Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Gunther.
Erin, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I walked into Columbia College Chicago with a love for documenting moments. After taking my first photography class, I knew I’d found what I wanted to spend my life doing. I wanted to be a photojournalist and spend my time working on big, groundbreaking stories. However, life didn’t turn out that way. There was a time, I felt like I had failed because I didn’t get that big job at the newspaper and the world wasn’t seeing my images. But I realized that while my work might still not be important to the world, it is to the families I photograph. I couldn’t be happier that my path led me to where I am today.
After college, I started photographing weddings full-time. It was difficult to keep up with the pace after having my daughters, so I drastically cut down on weddings and went full time photographing families and newborns. I still shoot weddings from time to time but limit them to no more than five per year.
I love weddings but there is something about family photography that fulfills me, it’s something that never fully came to me until I had kids of my own. Now, it’s everything. I put everything into my sessions to make them fun and easy. We run, play and laugh. I want to give the kids the memories of these photos but of the session as well. Years down the road when they look at the images, I want them to remember how much fun they had played in that field with their mom and dad. I truly want my sessions to feel like a special experience for the whole family. I find the parents are usually more relaxed after I talk with them and reassure them of my process. I want your kids to be crazy. I don’t want them to smile and stare at me saying ‘cheeeeese’. I’m all about real moments.
I’m an open book. I’m real. I’m loud and I love to have fun and create these memories for my clients. I truly feel like my purpose in life to tell these stories. Asking how I got where I am is hard to answer. I think I got here by being me. I love what I do. I love my clients. I take the time to try and get to know each and every one of my clients, who they are, what they love, and what is important to them. At the end of the day the perfectly in focused, well lit photo of them smiling at me saying ‘cheese’ so they can get their ice cream after the session shows nothing about who they are as a family, or how much they love each other and when all they have left are these photos, I want to make sure they just emanate love. I want to show you what that looks like.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I’ve learned some hard lessons along the way, but I think the most important one is that I do my best work when I stay true to myself. There was a time where I tried to show work that I thought others would want to see, which led to me feeling burnt out and unhappy. Comparison is the thief of joy, and it stole away my love for photography. But then I had my first little miracle and I remember photographing all the things I wanted to remember about her because she was changing so fast, her bald little head, her gummy smiles, the way her whole face would squish when she yawned and I realized that was what I wanted to make sure I never forgot. It wasn’t all about the headbands, and bows and the perfectly posed photos. Now, while technical aspects of photography are important to know and keep in the back of your mind while shooting, it’s about learning to keep that all in your head, and shooting from your heart. That is where the magic happens. I still feel that internal struggle of what people think about my work but at the end of the day it’s about doing what I love and how I love to tell these stories. Life is messy, and sometimes the imperfect photos are the ones that are perfect.
I have been invited to photograph the most amazing moments, both with a full and heavy heart. I’ve been there while mothers bring new life into the world, and I’ve spent the last days parents have spent with their child. As photographers, we are the tellers of stories that will be passed down for generations to come. Our work is important. The stories of the families we photograph is important. I want my images to have so much life that the viewer feels like they know my subjects. I want you to feel something when you see my images.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I own Waffles & Honey Photography and I love all things real. My business name comes from my five-year struggle with infertility. After finally having a successful round of IVF, my husband and I were handed a photo of our little embryo. My husband, who calls me ‘honey’, joked that it resembled a waffle. When rebranding my company name, I thought nothing was more fitting then naming it after the two things (now three since having another little girl) I love the most!
I am a natural light, lifestyle photographer that specializes in emotive family sessions and the unposed newborn serving the New Lenox area. Clients can choose between a studio, home or outdoor session. I follow what I learned at Columbia and from the great Mary Ellen Mark is that ‘Reality is always extraordinary’ and that emotion trumps everything else. I love people, natural light, organic textures, soft tones and real emotions.
I co-own a natural light studio share in New Lenox. Andrea and I created this with the hopes of bringing creatives together, as well as having a space to photograph our clients. The studio is available for rent for creative projects and photography sessions.
I also lead the South Chicago branch of The Rising Tide Society. The Rising Tide is all about educating and empowering creatives to thrive. I truly believe in community over competition and I love getting to know local creatives. We host meetings in the New Lenox Area on the second Tuesday of every month.
I’m most proud of the connections that I’ve made with my clients. – most of them have turned into friends and some even into family. It truly is an honor to be someone they trust enough to allow into their hearts and create these memories. Whether that is a heartbreaking obstacle or a new baby, I love being allowed to photograph every moment, happy or sad, of their lives. Through photography I’ve photographed in some the most amazing places Chicago has to offer. I’ve gotten to witness strong mothers birthing their babies. I’ve gotten to travel. I’ve given the gift of showing someone just how beautiful they are. I’ve given families their first and last photos of their loved ones. I’ve documented military and servicemen burials. I’ve been allowed into the hearts of my clients and I am forever thankful.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I think being real. I’m who I am and I don’t know how to be anything else. I spent a good part of my life comparing myself to others and it never got me anywhere. I’m not for everyone, and I know that but the people that are ‘my people’ are the key to my business. Success to me is every client leaving a session that was fun and loving their images when their gallery is delivered. I pour my heart into these sessions and it’s the most rewarding thing knowing that your clients had fun, made memories, and love the results.
Pricing:
- Family Sessions start at $400
- Newborn sessions start at $450
- Birth sessions start at $1000
Contact Info:
- Address: 327 W Maple St
New Lenox, IL 60451 - Website: www.wafflesandhoneyphotography.com
- Phone: 708-567-2310
- Email: EGUNTHER314@GMAIL.COM
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wafflehoneyphoto
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wafflesandhoneyphotography
- Other: www.thestudiosouth.com
Image Credit:
Waffles & Honey Photography
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