If you’ve attended our CONFIDENCE workshops, you’ve probably heard me talk about Carey Schumacher. Without question, she is not only an AMAZING mom, but an AMAZING photographer and AMAZING friend. Her business is designed in such a way that fits her lifestyle of being wife, mom, photographer, beautiful woman.

Carey is bold and doesn’t let the industry push her around. She and her business don’t fit into a box. She is who she is–take it or leave it. Her clients jump at the chance to “take it”. Throughout our friendship, Carey has given me so much encouragement. Even though our personalities and businesses are different, I can’t tell you how much it means to know that I can pick up the phone and ask her to pray for me. I can cry into the phone, and she will have an encouraging word for me. Even though she teases me for being so deep at times, she encourages me to go for it. Her life alone is a symbol of “going for it”. And let’s not forget that Carey is also one of the BEST at outwitting and teasing Brian! That is saying SOMETHING! 🙂

Meet Carey Schumacher, San Diego Portrait Photographer, owner of the well known Barefoot Memories!

1. Carey, when did you start your business and what was the turning point of taking it from a hobby to a business of charging people and putting up a website?

I started in 2002. I’d been taking pictures for friends & family, but when my husband was laid off from his job, I needed to start charging for photography. I needed to help the family, so it was either 1) make a photography business profitable 2) get a job teaching college Math or 3) sell the house & move. A bunch of friends had been telling me, “you could totally charge money for your photography,” so it was time to find out if they were right!

2. What inspires your photography?

The people in front of my camera at the time (each family is so unique & beautifully made) AND the stories I hear back about how families have happily & proudly filled their homes with my photos — that’s awesome to me.

3. What inspires you as a person, artist?

Man, you get deep with these questions. I didn’t go to your touchee feely “find the artist within” workshop, so I’m neither qualified nor certified to answer this question. (There she goes, teasing me again. :))

I’ll take a crack at it anyway… I feel really inspired by my family.

They’re divine (made by God).

5. What are the classes/workshops/DVDs you’ve watched to teach yourself photography? Were they helpful?

I’ve never been to a photography class, and the first workshop I attended was the one I hosted with some spazzy chick from Seattle. (who is she talking about? :)) I LOVE attending WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) in Vegas. Spending a few days around other photographers is great for my photography & my business.

6. What was your first “paid” shoot like? How did you feel on the way, during and after?

I was VERY nervous. I felt nauseous. I prayed for peace, and I prayed that the family I was meeting would feel peace and joy as well. Then I prayed that I would get nervous on my way to my next shoot, so I’d remember to pray. Hundreds of shoots later, I still get nervous on the way to photoshoots. (Isn’t it nice to know that someone as talented as Carey still gets nervous before a shoot? Kind of freeing, huh.)

7. What is the best and toughest part about doing this while being a mom and wife at the same time?

The best is being able to make my own schedule.
The toughest is trying to NOT WORK when I should be focusing on MOM duties.

(I have to add something here because one of the things I admire most about Carey is her ability to be present as a mom and present as a business woman. And sometimes she is able to magically combine the two. For instance, she did the coolest soccer team photos I’ve ever seen for her son’s team. I mean this soccer image redefines “soccer team photos” for me. What about you? 🙂

That image won Matt’s soccer team a trip to the David Beckham Academy. And they ended up being in Soccer America magazine! Is she the coolest mom EVER or what!)

8. What is one piece of advice you’d give to newbies?

Don’t stay up til all hours of the night looking at other photographers’ websites convincing yourself that you suck. Give yourself a little bit of “I SUCK!” time, but not too much! And use that time to convince yourself to PRACTICE MORE and try harder instead of getting bogged down with “I Suck-itis”

9. What else would you like to add that I’m missing? Feel free, free, free!

I’m excited about two things coming up:

1) my trip to NYC in a few weeks, where I’m teaching a myFU
Ncamera workshop in Central Park. I’ll also be in the Mpix booth at the PhotoPlus tradeshow if anyone wants to come by and say HI 🙂

2) WPPI should be opening up registration for next year’s Master’s Classes soon! They were supposed to be open at the beginning of October, but I don’t think they’ve opened up registration yet. Here are the details:

Program Title: Go BIG or go home? I’ll take HOME! Solutions and strategies for home-based photographers (that is my favorite title ever Carey!)
Program Day: Sunday 3/07 Time: 2:00pm to 4:00pm
Program Room: Room #201
The folks from WPPI told me to give people this link to “stay tuned”
http://www.wppionline.com/lasvegas/intro.html

I had to end with this sweet image of her dog (otherwise, I’d be in BIG trouble!).

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Carey just revamped her whole blog, and it’s pretty cool! http://barefoot-memories.com/blog Go check it out and tell her what you think!

If you have any questions for her, feel free to post them up in today’s comments. Also, be sure to check out her Pocket Guides! They are awesome!

And if you want to read more about Carey, she recently did an interview with a friend of ours, Davina Fear. Davina is another beautiful woman in the industry. She has been doing these awesome “Women and Business” interviews on her blog. Carey had a ton of great (and funny) things to say. Check it our here! http://davina.squarespace.com/journal/2009/10/1/women-and-business-carey-schumacher.html I’ll be doing one for Davina this November. If you want to see Carey live and in action during a portrait shoot, check out her video on her main Barefoot Memories website!

p.s. Did you see the last four Amazing Mom features? If so, check them out here!

1. Interview w/ Leslie Webber from Indianapolis, Indiana!

2. Interview w/ Michelle Riddle from Santa Cruz, CA!

3. Interview w/Tracie Stier-Johnson from Milwaukee, Wisconsin!

4. Interview w/Lora Ayers from Atlanta, Georgia!

A new one to come next week!

p.s.s. AND, would you like to be featured on our blog too?

If you have attended our workshop, purchased one of our five 101 Kits , or watched our DVDs, and feel like your life has taken a new and wonderful turn for the better, then please send me an email at mera@fioria.us . I will send you directions on how to be featured. We can’t promise to feature everyone, but I want to do this type of blog post more and more. Hundreds of people have sent us the most amazing emails regarding our workshops and DVDs impacting their life, their before and after photos, their revived passion; I would love for all of you to hear those stories!

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What about putting CONFIDENCE on your Christmas Wish List this year!!! We are down to THREE spots in the January Seattle CONFIDENCE Workshop! The November Seattle CONFIDENCE Workshop is already sold out! CLICK HERE to get one of the last spots!

Our Refuse to Say Cheese DVD series are now AWARD WINNING! Read the press release HERE ! If you haven’t ordered your own copy yet, check out our popular Instructional DVDs Refuse to Say Cheese and Beyond the Green Box , and our 101 Kits for starting or expanding a business in photography, click on the titles of your choice!