Have you ever been told you have to start some where? Sheesh, that can be really deflating to the little hustler I was in High School when I started my business. I wanted to have it all together right then and there! 8 years later…. that’s STILL what I want! One thing that I could not have done without in the travels of my business are mentors! Mentors are EVERYTHING! I started with people like my dad, who when he could get me to sit still for 20 minutes or longer,would teach me his knowledge of my camera. Then it moved into the realm of other photographers! Mentoring posts will come later – big KEY is make yourself useful to them… don’t just expect them to give give give to you! Ask yourself how you can help them and do something unique… that will make you a valuable “mentee”… I have learned that lots! (often times, just offering to shoot for them is not as beneficial to them as you may thing) So on this particular day two weeks ago, when I got the chance to help be a part of a mentorship relationship, it really took me back to my roots and where I started as a photographer. Great for me to remember where I came from, how far I have come and how I can give back and help other budding photographers.

Now, onto Jalisa Harris! This lady is the official Intern (“Mentee”) of Ike and Tash Photography and on a day where Tash was doing a mentoring day with Jalisa, I was heading to her office to go over some workflow thing that I was working on as well. Tash asked if I would model for Jalisa, so that she could work on shooting techniques, finding the light, camera settings, posing and directing a client! She did a great job and I was super impressed with how the images turned out. Thanks for a great experience in front of the lens Jalisa 🙂 Check out her work below: