Sara’s Story: From running on fumes to everything running smoothly

As an experienced entrepreneur with a background in business, the marketing and admin side actually came quite naturally to me when I took my photography business full time in 2016. 

My business grew rapidly, but that meant I didn’t have time to put in the systems I needed to run things smoothly. I was doing everything myself, from responding to every email to doing all of the post-production on my images. 

I spent many late nights churning out work and took on multiple triple and quadruple header wedding weekends (including one memorable four day stretch flying from Vancouver to the Okanagan and back!) because my pricing was still low enough that I wanted to take on lots of clients to make more money.

After years of being burnt out and running on fumes, I pulled myself together and started really working on the systems and strategies that would help me run my business properly.    

I developed email templates, outsourced my editing and culling, automated tasks through my CRM and finally hired a VA in 2023, which really changed my workflow. I even outsourced non-business tasks, like cleaning, so that I could focus on the best parts of my business, spend time with my family and have some room to breathe. 

For the first time in a long time, I was able to take a real vacation (no work!) and even have a few weekends in the summer off without stressing about my business. I wanted that freedom for other photographers too. 

That’s what led to the creation of Together We Co. Alongside my work bestie and fellow systems and spreadsheet lover, Aileen, we’re on a mission to change the photography industry by taking tasks off your plate and introducing more ease into your life.

After graduating from Emily Carr University’s photography program in 2016, I started second shooting for other photographers. I learned so much from them and I realized how important it is to be part of a supportive photography community. 

I knew that I loved photography. What I didn’t know was how to run a business. I went through a lot of trial and error in building my business, and committed to constantly trying to learn and improve. 

That, plus my hobby of organization (I love making lists!), allowed me to hone in on the systems that would help me run my business like a well oiled machine.

During the pandemic, I got to experience what it was like to have weekends off from weddings and free time in the summer. For so long photography had been my only thing; I didn’t have time for other interests or activities. 

Slowly, I started to find my identity outside of being a photographer. I realized that there is so much more to life than work, even if it’s work that you love. 

So I committed to improving my work life balance. But once weddings and events were back on, I found myself overworked and burnt out all over again. I knew something needed to change.

I began outsourcing parts of my workflow to lessen my load and give me back my time. I was able to focus on the parts of my business - and, more importantly, my life - that I loved the most. 

I know what it’s like to stumble through building a photography business and experience burnout when that business starts to take over your life. That’s why I teamed up with Sara to create Together We Co. 

We want to help you, our fellow photographer, find the right resources, set up the best systems and outsource the tasks you hate so you have more room for the things you love. 

Photography Awards + Recognitions