We're thrilled that Virginia Greuloch of The Good Life Photography has agreed to answer our questions, and tell us all about her her dream project and how she got her start in photography! The winner of last week's 'lifestyle light' challenge, she has also shared more of her beautiful work here.
1. Please tell us about yourself...
I’m Virginia Greuloch and I live just outside of Cleveland, OH, with my husband and two little kids who are incredibly sweet and very noisy. I have a pretty serious Diet Coke habit and stay up way too late. Those things seem somehow related…
2. Can you describe your style in 3 words? Why those words?
Vibrant, Authentic, Loud.
My work reflects a lot of who I am, which most people will tell you is very loud. It is very bold, with rich colors and lots of use of black. There’s not often much that’s soft about it, even in it’s peaceful moments. There’s a lot of laugher and chaos in my work - adding to the noise of everything. I strive to always capture authentic connections even when I’ve directed my subjects.
3. What sparked your passion for photography?
After unsuccessfully trying in high school to learn film photography on the Nikon N70 my folks got me for my 17th birthday, I gave up for over 10 years before buckling down to actually learn. When my husband bought me my first fancy camera (mirrorless Olympus E-PL1) right before my daughter was born, I finally dedicated myself to figuring out how to take a good picture of her. I soon remembered how hard photography actually was, but just kept at it. Somewhere in her first year, the passion was officially sparked and my camera is now rarely out of reach.
4. What's in your camera bag right now?
Nikon D750
Nikon D7000 (backup)
Tamron 24-70 f/2.8
Nikon 85mm f/1.8
And whenever Sigma gets around to releasing it (hurry!!), the Sigma Art 24-35mm f/2 will most likely live on my camera.
5. What is your dream shoot or project?
Last year my husband and I bought a teal and white 1962 Garway travel trailer on a whim off Craigslist and rehabbed it. My dream shoot is to drive it to the Pacific Northwest and photograph my family and the camper nestled in pine trees, swimming in a lake with mountains as the backdrop, and roasting marshmallows as the sun dips down. We have yet to see if she’ll make it more than an hour away, so this might be a pie-in-the-sky type dream.
6. What are some of the misconceptions you had about photography and photographers at the beginning of your photography journey? Have they changed, and how?
I knew it was hard work being a photographer and I had heard that it’s 20% photography and 80% running the business, but I had no idea what that actually looked like. I also thought that photographers that I admired just had it all together and never struggled with anything. I now know that being a photographer and really going for it means very late nights, constantly trying to learn everything you can, all kinds of experimenting, and plenty of failures before you find your voice.
7. What advice would you give to newbie photographers? What advice do you wish you'd been given at the very beginning?
Find YOUR voice and shoot what makes your heart sing. Your best work will come when you shoot from the heart. If everyone is doing it, that’s when you need figure out your own perspective on it. Look for inspiration all around you and make it your own. Find a mentor who has the same sense of humor as you with whom you can share your triumphs and failures. Figure out your cost of doing business before you quote your first job. And only compete with the work you did yesterday.
Find more of Virginia's brilliant work here:
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