Meet Bella Neal | Wedding and Couples Photographer

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

Hi Bella, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
My business is based on helping out the community. What I do isn’t just capture photos of anyone and anything, but rather telling love stories between people and their lives to showcase to the world that love still exists. It’s so easy to keep up in this fast paced world and to forget all the little moments that MAKE your life what it is and who you are, so I specialize in capturing all the little moments for you to stop, pause, and reflect on that space. It’s a reminder to slow down, to love deeply, and to cherish each moment because you never know when someone or something can be taken from you.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I don’t necessarily look at my business as work, but more so as me creating art for others. My reasoning behind doing it all is because I believe God created me to use this talent to serve others. I use my art to serve couples as much as possible. What that looks like is to create an experience in my job that sets me apart from other photographers. I’m 100% there as your photographer through the engagement season, and wedding…but I also strive to be a supporter in the process of planning their wedding. I remember in 2020 in the midst of covid craziness, I was planning my wedding and everyone else was so focused on their own lives and other things, that I felt alone while planning my big day. Ever since then, I shifted my mindset of being just a “photo” business, to genuinely investing in my couples with more than just capturing their story. I think the best way to capture someone’s love story is to genuinely KNOW it. Be involved, be active in their lives, be communicative in friendly ways and not just business talk, check in on them, offer them advice and help when needed, etc. So many photographers like to stick to only talking to their clients every few months, or during engagement sessions and then not again until a month before their wedding and that blows my mind because it would feel like I don’t know them well enough to capture all the important things to them on their wedding day.

It wasn’t easy finding this balance. A lot of people will say don’t mix personal life with business life, and don’t be their “friend”, be the photographer only because you can only focus on one job at a time. I think that’s because not everyone knows how to master balancing their emotions with their businesses and friendships. If one of my brides wants to text me dress photos, or text me and ask me questions about something a vendor is requiring, or just anything at all.. I always want to be supportive to them. It was SO important to me to pick wedding vendors that genuinely cared and supported me on my wedding day. They were there to serve me and my husband as we entered into this covenant, so I know how important it can be to feel seen as a bride when going through such stressful times of planning this huge event they’ve never planned before. The hardest thing is sticking to hours in the day. Not replying to emails or texts after certain hours, but once you establish that with your brides and stop apologizing for the “late response” aka waiting until the next morning… you realize they’re human too and they don’t mind waiting for you to reply. They know I have a life and I express that on my social media so people know I DO balance it all out.

The world needs more wedding vendors that care. So many people are in the wedding industry because they think they can get wealthy off of it. Let’s be honest, sometimes that may be the case if you take on high end clients.. but if your happiness and creativity is stagnant and nonexistent because you’re taking on the wrong niche of clients… then you will get burnt out fast. In order to be a vendor that cares about your couples, you need to attract your ideal clients and pursue them over just anyone else to make money. I want to make sure I can serve my couples to my BEST ability, so I like to get to know the couples and their stories first before booking their wedding. I believe that should be applied more in the wedding world.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I am such a chill, nature loving and foodie type of gal, so I would most likely take a friend to my favorite spots that incorporate all of these!

I love the Chattahoochee Coffee Company on the River and being able to enjoy a drink out there while listening to the river stream flow. It’s such a peaceful sight to see! We’d probably go eat Jinya Ramen, or enjoy jazz music being played at Houstons. For brunch dates, First Watch is my favorite.

I love exploring the city by walking around cute areas with shops that lets me experience culture in Atlanta. Some places I like to go to are Ponce City Market, Little Five Points + thrift shopping, enjoying a picnic at Piedmont Park, or Marietta Square with good eats all around.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I think community is extremely important, and I know I wouldn’t be where I am without the community of Georgia Photographers I’ve become friends with. Whenever I’m in need of assistance in my business, having questions for locations, technology questions, or just anything about this job… I know I can always go into the community we’ve built and ask questions without feeling judged. That is so important in such a high demand niche with millions of photographers all over the world. I strive to always have the mindset of community over competition because it’s not about winning clients over from your competition, it’s about lifting up the creativity in people around you so you can be challenged to create with them and keep pushing forward. Everyone will get their clients, everyone will have THEIR niche and their perfect fit for their couples, so it’s great to be surrounded by people who believe that too.

Website: www.moonstone-photography.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/moonstone.photo

Facebook: www.facebook.com/moonstonephotography1

Image Credits
Moonstone Photography