Audrey Neracoulis, Welcome to The Wedding Biz! Audrey is a film photographer based in Paris and is known for her unmistakable fashion house inspired aesthetic, and unique and sophisticated work. She also brilliantly utilizes social media, especially Instagram, in ways that will surprise you.
Audrey has a master’s degree in marketing and dreamt of being surrounded by, and working with, a wonderful team. When faced with the reality that a first job working for a corporation meant sitting alone in a cubicle, she decided it wasn’t for her. She chose to pick up a camera, tell stories visually with pictures and become a photographer, even though she had never taken a picture before.
Is the hardest part of your business attracting new clients? Listen, as Audrey describes what she did when she started out and what she does today to attract clients. She says you have to have a strong brand and make personal connections with your clients. Audrey is sharing her life with pictures on Instagram believing that letting potential clients see her story through photographs will give them the best idea of the reality of her work.
Audrey’s vision for a wedding is to blend fashion photography and cinematic documentary to make the perfect photographs. Her passion is capturing the emotional and physical connections of the bride and groom so that the images evoke meaningful memories. For added dimension, she likes to build in a sense of sensuality learned from her experience with shooting boudoir.
If you are a photographer or want to be, pay attention as Audrey points out the difference between using film, going digital, and the benefits of both. Listen as she tells us how to create and connect with clients when traveling, about her retreats in Paris, and all the ways she teaches about photography.
This is a compelling episode with so much great information you will definitely need to take notes, so sit back and enjoy.
Show Highlights:
[02:54] Audrey, it is so exciting to have you on the show!
[03:38] Andy and Audrey chat about speaking English in France.
[04:37] She was married to a man from Kentucky but lived in New York, where she went to school, got her master’s degree, and her first job.
[06:53] Audrey started her career in photography with no training because she wanted to tell stories with pictures.
[08:23] She made a business decision to blog before she bought her first camera to see if she could attract clients.
[10:17] Audrey chats about learning from YouTube and taking pictures of friends.
[11:33] Attracting clients is about telling a story, the wedding industry is very personal, and you need a strong brand.
[12:37] She shares her life through photos on Instagram so that clients can get a better sense of who she is.
[15:44] Audrey takes a video of each event to show everything that happens in real life, the good and the bad.
[18:10] She takes a photo at each event that she posts to Instagram so that potential clients can see in real-time what she does.
[19:44] Audrey gets recommendations from vendors for events.
[20:39] She explains her process for her preparing because she often doesn’t meet the client until the wedding.
[22:49] Audrey speaks about her vision for each wedding and how she creates beautiful portraits by blending fashion and cinematography.
[24:37] How do you capture the emotional and physical connection between the couple?
[27:42] Doing boudoir and couples’ photos allows her to add a sense of sensuality to the images.
[29:12] Audrey shoots with film instead of digital, which is more challenging because every shot counts.
[32:08] Why do you use film? What are the benefits of each?
[33:24] She networks wherever she is, even on vacation, she posts where she is going and creates meetups.
[36:31] Audrey has retreats in Paris where she shows people what she shoots, provides hair and makeup classes, and powerpoint presentations on photography.
[39:20] How do you find out what people want? Direct messages or…?
[41:28] Audrey says her social media platform of choice is Instagram.
[44:42] Her retreats are tours of the area, round tables with people sharing their ideas, cooking classes, and more. All along the way, she photographs, which people learn about.
[45:42] What kind of equipment do you use?
[47:57] Audrey, thank you for being on the show!
LINKS & RESOURCES
Follow The Wedding Biz on Social:
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Title Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Kushner Entertainment
Audrey Neracoulis
@audreyparisphoto
Retreat information at Rendezvous with Audrey
Mentioned on the Show
Jose Villa on The Wedding BizAndre Maier on The Wedding Biz