Zero to 30 in 94,608,000 Seconds

I did 30 family mini sessions in the month of October.

I rarely post my “numbers in any capacity. These are simply not the metrics in wish to share when communicating the success of my business. But there is one number that really matters.

ZERO.

The first time I offered family mini sessions, I had exactly ZERO people sign up to do a spring mini session with me. To be fair, I was 6 months into my business and 6 months into my moving back to Des Moines. But ZERO. That was a hard set back. I had a few more than zero when I extended the offer in the fall, but I'm fairly certain I did far less than 30 family sessions in my first year of business.

My point? I could have stopped then. I could have seen that big fat ZERO and thought I was not good enough. That nobody wanted what I have to offer. That perhaps I should go get a job and some stable income and stop chasing this big, crazy dream of mine.

But I didn't. Instead, I realized that I had just begun. That before I could reap the benefits of a booming business, I first had to establish myself as a contributing member of this community. I had to show up, time and again, doing unpaid work, saying yes to way too many things, establishing my personal brand and really diving into this beautiful community I call home.

And now, nearly 3 years into my business, I'm already at the point where I get to say no. I get to reevaluate and take a step back. I can raise my rates and know that people will still say yes. I can set my own rules and have faith that people will follow them.

But I couldn't do any of this if I had stopped or if I had thought the world owed me something I hadn't earned yet. I've spent almost every single second of the past 3 years plotting and scheming and shooting and hustling and figuring out EXACTLY what I want this business of mine to be in peoples live. This did not happen quickly. This happened with 12 hour days and massive sacrifice, both emotionally and financially.

And now - I finally am starting to recognize my own success. I can't walk down the street in Des Moines without seeing a friendly face I've photographed. I have several families that I've photographed 3 times or more. I am capturing their always. I'm a part of their legacy. And all the hard work? It’s so increibly worth it.

Empowerment Portrait Session: Michelle Book

“I’m so proud of you.”

My mom voiced this sentiment thousands of times in my life. Every time my brother and I would experience success, or struggle through a life event that eventually became an achievement, we could rely on mom to show up with her pride. This phrase was uttered so many times, it eventually became a household joke. Now Hunter and I tell each other about the pride we experience for each other’s achievements both in jest and true sincerity. 

My mother taught me pride. She taught me to stand up tall. To be no one but myself, make decisions and move forward. She taught us that we could do anything, and would have to do most things by ourselves. She gave us the confidence to achieve without reservations. 

My mother is my safety net, but she raised Hunter and I to be so strong, that we rarely need it. My brother and I are good people. We value helping others, giving to those who are less fortunate and working really really hard for every dollar in our lives. We knew how to do all of this, because we watched our mother’s commitment to her work and to herself. 

My mom is amazing- by the real definition of the word. She built herself piece by piece, one life experience at a time, into a person Hunter and I are so proud to claim. She shows up to the task of self improvement and accomplishment everyday. She has fought through more personal struggles and roadblocks than I would wish on a stranger. And every single time, I watch her come out stronger, more amazing, more giving, and more impactful. 

Moving back to Des Moines has allowed me the greatest joy of building a life along side my mom. We are able to be each other’s dates at events. I’ll walk past Centro on a Thursday night and have the unexpected pleasure of waving at my mom and popping in for a hug. There was one day earlier this year when we were both interviewed for the same news segment, by the same reporter. While our accomplishments are different, she is fighting to end food insecurity in Iowa and I am fighting to give everyone the feeling of confidence and self love I am so fortunate to hold, we walk together on this long and complicated path of life. 

She is my mentor, even when I fight her. She is my rock, even when I’m holding her. She is my vault, even when I can’t find the words to express my feelings. Mom, I’m so proud of you. Hunter and I are all of the good things because you were there to show us what good is. Love you tons. 

My mother is who I would nominate for our newest campaign, Empowerment Portrait. I want to gift one inspiring woman the feeling of beauty and empowerment with a complimentary portrait session with hair and makeup services. Who has lifted you up, helped you in an immeasurable way? Nominate her for an empowerment portrait here!

Natalie Gendle: Badass Business Momma

A Note from Whitney:

I met Natalie just as she was opening ACADEMIC lash & beauty. We bonded instantly over our mutual desire to help people find and claim their beauty. Natalie applies lash extensions and performs lash lifts and tints while I photograph people and help them look and feel confident. We often talked about the nervous energy our clients feel before working with us. They are taking a risk, stepping out of their comfort zone and choosing to see themselves in the most positive light. After leaping into our respective services, our clients reflect on how amazing, beautiful and confident they feel. 

In addition to being business buddies, we are both huge fans of each other's talents. I get my lashes done every 3 weeks with Natalie and look forward to seeing my face as it's fully brightened by her beautiful work. Natalie has done headshots and a family shoot with me - and we both loved every second of collaborating to create moments she'll cherish forever. 

I asked Natalie to share her story of starting a business in the midst of motherhood. I know her struggle is so familiar to so many, and I greatly admire the courage she displays every day as she moves her business and family forward.

Here's the truth: I was not thriving as a stay-at-home mom. With three kids 5 and under, I was struggling to find fulfillment from an existence where I never felt I could achieve success. I worked hard to be disciplined enough to create good days but there was always another load of laundry, another load of dishes, another meal to create, another diaper to change. It felt as if there was no end in sight - no end of the workday and no break in sight. 

Taking the leap and opening ACADEMIC lash & beauty changed everything for me. Having a full-time career forces me to be more disciplined. I now thrive on the variety of my workday and in turn, this has made me a more fulfilled person. Now that I work outside the home, my family's world has delightfully expanded as well. My children have more friends, caring teachers, new experiences, time away from their parents to gain autonomy, and a bigger world. This has proven to be a very happy experience for the whole family.

Don't let me fool you, I don't do it all. Its crazy to attempt to! I am still figuring out how to delegate my old duties to ensure that I thrive in my workday and still enjoy my family time when I’m home. I have a great husband who stepped up to the challenge. He is an incredible dad and partner and his flexible work schedule allows him to pick up the slack when I can't. We sometimes hire the amazing ladies at my local laundry mat. Their “fluff and fold” services help me tackle the ever-mounting piles of laundry. We have cleaners every two weeks which take the edge off the house maintenance.  With these decisions, I've given myself the freedom to focus on how I'm best suited to serve my family and community. Leaning on the strengths and services of other businesses has proven to be a good philosophy for us as we navigate the terrain of our daily life. 

I often think of the legacy I am creating, for my family and community. I am always striving to better myself, to help as many people as I can and have the biggest, positive impact possible. Being a business owner allows me so many new and exciting opportunities, challenges, and friendships. Growing a business allows me to miss my family a little and come home to them at the end of the day, excited to hear their stories and reconnect. It has given me the opportunity to be a larger part of my community and has allowed me to positively impact the lives of others.  

The biggest change I've seen is within myself. This amazing adventure has given me the opportunity to grow into a better version of myself.  The long days, missed family meals and stressful challenges of entrepreneurship don't always seem worth it in the moment, but I know that by striving to be the best version of myself, I am also becoming a better wife, mom, community member, friend and ultimately, someone I truly like, when I look in the mirror.

Happy Mother's Day Victoria!

I love photographing families, especially families lead by parents like Adam and Victoria. Our shoot was simple and sweet. It took place in their beautiful backyard where their twins, Zelda and George comfortably roamed and explored. The shoot wasn't perfect. It was a bit windy and George got camera shy a few times, but Adam and Victoria were present for every moment of our experience. Tears and laughter were taken in stride as equally important memories. They've only been parents for a year, but they already seem to understand that being a family means embracing everything about one another. I love the moments we created together. 

The following is a letter written by Adam for Victoria in honor of her strength as a mother. Adam is a very gifted writer so I warn you now, grab your tissues. You're going to need them.  

"What makes a mother? Certainly we understand the technical requirements. But what really makes a mother? Is it love? Sure, yes, of course. Love and motherhood go together better than any pair you can name. Love is essential to being a mother. But it only scratches the surface of beginning to understand motherhood.

Nobody tells you how terrifying it is to be a parent. The other night Victoria and I were following our 16-month old twins, George and Zelda, as they crawled up the stairs. It’s a nightly ritual we do before bedtime. They take great pleasure in pulling themselves up the stairs. Each step conquered elicits a squeal or shriek of laughter. We follow closely behind in case there’s a slip or an error. They’ve gotten a lot more surefooted recently, so it’s not uncommon for us to let them get a few steps ahead of us. George had practically raced up the stairs on this night. Zelda was taking her time, inspecting each dust bunny she found along the way. As George passed the top step, he set his feet and shot upright, ready to sprint forward to his bedroom. But he was too close to the edge of the stairs. An error. What was going to happen next seemed immediately, and terrifyingly, clear. George wobbled, teetered, grasped for balance, and then…fell. Backward.

So love, and what else? Devotion? Yes, that seems right. It must be a mother’s devotion to child that pulls her out of bed repeatedly throughout the night for weeks — or months — on end. It’s devotion to child that drives her to sacrifice so much. A mother is no longer an individual. She is an individual devoted to another.

George fell and the universe froze. Heels went over head, tiny arms flailed as he passed the top step and began what would be a devastating tumble. Victoria arrived just before his head smashed into the next step down, just before his world may have been irrevocably altered. Just the way a mother knows how to do. She scooped him into her arms and he cried because he was scared, and not because he was hurt.

Love and devotion are perhaps the two most obvious characteristics of mothers. The third is perhaps the most important: Strength. Witnessing Victoria as a mother these past 16 months is to witness her tap into deep reservoirs of strength. It’s her strength that gets us through the terrifying, exhausting and mystifying ordeal of parenthood. Sometimes it’s as simple as preventing George from falling down the stairs. Other times it’s not. Beneath it all is the strength of a mother. It’s the strength that keeps our family going.

Happy Mother’s Day, Victoria."

Mother's Day Mini Session!

Honor Mom with a Mother's Day Mini Session!

I am so lucky to have so many wonderful photos on my mom and I. Being a professional photographer has it's perks and I have many talented friends who have honored my mother's and my relationship over the years. I feel as if I'm in the minority on this. I've talked with so many mom's whose response to having their photo taken is, "Oh, no. Not me. I'm always taking the photo." 

Moms, I'm here to tell you to be in photos, by yourself and with your family. I love sitting down and flipping through our old family albums, watching the passage of time and seeing me grown up alongside a 30 year old version of my mom. Getting to witness my mom and I together is one of my greatest joys. I LOVE the photos of the two of us. The "bad" ones and the good ones. So kids, get your mom is photos. Do a little convincing. I know she may say "no" several times, but deep down she knows the importance of these images. She'll thank you for it later. 

WHAT IS A MINI SESSION?

Great question! 

My mini sessions are 30 mini sessions taking place on Mother's Day weekend, May 7th and 8th. What better way to celebrate? The mini sessions can accommodate up to 6 people and are held at Water Works Park. Mini sessions are designed to be fun, easy and low key. $100 reserves your time and date. Packages with retouched digital negatives and 3 accordion style mini albums start at $300. The digital negatives serve to update your Facebook gallery with fresh pictures of your family and the mini albums are the tangible record of your lives that you'll have for generations to come. 

I'm looking forward to capturing photos of your moms and creating amazing memories together. 

Home Coming: The Top 5 Reasons I LOVE DSM.

Hello all! 

First of all, I'd like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone involved in my big life transition. There are so many people in Rochester, NY, Des Moines, IA, and cities far and wide who supported me in making this relocation dream come true. 

I've been back in DSM for a little over a month and I have to say, I'm astounded. The support I received upon my arrival was more then I ever could have anticipated. I'm so grateful and I feel compelled to gush. So here it is - my top five reasons I'm ecstatic to be back in DSM! 

4. Open and inclusive attitude: I am overwhelmed by the resounding "YES" I've received when inviting people for coffee. Community leaders are thrilled to take time out of their day to enjoy a conversation with this young entrepreneur. Wedding vendors with well established creditability and awesome work ethic have instantly accepted me into their inner circles. Countless strong and impressive young women in the community have taken me under their wing as friends and confidants.  I am truly honored and thrilled to be part of these ever growing and inclusive circles of strength. 

3. Gorgeous places to shoot, be entertained and be enthralled: The change in Des Moines from when I was a high schooler to now is beyond comprehension. I am so proud of my town, even though I can't take any credit for this transformation. I look forward to being a positive influence in this community in the years to come. 

2. Impressive female leaders making a difference in Des Moines: Now this might truly be one of the most engaging points this community offers me. Everywhere I turn, I see women making real, measurable changes in our local and global community. I see these women reaching out and offering a supportive hand, getting down and dirty for conservation issues and stepping up to the capital to speak their mind. I am honored to join your ranks. Thank you for leading the way.

1. Family: I lived in Rochester, NY for seven years. That was seven years of texting, FaceTime, extended weekend visits and treasured Christmas vacations with the people I love most. I have to be honest, I forgot what it was like to have my family around. I forgot what it meant to be able to call on them ANYTIME, for ANYTHING. Being here, surround by these people is the best thing about Des Moines. 

Capturing Your Always: The Lovely Langs

One of the greatest honors as a photographer is being able to watch families come together and grow. Nick and Allie have created a beautiful family that exudes happiness and gratitude. It has been a pleasure to get to know them individually and as a unit. Below, Allie share's a few words on her journey as a wife and mother. Thank you both for allowing me into your home and hearts.

"I feel as though when I became a mother, the world began spinning faster. Days, weeks, and months fly by so much more quickly than they did before. This new fast-paced way of life has not been easy on me with my slow and steady, sentimental nature. I find myself grasping at all of these new, little moments, trying to commit them to memory. Having a family photographer in Whitney has allowed me to freeze and capture the most important moments in the lives of my ever-changing family. 

When we decided to get married, Nick and I did not want a big, complicated event. We chose a more intimate setting and only invited our closest family members to witness our vows. It was important to us that our wedding photos be able to capture not only the actual event, but also the emotion and beauty of each moment and that is exactly what we found in the work that Whitney did for us. She was able to make us and our family members comfortable in front of the camera with her encouragement and simple direction and was in turn able to obtain some very beautiful and meaningful photographs. Not only have our family and friends complimented our photos, but I feel that they have been able to experience our wedding through them as well."

"Not long after our wedding, we welcomed Miles into our family. Those first few weeks home were spent learning about him, as well as discovering who we were now as parents. That time in my memory is a blur of feeding, rocking, swaddling, and catching sleep while we could. It was in the middle of all this that Whitney was able to capture another set of photographs for us. The morning she arrived at our house, we felt tired and disorganized and I was still having trouble finding clothes that fit correctly. I know I wondered to myself once or twice while Miles cried and we needed to take nursing breaks if maybe we should’ve done this a different time. Whitney was once again a positive and encouraging presence. Viewing those photos now, I am so grateful for them. They depict our little family at a time that we could never recreate. I look back at them in awe of how tiny and new Miles was. And even as we were overwhelmed by our new responsibilities, those photos allow me to tangibly remember how overwhelmed by love we were as well."

"Miles managed to grow from that tiny newborn to a smiling, babbling, crawling baby overnight. I can and have tried to document his amazing growth through taking a million and one cell phone pictures. However, not only do these do little justice to the fullness of his personality, but my husband and I are more often than not absent from them. And in truth, as much as our baby has changed each month, so have we grown and evolved right along with him. We had another set of photos done just after Miles turned six months old. It was a brisk Fall morning when we got to the park, but Whitney was ready to go and quickly found a great area to use as our backdrop. I can’t imagine that it’s easy to pull together two adults, a distractible baby, and an anxious dog to form a cohesive image, but Whitney managed it easily and we were out of the cold and back in the warm car faster than I would have ever expected. As I have now come to expect, we loved these photographs as well. With a family photographer, we have gained the unique perspective of documenting how our family has grown together."

"The images we have received from Whitney have been beautiful. They are something I know that we will treasure for many years. Not only do they document the important moments of our lives, but they have also been displayed as art in our home. I love that I can walk into our bedroom and be reminded of the promises and anticipation of our wedding day or look up at the living room wall to see the family we have become. Thanks Whitney!"

Capturing Your Always: The Van Houtens

Meeting Carrie is feels like meeting the human version of the sun. She just glows. Always smiling, always full of energy - her family circles around her with obvious love and respect for the warmth and steadiness she brings into the household. It was a pleasure to photograph Carrie and her amazing clan. I can't wait to do it again next year. 

"I decided to work with Whitney for many reasons - two of them being her confidence and positive attitude. She also has the reputation of being an amazing photographer. We had experienced too many years of disappointing and over-priced mall/department store photos!  Some of our family photos definitely deserve to be in the "Awkward Family Photos Hall of Fame"!  The photos Whitney took are COMPLETELY the opposite of these! Honestly, I was a little nervous about getting family photos taken at our home. I have three small kids,  three dogs and a husband which sometimes seems like an impossible herd to wrangle.  Whitney made the whole process easy and the time went quickly! The kids immediately liked her, and with all the encouragement she gave them, they quickly wanted to please her!   She even managed to get my husband to smile naturally. I'm so glad we invested in these photos. These treasures are worth every penny. The time when children are very small is very short. I love looking through my photos and sharing them with friends and family.  Thank you SO much, Whitney!"

- Carrie Van Houten: Wife and mother of three.

COMING HOME TO CAPTURE YOUR ALWAYS

Always: Every time, for every occasion - without exception.

The word always conjures certain nostalgia in my life. I am guilty of using this large and powerful word without proper distinction. Growing up, my mother would frequently retort, “Always? Your brother always starts the fight?” This happened so frequently that when I turned 18 and left home for college, the thought of tattooing the word always on my body crossed my mind more than once. The medium seemed poetically fitting. 

This idea of always propelled my return home to start Ivory House Photography in Des Moines, IA. I want to grow my life and business near the people who I know will always support me. It is with this commitment to my own legacy of always and passion for my clients' version of always that I open the proverbial doors of Ivory House Photography and welcome you with open arms. I can’t wait to meet you, your spouse and your family members. Together we are going to capture memories that will last for your lifetime and beyond.

In honor of the importance photos play in my own life, I thought it was only fitting to share a few of my favorite images. Over the past few years I've had the opportunity to work with the best photographers in Rochester. Thanks to Natalie Sinisgalli and Rachel Liz for capturing the people I love most in such a beautiful and honest way.