“My business has definitely evolved over time and I am very happy to no longer be shooting weddings and focusing now on business and brand photography,” Holly Birch Smith says.
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It started as a family favor for a cousin who needed a photographer to shoot his wedding. Which got HOLLY BIRCH SMITH, then three years removed from college and making a living as a photographer for another company, to thinking: Maybe it’s time to go solo.
“I wasn’t sure what would happen, but here I am 18 years later,” says the pride of the west central Illinois village of Easton (pop. 302). “My business has definitely evolved over time and I am very happy to no longer be shooting weddings and focusing now on business and brand photography.”
An Illini fan, alumna and football sideline regular, the self-described “red-haired ginger photographer” runs a small business that does a little bit of everything, from commercial photography to personal brand photography, headshots to video.
She calls Mahomet home with husband Aaron, children Max and Hadley, Roscoe the Rottweiler and Lucy and Moo the cats.
The fan of hot tea, iced tea, lobsters, college sports and socks took time out to answer questions from Editor Jeff D’Alessio in the 256th installment of our weekly speed read spotlighting leaders of organizations big and small.
Holly Birch Smith
The most beneficial college class I took was … one I hated at the time: my black-and-white photography class — the only photography class I took in college.
I hated the darkroom and didn’t really enjoy shooting on film, either. At the time, I’d have said you were crazy if you had told me my career would be a photographer.
If I could trade places for a week with any other business person in town, I wouldn’t mind switching with … Stacy Trager from IdeaWorks. Her job looks so fun.
I love her designs, and there’s something so satisfying about seeing your work printed.
My philosophy on meetings is … brevity is the key to communication.
When it comes to my single favorite moment of all-time in this job … I didn’t expect to have such a brain lapse on this one. I’ve had a lot of “pinch me” moments and lots of great opportunities.
I recently traveled to Idaho for a product shoot with a former NFL player. The Illinois-Purdue football game this season will stick with me for a while too — it was one of the best games I ever photographed and the overtime win solidified it for me as a core memory.
The hardest thing about being a leader is … delegating.
I can’t live without my … MacBook Pro.
The three adjectives I hope my staff would use to describe me are … loyal, punctual and outgoing.
On my office walls, you’ll find … lobster art and knick-knacks, orange accents and Illinois decor.
My professional role model is … Maddie Peschong. She’s a brand photographer based in North Dakota who coaches other photographers and she’s an amazing business owner and has so much wisdom as it relates to brand photography and connecting with clients.
I’m frugal in that … I shop at Aldi — and most people close to me know it. My Aldi cup is my emotional support water bottle.
The first thing I do when I get to work most days is … answer email.
Holly Birch Smith on Church and Walnut streets in downtown Champaign.
For lunch … I frequent lots of places, but a couple of favorites are the Harvest Market salad bar and Seven Saints’ “Triple S.”
I wind down after work by … watching TV or movies with my spouse.
The last luxury in which I indulged was … recently going to Phoenix for the Chicago Bears game. The game was awful, but the company and tailgating were top-notch.
The last good book I read was … “The Housemaid,” by Freida McFadden. I need to get my hands on the second book soon.
I’m up and at ’em every day by … 6:50 to get the kids out the door. Sometimes earlier if I need to work out before I get them up.
As far as my exercise routine goes … three to four times per week, I do strength workouts through Ali K. Fitness using an app. Then on Saturdays, we do a live Zoom workout, which I try to make when I don’t have football games or other commitments.
For my first job … I grew up on a farm, which I don’t really consider my first job so my first real job was in college as a … wait for it … photographer.
The worst job I ever had was … walking beans. I was probably in high school before the invention of Roundup Ready soybeans. It was hot, humid work with no shade, lots of bugs and scratchy beans.
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