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Meet Sidney Copeland of Sidney Ellen Photography in Braselton

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Sidney Copeland.

Sidney, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I signed up for a photography class by chance with a friend in high school and quickly fell in love with the process. We had turned a janitor closet into a dark room, so I started learning to shoot black and white film and develop/print my own photos. From there, I learned to shoot digitally and the ins and outs of Photoshop. After three years of photography in high school, I went on to major in photography in college. I attended Georgia Southern University, where I received a Bachelor of Arts degree, with a concentration in Photography and a minor in Anthropology. At the time, I aspired to work for National Geographic. Turns out, it’s not too easy to get a job with them, and I moved back home to Atlanta after graduation, where I had a lot of people asking me to take their family or children photos. I started out doing that just to make money on the side, while working part time at a restaurant. But I was very surprised when I instantly fell in love with portrait photography. Now, I capture everything from maternity and newborn, to high school seniors and families, to weddings, and I work part time shooting product photography in Alpharetta and for another company called Shutterstock (formerly Flashstock) where I photography lifestyle sessions or commercial work for big companies like Budweiser, Panera, Quiznos, Mead Johnson, etc. Luckily, I never really have had to advertise or market myself, I am fortunate enough to have wonderful clients who refer me to friends and I get 99% of my clients from word of mouth referrals.

Has it been a smooth road?
In Atlanta, I would have to admit it has been a fairly smooth road. However, in 2015, my now fiancé and I, moved to Florida for him to attend college after the army. I figured that I could do photography anywhere, so I did a lot of research on marketing myself and my business in a new area before the move. We moved down in October of 2015, with the intention of being there for 3-4 years, but moved back in May of 2016-we didn’t even last a year! I passed out and left business cards everywhere, I called hospitals and OBGYN offices, trying to get my foot in the door with them, but no luck. I checked craigslist DAILY for ads about needing photographers, joined Facebook groups local to that area to try to make connections, and started babysitting, thinking that would get me in with some families, and although I booked a few sessions with that family, and she referred me to all her friends and neighbors-nothing happened. I even booked a family session in December that year that went perfectly-wonderful weather, wonderful family, wonderful photos-everything was phenomenal. She put my business card up at her work and told everyone about me and tagged me on Facebook, but still nothing. Meanwhile, we were making trips back to Atlanta once a month, and when I would come into town up here, I would be booked to the max. Living in Florida and realizing how hard it was to get started down there, and how I really had to hustle to book clients, and it still wasn’t working-that was tough.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Sidney Ellen Photography – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Although I capture a little bit of everything, I specialize in babies and bellies. I absolutely love capturing that time for families. A lot of women don’t feel as pretty and confident during the end of their pregnancy, so I like to book sessions then, and remind them of the beautiful journey of motherhood. And then, capturing birth sessions is a whole other world of photography. Most photographers don’t offer birth sessions, because it’s difficult being on call, like a doctor, to be able to make it to the birth at any given time. I have photographed at home births, as well as hospital births, and it never seizes to amaze me to witness how much patience and strength moms have. After that, there are newborn sessions. Capturing babies when there are anywhere from two to fourteen days old is just precious. I adore capturing all of their little details and how little they are, because we all know they grow SO fast, especially that first year. From there, it’s awesome to be able to continue to work with families as they grow and their kids grow, and I’ve created more than just a client relationship with them, they’re friends and family!

As a company, I am most proud of not having to do any marketing. It means so much to me, to create a wonderful experience for my clients, so that they not only continue to come back, but they also refer me to their friends and family as well.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I am born and raised in Atlanta, so it’s all I’ve ever known, besides living in Florida for those few months. I love the weather here, and that we do experience all four seasons. I love that we are in the south and that most people have that southern charm and hospitality. And of course, I love the southern cooking! I am a sucker for sweet tea, my mama’s cornbread, and people who say y’all! I definitely dislike the traffic, ha! That is something I’d want to change if given the chance.

Pricing:

  • Sessions start at $200

Contact Info:

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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