Meet Erica Manning | Creative Portrait Photographer and Photography Mentor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Erica Manning and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Erica, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
When I started out as a photographer, as many photographers do, I took on any and all opportunities that happened to come my way. I photographed just about everything, and I had no boundaries on my time or energy.

I mistook being “busy” with being “successful”.

In 2016, my mother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and showed signs of dementia. So much was going on at that time of my life. My daughters were in high school and preparing for college, I just had purchased and renovated a building for my photography studio, and my session calendar was jam-packed. As my mother’s disease progressed, I ended up moving in with her and my stepdad to help with her care. So I was also trying to nurture my marriage (from separate households).

I was spent. I was burning the candle at both ends – running in circles trying to keep my business going and keeping up with kid’s schedules, household duties, and my mother’s medical appointments and care. Creativity was completely out the door because I was too busy trying to hold everything together. And I felt like my personal life was hanging on by a string. I even shamefully found myself angry with my mom for taking so much time away from my business! I was at a breaking point and knew something had to change.

My mother passed in 2018, and at that time I began to work on my business processes to attempt to get my work/life balance under control. Since that time, “processes” has become one of my love languages, opening up time for my family and for my creativity.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As I began to enter images into award and accreditation programs, I noticed that the scores were notably higher when the images had strong elements of story in them. I began to study and seek ways to tell stories through my images, which propelled my craft to the next level. It wasn’t easy, and I had a lot of “fails” along the way. Sure, those failures hurt. But with each fail, I learned what I needed to work on. And when I took that to heart and really worked to improve (instead of being bitter about the failure), I found great success in the award organizations I was a part of. I believe you must be open to failure in order to become the best you can be.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Ohio gets a bit of a bad rap as far as vacation destinations… but I love it here. The city of Columbus is vibrant with a great restaurant scene (Basi Italia and Barcelona have long been my faves). You can find great shopping at local boutiques downtown and also bigger stores at Easton Town Center. But I mostly enjoy hiking in Hocking Hills, southeast of Columbus. So many beautiful trails and natural wonders.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The first organization to help me realize my worth as a photographer was The Portrait System (formerly Sue Bryce Education). The education and community in this organization most definitely encouraged me to level up. One of the best decisions I made was to work toward my accreditation through The Portrait Masters; the accreditation, accolades and awards, AND the failures and critique on my images, helped to propel my skills. From there I began to enter other awards and accreditation programs, notably through Professional Photographers of America. Seeing where my work stacks up against other industry greats, as judged by masters in the field, helps me to truly measure where I am and what I need to work on.

On a more personal level, my husband and daughters have always been my biggest fans, and I am thankful for their support. I also have some amazing colleagues who inspire me, encourage me when I fall short, and celebrate with me when I succeed. We celebrate each-other, and it’s the best part about being in this industry.

Website: https://ericamanningphoto.com/

Instagram: @ericamanningphoto

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EricaManningPhotography

Image Credits
Erica Manning Photography