Meet Jennifer Shrestha | Equine Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer Shrestha and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
You know it’s funny thinking back upon starting my business. Honestly, I knew I loved horses and that they were a large part of my life. They were the thing that got me up in the mornings and helped me sleep at night. Horses were a world I fully understood and felt comfortable in since childhood. I remember there was one evening where I was lying on my bed feeling pretty down about my career and my future, so I hopped on social media (which I was not heavily a part of then), and found a horse photograph that really soothed my soul. I looked at it and I understood it immediately. That’s when I realized that there are plenty of others like me out there that find peace within the equine world. So I just started photographing horses and I fell in love with it. So there wasn’t really a process at first. It was more of a moment in life that got the wheels turning. Sometimes that’s what we need – a critical turning point that pushes us to new paths and heights in order to get moving again. After a year of just shooting for pleasure, I really started to grow my business after people took notice of the work and wanted their horses and themselves photographed.

What should our readers know about your business?
Well let me start with saying there are tons of photographers who do what I do. Equine photography is very much a large part of the equine industry. Everything from commercial equestrian apparel and tack to breeding stud portraits of horses, or to senior photos with their four legged partner all has to be photographed. So the net is wide and there are a lot of avenues equine photographers can take. What I haven’t found so much within the equine photography world is quality and narrative within the photographs. There isn’t a lot of intention within the work. This is a quality I try hard to bring to each of my jobs, an overall concept or theme. If I’m doing a commercial shoot I will bring in professional makeup artists, retouchers, stylists, and equestrians, etc. The whole nine yards, because again, these larger projects take more people who do a far better job in their area then I do. So the quality of the work goes up tremendously because a good team is brought together. This isn’t always the case, but for the larger projects, rarely is it a one man band.

I think I’m most proud of creating a successful business from basically nothing. I really started this business as well – not a business. And I believe I mentioned this earlier, but it was more about photographing something I resonated with, understood, and was passionate about. This is key! If you don’t essentially love what your photographing regularly why are you doing it? Your images will be dead and your viewers will see it too. This doesn’t go to say you won’t have assignments or shoots that are all just amazing. There will be a lot of boring stuff in between, but if you can tolerate it every so often and it’s in the subject or genre you love then you’re never really going to get tired of it. So I got my business to where it is today through passion, dedication, and honestly a mass amount of hard work. Networking was essential for me and I think is for any career starter. It all takes time, but you have to be willing to put in that time – honest time. That may mean sacrificing something else in your life that is currently taking precedence. It’s different for everyone, but usually that means making some pretty tough calls, but well worth the sacrifice for a little bit. Networking wasn’t easy for me nor was the business or marketing side of the industry. I’m an introvert by nature so putting myself out there and going out and finding those jobs, or the next gig was tough, but once the word got out, it was a snowball effect.

There was one challenge after another to be sure, because I wasn’t just photographing horses, I was also marketing the work, figuring out pricing, how to spread the work on social media, understanding, along with going to school, working a full time job, and living a life. So if you want to be taken seriously as a photographer within the industry, you got to get serious. This means doing the homework, going the extra mile, replying to emails, meeting the deadlines, and making the phone calls. I mean the list goes on. But you gotta stick to it and keep pursing it. Often photographers get really excited early on in the process but then they die out and end up doing something else because they just didn’t stick with it. With life, this can be tough, but it’s essential. You have to keep trying and pursing. You can’t give up.

I just want upcoming artists, creatives, or entrepreneurs to remember, that if I can do it, they most certainly can. I went to school for photography but that didn’t make me a photographer. There was so much more I had and still am learning, but researching, talking to other like minded people, and constantly pushing toward reachable goals is key. For me it was horses

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well….I live in the heart of a very rural farming community and as much as I love the country lifestyle it’s not for everyone. So I would most definitely take them up into northern Michigan instead. I’m a sucker for travel, National Parks, and hiking so I think I’d plan a trip to Pictured Rock National Park and Mackinaw Island -its an all unmotorized only island with beautiful white sandy beaches. I’d probably bring some kayaks with me and some camping gear. As for food, well I’m all for trying what’s around in the area. I don’t have one particular favorite place, but I do love Asian food and will usually pick that over any other option on a trip unless its authentic to that place.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Oof where to begin! There have been so many people who have supported my work, mentored me as a photographer, and have encouraged me to keeping hitting my goals. One of the people at the top of my list is Marc Ullom. Marc is a fellow professional photographer, retoucher, printer, drone flyer, and van life builder just to name but a few things. I mean need I say more! I have a very high regard and respect for Marc as he not only has been my mentor for many years, but has also become a wonderful friend who has encouraged me to keep doing what I’m doing. He has helped me on my own commercial and personal projects and even helped me pursue my MFA. What I like about Marc is that he is one hundred percent honest and essentially caring. He wants to help others succeed and he has pushed me constantly to keep raising the bar within my own work.

Website: www.sundancephotograpy.co

Instagram: sundance.photo / jts.travels

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