Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Marier.
Hi Sarah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I always loved beautiful photos of food. I would scroll through Instagram or food magazines, just in awe of the artistry of food. I always thought “I would love to do that” but often told myself that I could never do that. I wasn’t qualified. The reality was, I was a high school teacher, not a photographer. I have zero photography training and was teaching full time, and my free time was consumed with raising young kids. I thought I had chosen my career path and that was that.
About two years ago, I was on maternity leave with 5th child and I decided to use that time to do something for me when the baby slept. I started watching YouTube videos about food photography and would practice the skills I learned with my sister-in-law’s hand-me-down basic DSLR camera. I fell in love with learning everything I could about food photography and styling. So decided to take a leap of faith and invest in my first online food photography course. I was hooked!
After a year of practice and growing in my skillset, I connected online with a fellow food photographer who was selling developed recipes and her photography to food bloggers. I was shocked, I didn’t know that many food bloggers hire out their photography and recipe development. So I created my first recipe package and sold it on the spot. By the end of the school year, I had replaced my teaching income with food photography. I had always wanted the opportunity to work from home, so I could be more available to my kids. I felt super blessed to have the opportunity present itself. So after 8 years of teaching in the classroom, I jumped I’m headfirst into expanding my food photography career. I purchased my first professional camera and never looked back.
Last July, I gave myself a goal to transition from working solely with food bloggers and expanding my client base to commercial photography. I enrolled in a year-long mentorship program with a well-known photographer, Jena Carlin (Portfolio to Profit Program). Through this program, I gained confidence in my value as a photographer and properly raised my service prices to be industry competitive. I learned how to approach commercial brands and work with a creative team.
Today, I am proud to say that I am a commercial food photographer and stylist. A dream that I never thought was possible before investing in my education. Today I get to work with commercial brands; such as President Cheese, GoOats, Kobrand wines and liquors. I also get to work with amazing local restaurants and entreprenuers to create beautiful content to expand their businesses. I also get the opportunity to now combine my love for teaching and photography by speaking at workshops, small business groups and online photography summits!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
To be honest, nothing worth having will be a smooth road. If you experience challenges, that means you are truly growing. If everything was smooth all the time, you are changing or being challenged enough. There were many times that I questioned my ability or was frustrated with my lack of creativity, but I had to give myself grace and try again tomorrow.
I taught my high school students about the importance of having a growth mindset when you are accomplishing your goals or learning something new. It truly came full circle and I knew had to practice what I preached. It was my turn to challenge myself and know that learning food photography would be a journey, not a race. I still today keep pursuing to learn more and continue to grow in my skillset. You are never done learning!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a commercial food and product photographer. This means that I get the opportunity to pair with amazing companies and businesses to create images that best highlight their food or products.
Each photographer sees the world differently through their lens and has a special and unique vision to share. I love shooting in many styles, but if I had to describe my personal style; I love to create a soft feminine feel with florals, antiques and a special attention to detail. I love to bring out the story behind the brand in my photos. This is really attributed to my grandmothers who inspire me with memories of my childhood.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I love collaborations! Whether it’s working together to create content for your brand, shooting on location or speaking at an event; I’d love to work with you. Networking is one of the biggest perks of this job. I get to meet and connect with some really talented people who are so inspiring.
Contact Info:
- Email: thedaintyblueberry@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.thedaintyblueberry.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.dainty.blueberry/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedaintyblueberry/
Image Credits
Nicole Spangler Photography (Headshot images)
Sarah Marier – The Dainty Blueberry Photography
