The Pet Photographers' Journal

The Pet Photographers' Journal Pet photographer, mentor & coach, and the host of The Pet Photographers’ Journal.

Through 1:1 coaching, group support, and practical resources, I help pet photographers to build a sustainable business.

I started my pet photography business charging around $250 with all the digitals included. Most years I made around $5K....
10/09/2026

I started my pet photography business charging around $250 with all the digitals included. Most years I made around $5K. Six years later, the business had turned over $305K, and the biggest changes weren't about becoming a better photographer.

I changed how I marketed. How I positioned myself. What I sold. How I handled consultations. and how I created demand instead of waiting for people to find me. My average sale eventually reached $2,600–$2,800. If you're already a good photographer but your bookings still feel random, I'd look at the business system before buying another lens.

Comment AUDIT and I'll send you my Consistent Booking Audit.

If your business feels like:busy → exhausted → quiet → panic → busy…I don't think you need another content calendar. You...
08/09/2026

If your business feels like:

busy → exhausted → quiet → panic → busy

…I don't think you need another content calendar. You need to figure out where the bookings are leaking, because “I need more clients” is too broad a problem to solve.

Maybe people aren't understanding your offer. Maybe your messaging isn't attracting the right people. Maybe you're getting enquiries but losing them during the sales process. Maybe your prices aren't supported by your positioning. Maybe you're relying entirely on passive marketing and hoping the next enquiry appears.

Those are completely different problems, and that's why I created the Consistent Booking Audit.

It helps you identify which part of your marketing and booking system needs attention first, instead of trying to fix everything at once.

Comment AUDIT and I'll send it to you.

08/09/2026

Build a repeatable way to bring leads in before you decide you’re not cut out for this.

I’ve thought about walking away from this and going back to a stable pay cheque. More than once.

Every photographer who is thriving now has had that exact moment. What changed for them was creating a repeatable system to bring leads in that they could run again the next time they need bookings.

77 photographers have done my Consistent Booking Audit since March. 72 of them said their marketing stops, slows, or goes inconsistent.

So the bookings dry up, and the quiet is what makes you question whether you’re any good at this.

When you have a lead generation system you can actually repeat, that changes. You know how to turn the tap on when you need bookings.

I know the exhaustion is real. Because I’ve been there. It’s also fixable, and you’re closer than you think. Save this for the next time you have these thoughts.

Comment AUDIT and I’ll send you the link it takes 3 minutes and shows you exactly which gap is costing you bookings.

One of my Facebook campaigns spent $688.80 and generated $33,495, and no, I'm not telling you that so you can go and thr...
05/09/2026

One of my Facebook campaigns spent $688.80 and generated $33,495, and no, I'm not telling you that so you can go and throw £500 at Facebook ads tomorrow.

The important bit isn't the ad, but the campaign.

There was a specific audience, given a specific reason to book, then a specific offer, which created a specific journey from seeing it → enquiring → booking.

That's completely different from posting a nice photo and hoping someone decides today is the day they need a pet photographer.

I've built my business around being able to turn the tap on and off. If I want bookings 4–8 weeks from now, I know what I need to do, and that's a very different feeling from: “Hopefully someone enquires this week.”

That's what we work on inside my Marketing Workshop.

Comment WORKSHOP and I'll send you the details.

This is one of the biggest changes I'd make if I was rebuilding a pet photography business from scratch.Stop trying to a...
03/09/2026

This is one of the biggest changes I'd make if I was rebuilding a pet photography business from scratch.

Stop trying to appeal to everyone who owns a dog. That's not an audience. I'd want to know the person behind the dog.

What does that dog mean to them?
What do they spend money on?
What are they worried about?
What would they regret not having?
What would make them look at your work and think: “Oh. I need this.”

Because that's what good positioning does. It makes the right person feel like you're talking directly to them, and once you know exactly who you're talking to, everything else gets easier.

If your current marketing is trying to speak to every dog owner on the planet, that's probably one of the first things I'd look at.

03/09/2026

SEO without conversion is just traffic with nowhere to go.If your site brings people in but doesn’t make it easy to buy, book, or click then you’re leaving money on the table.

If your writing is amazing but nobody can find it, you’ve same problem.

Drop a 🔥 if you’ve ever seen this happen.

SEO and conversion goes together because they need each other. In this episode I interview Erin Olilla, a conversion copywriter where we discuss that your photos aren’t enough to get people to book. In a crowded market, the words are what help people feel confident enough to enquire. I talk about this a lot because so many photographers rely on beautiful images alone.

What do your website words say about you right now?

Listen to the full conversation with Erin Ollila on The Pet Photographers’ Journal podcast on your preferred podcast platform.

I used to charge around $250 and hand over every digital file. Most years I made around $5K. Now my average sale sits be...
02/09/2026

I used to charge around $250 and hand over every digital file. Most years I made around $5K. Now my average sale sits between $2,600 and $2,800.

And no, I didn't just raise my prices.

I tried that, but the enquiries went quiet. I got clearer about who I was for, changed how I positioned the experience, stopped selling “a photoshoot and some files.” and instead built an ordering process around the artwork. I started marketing specifically to people who actually valued what I was offering.

That's the bit I think gets missed when photographers are told:

“Just charge more.”

Price doesn't exist in isolation, your marketing has to make the price make sense.

If you're trying to raise your prices and wondering why people keep telling you you're too expensive, there's probably something upstream that needs fixing first.

Comment AUDIT and I'll send you my free Consistent Booking Audit.

I didn't go from $5K to $305K because I discovered some secret photography trick.My photography didn't suddenly become 6...
01/09/2026

I didn't go from $5K to $305K because I discovered some secret photography trick.

My photography didn't suddenly become 60x better. I just got much more specific about who I wanted to work with, and I stopped waiting for Instagram to send me clients and started running campaigns.

I changed how I sold, by introducing consultations and proper ordering appointments, and probably most importantly, I started building systems I could actually repeat.

The result wasn't just more money.

It was fewer sessions, better clients, higher sales and a business I could actually control, and if your bookings feel random right now, I wouldn't start by telling you to “post more.” I'd start by finding the leak.

Comment AUDIT and I'll send you my Consistent Booking Audit.

01/09/2026

What a week of running two businesses actually looked like.

I was in Melbourne to run a workshop, and I took some photos in my friend Abi’s new studio while I was there. She took this photo of me, which almost never happens.

Back home I set up a workflow to follow up my International Dog Day leads. The campaign opens the door. The follow up is what gets them booked.

I also kept building my own ordering software. The one I bought outright in 2021 discontinued my licence and moved to a subscription, so I’m making my own with Claude.

Then I delivered a gallery, and my clients ended up with wall art of their dog in their home.

That last one is why the rest of it exists.

I’m still running sessions and still doing ordering appointments while I teach this. What I teach is what I’m doing in my own studio the same week.

What did your week look like?

I said in the video I might make this software available if there’s enough interest. If you’d use it for your ordering appointments, tell me in the comments.

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