Meet Jodi Anne Hendricks | LifeStyle & Wedding Photographer + Psychologist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jodi Anne Hendricks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jodi Anne, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
To be honest, I never really sat down and thought about starting my own business. It was just never even a question in my head that I *wouldn’t* start it.

When I started my business I was still in my Master’s Program to become a School Psychologist. It always seemed logical that I would officially work as a School Psychologist, and then enjoy photographing weddings here and there on the weekends.

I guess the thing that I never really thought about either was how that schedule was going to work for me once I had multiple kids (I only had my oldest son at the time.)

Luckily though, it all fell into place perfectly because after I had two more babies, it didn’t really make sense financially for my boys to go to preschool all day while working as a School Psychologist. My pay didn’t even cover the tuition for three kids.

My then-husband and I decided that I would stay at home with the boys. By that time I had already had spent a few years tinkering at building the business.

I just never anticipated that it would take off as quickly as it did when I went at it full-time.

Since then I have always grown my business in the same organic way that I started it. I make decisions when they feel right. I expand when the timing allows, and my gut usually tells me the next move that I’m going to make long before I ever make it.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I have been a wedding and portrait photographer for almost 15 years now. Prior to that I earned a Master’s Degree in Educational and School Psychology.

When my first son was born his Dad and I booked an appointment with a newborn photographer. This photographer worked out of her home by creating a makeshift studio on her kitchen table. As she took photos of my baby… I looked around and thought… I could do this.

Later that week I bought a camera and started to teach myself how to use it. I practiced on everything that moved. I read blogs until my eyes would hurt. I would be up in the middle of the night feeding a newborn and watching videos online of how to work my camera. I consumed everything that I could about photography for years.

I started booking work with friends who wanted family and kid portraits. Slowly, I started to focus on weddings. I went to some workshops and started to build a portfolio. I hustled… hard. I asked wedding planners to lunch. I offered them headshots. I gave them marketing materials. I bought bouquets from florists and photographed them. I gave them the images, created business collateral for them, then took them to lunch too. I created friendships within the industry, which resulted in work being sent my way.

Year after year I continued doing this and my business grew. The more it grew the more I hustled.

Now, just a couple of months ago, I was photographing a large Indian wedding at the Four Seasons and I needed to add an extra photographer to my team for the day. The person who I ended up hiring was the same photographer who did my son’s newborn photos 15 years prior…and she was ecstatic to get to watch me work. It was a full-circle moment for me and my business that felt absolutely incredible.

I opened my first portrait studio a few months ago because I felt the need to reduce the amount of wedding work I was doing since it was pulling me into so many other cities and countries… and away from my kids. I’ve also added some educational work to my business as I begin to educate other photographers about how to build a successful photography business.

The best thing that I have learned through all of this is that I can create anything I want. I can build my life around me to fit exactly the life that I desire. I can be a present mom while also showing my boys what a powerful woman can build.

My superpower is making people feel and look beautiful, first and foremost, and then I photograph that.

My foundation has always come from my masters in Educational Psychology and the understanding of human behavior.

Learning how to use a camera is easy… but understanding how to direct a photoshoot is the part that takes masterful skill. It’s incredible to look back and see what I have built… but it’s exhilarating to now teach my methods to other photographers and see the lightbulb moments that they are getting to have in their own businesses.

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.
Ooof. I am not the person to ask this question.

If my best friend came to visit… I wouldn’t want to leave my house. I would want to order take-out, have cocktails in my kitchen, and spend every minute that I could talking and laughing. We would lay by my pool and do nothing all day!! ha ha ha!

Can you tell I have three kids?

I’m guessing the one place that we would hit up would be the spa. Luckily, living in Las Vegas, we have plenty to choose from!! My two favorites are The Spa at Green Valley Ranch and The Waldorf Astoria Spa. If we were down on the strip at the Waldorf, I guess we could meander over to the Shoppes at Crystals just down the strip for an afternoon of shopping… if you twist our arms, I guess. 😉

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There has been an endless amount of support that has always uplifted my business from every corner of my world. From the very beginning I have had friends willing to let me practice on them, family members who have hired me for jobs long before I was qualified to do them, industry vendors who have given my business life behind the scenes and who have kept saying my name to refer work my way.

My Dad is my forever hype-man. My Mom is a powerhouse who taught me to never take no as an answer. My boys give me a reason and a purpose to wake up and show them what a strong woman can accomplish. My fiancé (almost husband) has shown me that unconditional support from a partner can truly change your world. And the clients who hire me, and continue to fuel and support my dreams… they are the ones who truly deserve a shoutout because without their trust… my business wouldn’t even be possible.

Website: www.j-annephotography.com

Instagram: @j.annephotography