Happy Monday again everyone! Today’s featured photographer is pretty amazing! She is currently living in Hawaii and will soon be relocating to Central Illinois! If you live in Illinois, you definitely need to look her up! I met Lydia in a photographer group I am in. In fact, you may have seen her work already if you follow our Project 52 blog circle! So everyone….Meet Lydia!!

I’m Lydia. I’m a mom, wife, and photographer. I have three little ones of my own (who are quickly becoming big ones!), ranging from 4-9 years old. I’ve been married for almost 10 years and have lived with my family in Illinois, Colorado, and Hawaii! I love to travel, learn to play ukulele, and hike. And I LOVE to photograph my children, who are the ones that inspired me to learn to shoot in the very beginning. I’m wrapping up my time as a military wife on Oahu and am excited to start this next chapter. I can’t wait to encourage and empower mothers in Illinois with my photography. Taking care of little ones is often draining and I find so much joy in showing the beauty in motherhood.

When did you first start your photography business? What is your specialty?

• I’m relatively new to business! I started shooting nearly 5 years ago and swore I’d never start a business, but after I shot a birth for a close friend, I fell in love and knew I HAD to do this more often. I opened my business in July of 2015.

What is your specialty?

• I specialize in birth and motherhood portraits, which focus on documenting moms’ everyday lives with their children since they’re usually the ones behind the camera.

What do you shoot with and what’s your favorite lens?

• I shoot with a Nikon D610 and my favorite lens, by far, is my Sigma Art 35mm. I’d love to try more lenses and rent pretty often. I’m a sucker for a really wide lens.

What has been your biggest challenge?

• Finding the courage to really weave my passions and interests into my business and go down a non-traditional path. For me, that means saying, “ok, maybe typical, posed family photos aren’t my thing. But in-home sessions with a mama and her kids are.”

Tell me about your favorite session.

• That’s such a tough call! I LOVE shooting birth. I’m particularly drawn to home births, since I’m a home birth mama myself. I love showing the strength of a mother who conquers the hardest thing she has ever done. But I love all my sessions so much. There’s something so special about telling the stories of moms who so often feel lost in their day to day and showing them the beauty in their mundane tasks.

Do you have any advice for new photographers?

• SHOOT MORE. Take your camera everywhere. Try new things. Fail. Try again and fail again. Shoot through it. When you don’t feel like shooting, SHOOT MORE.
  Don’t be afraid to hire mentors you admire and invest in classes (I have a great blog post that shares my favorite resources!) to grow your skills.

If you would like to see more of Lydia’s work please check out her Facebook page and give her some likes! Lydia Stuemke – Birth and Family Photographer You can also follow her personal and business work on her website at  http://lydiastuemke.com/

If you are interested in becoming a featured photographer for Precious Stones Photography’s blog, please email Jamie at preciousstonesphotography@gmail.com

Thank you so much for following me and getting to know Lydia today! I hope you all have a fabulous week!