journey and where I want to go next. These aren’t fluffy gratitude practices; they’re strategic, grounding tools for any creative entrepreneur ready to build a more sustainable and profitable business.
If you're tired of comparing your year to someone else’s highlight reel—or their entire decade—you'll find some peace and perspective here.
Inside, we’ll talk about:
If you want even more support as you reflect, dream, and plan for next year, I’d love to invite you to the Peace & Profit Bootcamp, where we’ll map out your 2026 goals and build a strategy that actually fits your life. You can sign up at lauraesmond.com/bootcamp
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For now, grab a journal, your favorite holiday drink, maybe even a slice of pumpkin pie—and let’s reflect together. Gratitude comes first.
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In this episode, Laura Esmond dives into the intricacies of portrait photography pricing, especially for photographers transitioning into premium pricing. Laura discusses four common pricing mistakes that many photographers make, such as offering the wrong session length, overdelivering in petite sessions, copying competitor pricing without real market research, and staying at starter rates for too long. She provides actionable advice on how to avoid these pitfalls, ensuring a more sustainable and profitable business. If you're a photographer ready to refine your pricing strategy and grow your business, this episode is for you.
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Balancing Business and Motherhood: From Wedding to Portrait Photography with Caroline Klaar
Join Laura Esmond as she welcomes wedding and portrait photographer Caroline Klaar to discuss her transition from focusing on wedding photography to portrait photography. Caroline shares her journey of building a sustainable business while raising young children, pricing strategies, the impact of burnout, and creating balance between work and family life. Discover valuable insights on mindset shifts, the importance of charging your worth, and how intentional pricing can create more time for your family and improve your artistry. This episode dives into practical advice for photographers who want to pivot in their business and cultivate a healthy work-life balance.
00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
01:28 Caroline's Photography Journey
02:08 Balancing Motherhood and Photography
03:11 Struggles and Burnout
05:52 Transitioning from Weddings to Portraits
08:17 Pricing and Mindset Shifts
12:31 Contentment and Work-Life Balance
19:28 Current Pricing Strategy and Challenges
22:13 Strategies for Pricing and Packaging
23:12 Pre-Sales Conversations and Client Engagement
23:59 Testing Sales Strategies and Client Reactions
24:38 Building Confidence in Selling Artwork
25:10 Understanding the Value of Your Service
29:38 Transitioning from Weddings to Portraits
32:32 Balancing Work and Family Life
40:08 Setting Boundaries and Avoiding Burnout
45:35 The Importance of Community and Support
46:48 Final Thoughts and Farewell
You can find Caroline on Instagram at @klaarphotography.
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Feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, or stuck in constant hustle mode? You’re not alone. In this episode, Laura talks about the photographer’s burnout cycle — that endless loop of editing, marketing, posting, and pushing — and how slowing down might actually be the most productive thing you can do for your portrait photography business. Laura shares four powerful ways to slow down as a photographer so you can find balance, boost creativity, and build a sustainable business you love. You’ll learn why rest isn’t lazy, how your brain and body respond when you pause, and why giving yourself (and your clients) space leads to better focus, happier clients, and more profit.
In This Episode:
Key Takeaways for Portrait Photographers:
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In this episode, I’m diving into something so many of us feel but don’t always talk about—burnout during busy season. Especially if you're juggling work, motherhood, and the ever-present pressure to grow your business, this one’s for you.
I share a bit about my own journey, from the early days of running a tiny, high-touch studio (think: Pinterest boards and custom sessions for every client) to moving into a high-volume retail studio where mini sessions and cashflow ruled. Spoiler: it didn’t end well. I completely overdid it and hit a wall.
But burnout taught me some pretty important lessons, and I’m sharing the six guardrails I use now to protect my energy, calendar, and joy. From blocking editing time like a boss to selling value over volume, from knowing my true capacity to carving out quiet time for my brain—I’ve learned that a sustainable business isn’t just possible, it’s necessary.
If you’re feeling stretched thin or already burned out, I hope this episode feels like a deep breath and a gentle nudge toward change.
00:00 Introduction: The Struggles of Balancing Work and Life
00:33 Early Days: Building a Business from Scratch
01:10 The Mini Session Revelation
02:38 Transition to a Retail Studio
03:33 Burnout from Overbooking
04:32 Implementing Guardrails for a Sustainable Business
04:57 Step 1: Block Your Calendar Like a Boss
06:38 Step 2: Sell Value, Not Just Volume
07:53 Step 3: Respect Your Capacity
10:42 Step 4: Use Tools and Habits That Save Your Sanity
12:44 Step 5: Protect Your Mental Space
14:57 Step 6: Share the Workload
18:02 Conclusion: Respecting Capacity and Building a Sustainable Business
Hyperfocus drops I mentioned can be found here.
That brainwave app I mentioned.
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n this episode of the podcast, Laura Esmond explores the concepts of confidence and conviction. She articulates that confidence doesn't precede action but develops through the act of doing, often emerging from stumbles and mistakes. Laura distinguishes conviction as a firmly held belief or gut feeling that motivates one to start something new. She outlines a five-step process to build confidence: starting with conviction, taking imperfect action, learning from failures, reflecting on growth, and celebrating small progress. Emphasizing the importance of quiet perseverance, Laura encourages listeners to trust the process and see challenges as opportunities for growth, ultimately building a resilient and confident business.
00:00 Introduction to Confidence
00:20 Understanding Conviction vs. Confidence
04:01 Building Confidence Step-by-Step
04:23 Embracing Imperfection and Learning from Failures
05:21 Reflecting on Growth and Celebrating Progress
08:39 Quiet Perseverance and Long-Term Growth
14:23 Parenting Parallels and Teaching Through Mistakes
16:32 Final Thoughts and Encouragement
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In this episode, I’m joined by my dear friend and incredibly talented portrait photographer, Kate Marie. We talk about what it really looks like to slow down, set boundaries, and build a photography business that supports your life, not the other way around.
Kate shares how she transitioned from a low priced business model to a slower-paced, high-touch experience that feels more aligned with the kind of artist and mom she wants to be.
We also talk about:
If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s really possible to grow a thriving business without burning out, this episode will give you the encouragement and clarity you need.
LINKS & RESOURCES:
Connect with Kate on Instagram → @katemarieportraiture
Want help mapping out your own high-touch model? Get on the waitlist for my mindset workshop where we will pair up an unstoppable mindset with strategy to grow the business you've always dreamed of owning.
If you loved this episode, would you leave a quick review? It helps more photographers find the podcast—and it means the world to me.
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What if the business you’ve been building isn’t actually the one you want? In this episode, I’m sharing the story of how I created a “successful” studio that looked great on the outside but left me drained on the inside. The turning point came when I finally asked myself a simple but life-changing question. This conversation will help you quiet the noise, uncover your own definition of success, and give you permission to start building a business that feels aligned with your life, not just impressive on paper.
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Marketing for Your Portrait Photography Business
In this episode, Laura Esmond, a seasoned portrait photographer and educator, discusses the significance of focusing on marketing to grow your photography business. She emphasizes that while elements like logos, websites, and pricing are important, marketing should be the primary focus, especially within the first three years of operation. Laura shares actionable marketing strategies, including optimizing your Google Business profile, maintaining a consistent blogging and email marketing routine, effectively using social media, and building local partnerships. Additionally, she points out common pitfalls to avoid, such as neglecting online presence, inconsistent social media activity, and lack of tracking results. Laura concludes with encouraging advice to start small and build consistent marketing habits, showcasing that sustainable growth requires continuous effort and strategic planning.
00:00 Introduction: The Importance of Marketing
00:38 When to Focus on Marketing
02:00 Actionable Marketing Steps: Online Presence
03:54 Blogging and Email Marketing
06:25 Social Media Strategies
13:11 Building Community Relationships
18:54 Common Marketing Pitfalls
20:40 Conclusion and Final Tips
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Mastering Mini Sessions: Strategies for Photographers
In this podcast episode, Laura Esmond delves into the importance of mini sessions for photographers. She emphasizes the need to reflect on current practices to improve future outcomes and discusses the two main reasons photographers offer mini sessions: providing quick updates for clients and ensuring reliable cash flow. Laura shares her own experiences in managing a photography business with high overheads and explains how mini sessions helped sustain her. She also outlines three types of sessions she currently offers and provides detailed insights into streamlining mini sessions through mindset, boundaries, systems, and marketing strategies. The episode serves as a comprehensive guide for photographers looking to effectively plan, execute, and market mini sessions to enhance their business.
00:00 Introduction and Purpose of Mini Sessions
00:55 Why Photographers Offer Mini Sessions
01:44 Personal Experience with Mini Sessions
04:02 Structuring Different Types of Sessions
06:10 Streamlining Mini Session Events
06:36 Key Strategies for Successful Mini Sessions
10:12 Conclusion and Call to Action
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Entrepreneurship can be thrilling, creative, and empowering... but also incredibly lonely. In this episode, I’m sharing a story I’ve never fully told before—the late night I realized just how isolated I felt in my business. No team, no coworkers, no one to bounce ideas off of. Just me, working in silence while everyone else seemed to have support.
If you’ve ever wondered, "Is it just me?"—it’s not. We’re diving into the hidden loneliness that can come with building a photography business, especially in those early years of motherhood. I’ll walk you through the five types of community every creative entrepreneur needs and how to find the people who will help you feel supported, grounded, and excited again.
This one’s part pep talk, part story, and part strategy... and I think you’re going to feel seen.
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In this episode, I’m sharing the things I wish I could go back and tell my younger self. The version of me who was hopeful, overwhelmed, and constantly questioning if she was doing any of this right in her portrait photography business.
We’re talking about what it really means to trust your gut, why showing up imperfectly matters more than you think, and how to step away from the constant hustle without losing momentum. There’s some storytelling, a little tough love, and a few confessions about midnight editing and running in nerdy vests.
Whether you’re in your first few years of entrepreneurship, feeling stuck in the messy middle or about to leap into something new and unknown, this episode is here to remind you that you’re not alone. You don’t have to have it all figured out. You just have to keep going.
You know that moment when everything feels hard and you start to wonder if you’ve made a huge mistake? Maybe you’re pivoting, starting over, or stuck in the messy middle, questioning if this dream is actually meant for you.
In this episode, I’m sharing the story of my own “retail studio era.” It was a five-year season filled with risk, burnout, and a lot of soul-searching. At the time, it felt like a failure. But what I couldn’t see back then was that the storm was shaping me for something even better.
Whether you're in the early stages of your business or navigating a big shift, I hope this story reminds you that resistance doesn’t mean you’re on the wrong path. It might be confirmation that you’re exactly where you need to be.
Inside the episode, I talk about:
• The real story behind opening a high-overhead studio
• Why hard seasons hold some of our biggest lessons
• How resistance might actually be preparing you for your next chapter
If you're in a hard season right now, I see you. This one is here to help you feel less alone and a little more hopeful.
Links and resources:
In this very first episode of With Laura Esmond, I’m pulling back the curtain on why I started this podcast and what you can expect moving forward. I share how I scaled a brand new portrait studio to multi–six figures in under two years, only to realize that version of success wasn’t what I actually wanted.
You’ll hear why building a creative business takes more than likes, follows, or even a big revenue month, and why your why matters more than your how. This is about falling in love with the process, embracing the messy middle, and creating a business driven by purpose, not outcome.
If you’re a photographer, creative entrepreneur, or mom building a business with heart, then this podcast is for you.