Goals are kind of like magic eye posters, you need to stare at a single point in order to see the full picture. But when left to our own devices, it can be so hard to choose where to focus. That’s where a mentor can be life changing.
We introduced Ashley Edwards, a talented photographer aspiring to build a product photography empire, to Lanna Apisukh, a superstar editorial photographer whose published work is truly awe-inspiring. And THIS is why there is nothing in the world like finding the right mentor.
Here’s what Ashley had to say:
Click: Can you tell us what your mentorship session was like? How did you meet?
Ashley: Meeting with Lanna on Zoom was so great! I loved hearing the path that she followed with photography and how she molded her current career. She and I have a lot in common and talking to her was so easy and natural.
Click: Sounds like a great match! What was the topic of your session?
Ashley: Our main discussion was on personal projects verses commercial projects and what publishers want to see in a pitch. The majority of our conversation circled around the idea of publishing — what it takes to start, how to prepare for publications and building a portfolio that publishers would like to see.
Click: Can you tell me some of your most valuable takeaways from this session?
Ashley: There were some really great takeaways from my mentoring session with Lanna. One thing I’m really excited about is the potential to get into product photography. I had never really thought about it much before, but Lanna saw potential for me in that arena and suggested I look into it. I actually feel like it might be a great fit!
Another valuable takeaway was that Lanna explained how to prepare for working with publications, and how that differs from commercial work. I have two separate portfolios — one for my personal photography and the other for my brand photography. Lana said that the personal work I’ve done is more likely what publishers would want to see, and that surprised me! She said that publishers value being able to see a full collection of things rather than just one-off photo shoots.
Another really interesting topic we touched on was the importance of writing skills when it comes to creating artist statements and a storytelling body of work. I’ve mastered taking a beautiful photo at this point, but what I really need is to hone in on my ability to tell a story. Her suggestions are going to be so useful moving forward.
Click: What one piece of advice did Lanna give you that you’re going to implement immediately?
Ashley: Taking action! I tend to be an over thinker, so I often have to be reminded to just act rather than ponder next steps over and over.
Click: Tell us about your “ah-ha” moments from this session.
Ashley: I think the main “ah-ha” moment for me was when Lanna told me that my personal work would likely be more important than my commercial work when it comes to submitting for publication and trying to get my foot in that door.
“Having someone show me what I am overlooking is really helpful in moving me toward a decision.”
Click: How do you think this mentoring session will help you?
Ashley: This mentoring session will help me move forward because it has given me more confidence, a clearer path, and specificity in what I need to pursue in the near future. For me, making decisions is really tough. I’ve always had a hard time with choices because I am someone who is multi-passionate. Having someone show me what I am overlooking is really helpful in moving me toward a decision. I often feel like my tires are stuck in mud. This mentorship helped give me that push out of it.
Click: Why did you want to do a mentoring session as opposed to taking a class or another way of learning?
Ashley: Classroom and tutorial teaching is great, but mentoring gets to you on a personal level. Not only can a mentor give you an outside perspective on your work, they can also help point out strengths and weaknesses that you may not have realized on your own.
Click: Anything you’d like to tell our readers about your experience with your mentor?
Ashley: Lanna has a beautiful energy! I can tell that she was truly interested in being a guide and wanted to see growth for me. I think that’s the big goal in a mentoring relationship — to see the mentee grow to new heights. I’m honestly so excited to show her what I’m up to in a few months so she can see how she impacted me. I feel like a kid in kindergarten who wants to draw a bunch of pictures and say, “hey, teacher, look what I did!”
Click: Is there anything you’d like to say about the value of mentorship?
Ashley: Mentorship is truly invaluable. I don’t think I ever really started understanding my passion, talent and goals until I talked to someone who has been in my shoes. Knowing that someone with success can help lead you to a higher level of yourself is so amazing and feels special. When I was in school, I remember several teachers that molded my perspectives, helped me see my talent and gave me a goal of what to look forward to. The same is true with mentorship.
More importantly, great mentors have the ability to help stir the fire within you so that you can eventually be free to fly on your own.
Click: How do you feel walking away from this experience?
Ashley: I feel like I have more clarity about where I should spend my time and energy with photography in the near future. One thing that I think really stuck with me is that Lanna mentioned having to choose if my goal is to make good money this year or get published, because those can be very different paths.
I had decided at the beginning of this year that I wanted to really expand my brand photography and video portfolio. So, getting published is something I can try and focus on once I’ve gotten to where I want to go with my business and am a bit more established with a team that can help me out. This realization is going to help move me forward on a path where I can accomplish both goals.
The Mentor
Lanna Apisukh is an award-winning editorial photographer whose work has been featured in The New Yorker, The New York Times, NPR, The Wallstreet Journal and in many prestigious exhibitions, workshops and events. She is a member of Diversify Photo and a FUJIFILM ambassador. Find her on Instagram @apisukh.
The Mentee
Ashley Edwards is a brand photographer and videographer from Austin, Texas. She specializes in creating images and videos for female entrepreneurs who want to fully embrace their extra-ness and show up online with personality and pizazz. You can find her colorful headshots and other work on Instagram @theawestudio.
Ashley Edwards won a mentoring session with Lanna Apisukh through a collaborative project by Fujifilm and Click, which seeks to highlight the importance of mentorship in photography growth. See video clips from their session on our Instagram @click.magazine.
Feature photo by Ashley Edwards, Ashley’s headshot by Carley Storm Photography.
Thanks again to Lanna for your guidance!