Elevate Springfield

Elevate Springfield featuring Kristi Mitchell: Elevating Through the Power of Supporting Local, Building Confidence and Community, and Taking the Leap

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Summary

In this conversation, Robert Ferriell interviews Kristi Mitchell, a photographer who transitioned from social work to running her own photography business. Kristi shares her journey into photography, and the development of her senior rep program, which focuses on building confidence and community among high school seniors. She discusses the importance of creating memorable experiences for her clients and the growth of her business, especially during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic.  They also explore the significance of supporting local businesses in Springfield and share personal insights about travel and adventure, emphasizing the joy of creating memories and living life to the fullest.

Takeaways

  • The senior rep program helps build confidence and community among students.
  • Christy aims to create memorable experiences for her clients during photo shoots.
  • She emphasizes the importance of putting effort into her business to achieve growth. 
  • When we support each other, we grow together.

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SPEAKER_01

Welcome to Elevate Springfield, where we will dive into strategies and stories that help you rise to your full potential. Each episode, we'll talk about how you can take intentional steps to elevate your life and your business while making a meaningful impact on those around you. Along the way, we're gonna bring in the change makers from our community that are already elevating. We'll bring the actionable strategies, you bring the discipline and follow through, and together we can elevate Springfield. Let's go. You are listening to the Elevate Springfield Podcast. Robert Farrell here, certified 10x coach, speaker, and mentor, here to bring you actionable strategies. You bring the discipline and follow through. And together, we're gonna Elevate Springfield. We're coming to you again from beautiful downtown Springfield in the Big Dog Construction Studio. Hey, we've got so much going on in Springfield right now. Make sure you are participating. Get out there, network with folks, be a part of the community, support local businesses, support local nonprofits, and let's go, we can all grow together. So, hey, another great episode for you today. We're gonna get right to our guest after the break. Hey, Springfield, when it comes to reliable, high-quality roofing, you don't want to leave things to chance. That's why you should reach out to Acosta Angeli Ruffing, your local roofing expert serving Springfield and surrounding communities. From quick dependable repairs to full replacement, from residential to commercial, they are your trusted pros. Call them today at 217-993-2748 or visit their website to book your free quote and inspection. Don't wait. A little leak now could lead to major damage later. Trust the local experts, protect your home, and get peace of mind with Acosta Angeli Roofing. And we are back joining me in the studio now. Another native downtown Springfield business owner here. This is Christy Mitchell from Christy Mitchell Photography. How are you doing, Christy?

SPEAKER_02

I'm good. How are you?

SPEAKER_01

Fantastic. Appreciate you coming down a couple of blocks and visiting with me.

SPEAKER_02

I know. I'm one block from you. I loved it. Park there and come on over.

SPEAKER_01

There you go. Well, before we talk about the business and what you have going down here at your studio downtown, let's just learn a little bit about Christy. Tell us a little bit about your background.

SPEAKER_02

Well, uh, like you said, I have Christy Mitchell Photography downtown. I'm a mom business owner. Uh I have four boys. So I've been in Springfield for about 25 years, so I'm not a native here.

SPEAKER_01

Um where are you from originally?

SPEAKER_02

Near Champaign. Okay. So yeah, I was a St. Joe Ogden graduate. And in my previous life, I always tell everybody that I was a social worker. Isn't that crazy? Yeah. So I did that for a few years, realized I wanted to make people happy with photography. And I have been doing photography for, I don't know, about 15, 17 years. Oh my gosh. And uh, yep. Seven years ago I came downtown. So I have a studio a block from here on the corner of Fifth of Monroe. That's me.

SPEAKER_01

11. So social work. What made you want to get into social work back then?

SPEAKER_02

Oh yeah. Well, I was 18 and wanted to save the world, don't we all?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

Uh yes, I've always been one that loves to be in the helper field. Um, so after high school, I went in and got a bachelor's of social work, worked at mental health, popped over to DCFS for a little bit, and then realized that I needed to be in a different field. That wasn't for me. But I do feel like even when I was teaching or even in photography, I feel like I can still do social work.

SPEAKER_01

Absolutely. All the time. No doubt about it. Where'd you go to school? For your bachelor's.

SPEAKER_02

Edwardsville.

SPEAKER_01

Edwardsville. Yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_02

I went to Edwardsville and then I did an internship at DCFS. So that's kind of where it landed. I really wanted to do adoptions, but I ended up being in the field. Right. So that's that's a little bit of my social work background. Now I think I have had students that I've been involved in their lives still, and even in my work now, I love it. I work so much with high school girls, and that's a hard age. Yeah. Isn't it hard? I made I wouldn't want to be a high school girl right now, but yeah, I still feel like a little more difficult than when we were in high school. Oh my goodness. With social media and everything. But I do feel like if I can be somewhat impactful, a little part of their life right now, then I love that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Well, you were very impactful as a teacher too. That's where we initially met. I don't know, nine or ten years ago. Nine, ten years ago, whatever that was. When you're yeah, when you're teaching out at CACC.

SPEAKER_02

I loved it. Teaching was I absolutely loved it. Obviously, it just got to where my business was growing, but I loved the students. And even like I had mentioned to you earlier, one of my first students is one of my second shooters. So I got to teach her for two years, and um I still am in contact with a lot of them. Right. I just ran into one the other day and they'll still come up and hug me and I love it.

SPEAKER_01

That's one of the best parts about that, isn't it? Being able to see them later on in life, knowing that you might not have known at the time, but how you impacted their life back however many years ago. Yes.

SPEAKER_02

And they have lids now. But like I said, you know, every wedding that I do, I have a second shooter, and she was my very first photography teaching year. And she's great. We um I see her all the time. So I love it.

unknown

Love it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

So you've been doing photography for you said like 17 years. Yes. Yes. What's your first memory of hey, picking up a camera? Man, I could I want to do this as a as a career. I think I could do this.

SPEAKER_02

Well, I don't think I picked it up and thought I could do this. I remember thinking it was like, you know, it was something that I never thought I could ever do for a living. So I'm I'm totally blessed by that. But I picked it up, obviously with my kids. I remember just loving capturing even just them playing or any small moment, you know. I wasn't into their like posing pictures, but I remember thinking, like, I need to get a better camera because I'm not getting them quick enough. And like I wanted to like capture that. And then I guess, you know, friends would be like, Oh my gosh, will you take my kids' pictures? So then it just started to become more of a passion for me, not realizing that someday, you know, this is what I do and I love it. I still love it, you know.

SPEAKER_01

So when did Christy Mitchell photography actually start?

SPEAKER_02

2013 is about when that, you know.

SPEAKER_01

Really took it on okay.

SPEAKER_02

When I was really charging. Right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

It's not just uh helping with friends and family. Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_02

That's when I was like, you'll pay me a little bit for it or something. Um, is when I started doing it, realizing that I, you know, people were like asking me to do it. And that's when that kind of started. And then it has just grown, obviously, since um teaching. And then I was, you know, working in the evenings. That's when I was shooting a lot of weddings. Weddings are, I love them, but man, they're a w they're a ton.

SPEAKER_01

Was that really your bread and butter early on? It was.

SPEAKER_02

Weddings were you did families. It's funny, my sister-in-law having said it. I've kind of grown with what my kids have been. So in the beginning, I loved doing kids and families. I did do weddings because I was a single mom. So I had to make a living. And then now it's kind of grown. Now, definitely, you know, seniors are my passion, high school seniors. I love them. Um, I have that senior rep program.

SPEAKER_01

I was gonna say you have a whole crew there of your seniors.

SPEAKER_02

I do. So that's my seventh year. It's my seventh year doing the senior rep program, and it's kind of just, you know, evolved in the beginning. I think it started out as I don't know, a marketing thing. Like, wow, they they know social media. And now it's it's more of a heart thing. I love reading all through all their applications. In January, they apply, and I love reading it. I love girls that are I'm nervous behind a camera and I just want to get better so I can have great senior pictures, or I think this will be great for me in college to meet new people. I've been to the same school my whole life. So now that's kind of a thing for me. I love it.

SPEAKER_01

What does the application process look like for so getting into that?

SPEAKER_02

In January, as a junior in high school, they apply. I pick, you know, from all the surrounding schools, Riverton, Plains, Chatham, Rochester, Springfield. I choose from all those different schools and bring all of them together. The application comes out in January. It's basically, you know, what school do you go to? Why do you want to do this? You know, what are your extracurriculars? What do you do? Because I don't want everybody to be the same. Like one year I had a race car driver. Um, I have ballerinas, I have dancers, I have cheerleaders, I have athletes, well players, and I bring them all together and photograph them together. And they just like I see friendships growing. Um, who doesn't feel better when you're getting photographed and people cheering you on? Like, oh, you look so good.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. Pumping them up.

SPEAKER_02

Yes. So that's kind of become like something that, like I said, it started out as marketing. Now I just am like, she's shy in front of the camera. Oh, I'm gonna bring this out of her, or she's struggled in this. I want to bring her on and bring her out of her shell. You know, this is their senior year. I just want to be somewhat a part of it. Right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

No, that's really cool that you have all the varied interests of the girls that you bring in because they're different ones are gonna resonate with other people, other people. Yes, right.

SPEAKER_02

So and you see friendships like this last uh two last Sunday was my big for 2027. I had my big senior rap photo shoot, which yeah, I saw one of the pictures.

SPEAKER_01

I saw the big balloons and everything in front of the Capitol or down the road from the Capitol, that one cool shot that's like it's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_02

It's a day. It's about 10 hours. They come in and I have their hair and makeup done. I provide lunch, they ride around in a limo so that we can go to all the different locations. Fun. So we don't have different cars going. I basically tell them what to wear and then I just let them put their like unique, unique little twist on it. So this year, you know, I said anything floral, a floral, you know, floral dress. But if they wear like Chuck Taylor's or if they're, you know, whatever, I want them to, if they're a cowboy boot wearer, I just want them to bring their twist and then I photograph them together. So, you know, they get individual and group shots.

SPEAKER_01

All right, cool.

SPEAKER_02

Where all do you guys go for the so we start out at my studio down here, and um they usually get their headshots and start out like that. We did some downtown stuff. I brought in another woman business owner, um, Clementine Cart Company. Have you heard of her? She makes the best pancakes on a stick. If you've never had one, see look I'm shouting to her. Giving her a shout out, like does a cart for engagement parties, high school parties, senior grad parties, birthday parties. And she puts these pancakes on a stick and they are delicious. I don't know what she makes. I love them, huh? Yes. She makes little boba drinks. So I brought her in to just a little treat for the girls. I usually make it a big surprise day. I want it to be a day that they really look forward to, not only just all the pictures that they get. So we did that right next to the kidzium downtown because they've got that super cool mural. And then I had them change, we took the limo out um by the lake. So I haven't revealed those pictures yet, but that's where we did like a lot of sunset stuff.

SPEAKER_03

Oh nice.

SPEAKER_02

So yeah. So we do a several outfits and several locations and get creative.

SPEAKER_01

Very cool.

SPEAKER_02

It is, it's a fun day.

SPEAKER_01

So what's what's their role throughout the year? Like you've got the the photo shoot like this, but what else do they do throughout the year as your rips?

SPEAKER_02

So basically, they prefer marketing for me in their school. A lot of it's their social media. They're posting on their social media. So that's why I want them to love the pictures. If they love the pictures, they're gonna post them.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, they're gonna be posting them like crazy.

SPEAKER_02

Have their input. You know, what do you guys think about these colors? What do you guys think about this? Because I want them to love it just as much as I love it. And so then they'll be posting, sharing with their friends when it's coming time for people to book senior sessions. Hopefully they'll be the ones that are letting them know about me, letting them know how much fun they had, because I want it to be an experience. Like I said, seniors have come into a passion of mine. It's more than pictures now. Now I just want it to be such an experience for them. Um, so it's about a three-hour shoot. If they want hair and makeup done, it turns into a five hour. It's a thing. Oh, yeah. It is a thing. But I want it to be more individualized. What do you do? You know, are you a musician? Are you an athlete? Let's, you know, make your pictures, you know, personal to you. So so it becomes a thing.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, absolutely. Now I came across my senior pictures here recently from 26 years ago, whatever that was now. But yeah, cleaning out some stuff. Oh, they're had the you know, all the old school ones with the jacket over. Oh, yeah. You know, the arms crossed and the whole the whole deal.

SPEAKER_02

Very cheesy smile.

SPEAKER_01

Cheesy, yeah, yep. But uh Yeah, I had I had the little fold-out booklet thing. I don't know if you guys still do that, but those little fold-out booklets, you know.

SPEAKER_02

I know those well, but no, I do now like albums. Like you have, you know, before I don't think we had uh hundreds. Right. My kiddos get hundreds of edited images. So now we do an album, like a big 10, 12 page spread, which is I love them because I don't ever want them to get lost on the computer. For me personally, with my kids, they all have albums and they sit right on my tabletop. So if I ever want to look at them, or I always tell everybody, don't let your pictures get lost on the computer. You spent so much time and effort and energy and money, you know, getting them, like put them out, let you know, see them.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, we we have two girls, so 15 and 12. My oldest daughter, my wife did a really good job with the albums like early on. We had like album and album and album, but then unfortunately for our second daughter, she doesn't have quite the album. So she likes to have one and a half. Yeah, she likes to give us a hard time a little bit. Yeah, you've got one and a partial. I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_02

So it says born, yes. Yes, I was born. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01

That's right. So it it is funny. We're looking through boxes and just book and book, because we do, you know, like like the online shutterfly places and create, you know, create books and all that stuff. And we got this whole stack of Ellie and a little tiny stack of adult.

SPEAKER_02

I have four. So, you know, mine same. And then my poor twins, I don't even know if I even have a book for them. And you would think that with me doing this, like, I hate to admit it, but I wish I always had those albums for every vacation and everything. I'm like, why didn't I do what everybody else's is what I do for a living? I think that, you know, you kind of let your family, it's not as priority.

SPEAKER_01

Well, I mean, that that's probably pretty standard for a lot of professions. You know, the construction guy sometimes his house is the last house that gets.

SPEAKER_02

I know. I well, honestly, last year. So my twins graduated last June from Springfield High.

SPEAKER_03

There you go. Go senators.

SPEAKER_02

Yes, I still love, love Springfield. But I was advertising for 2025 seniors. Yeah, I'm advertising, you know, booking them all up. Cause I start advertising like right now, I'm booking for next year. People sometimes don't realize. And it like hit me like June. Like, I have two seniors. Like, what am I doing? I didn't even like occur to me to put them on the calendar. So then I was like, I am so sorry. I'm sitting here advertising. And I literally had to like, I don't know if it was me in denial, not wanting my children to like graduate and leave the nest. Or if I was just so like, this is my job and I'm so focused on it. I don't know. But yeah, I got them in. Don't worry.

SPEAKER_01

There you go.

SPEAKER_02

Uh Grant, one of my twins, he's definitely been with me through the whole process. So we had like five senior shoots, you know, he had to do his whole, he's a theater kid and a dancer. And so we did them all in different locations.

SPEAKER_01

So is he into the business at all? Does he like all aspects of the business? Or does do any of your kids like the business aspect of that?

SPEAKER_02

Well, you know, so Grant's the closest one. He's 19. He goes to ISU now. Um, and he is in a marketing, you know, he's a marketing d major and he wants to market for small businesses. I mean, gay, but at the same time, I'm like, you want to work 97 hours a week.

SPEAKER_03

Right.

SPEAKER_02

Um, but he does come back and help me. He took the train back last weekend and he does a ton of my behind the scenes. He's pretty awesome. He's done behind the scenes since he was a little, so he definitely has seen the small business side of it. My other ones, not so much. I have an IT guy and I have a Marine and then Grant's twin. He's a rocker. Okay. So he's got a band. He plays at Dumb Records. There we go.

SPEAKER_01

What's his band?

SPEAKER_02

It's called Petrachor. So he tells me it's punk of some sort. Yes. You know, they have all these different genres now. So he plays at Dumb Records, he's playing this Friday and next Friday. There you go. So it's pretty cool. So I have an array of all of them. But yes, Grant is the one that would come and help me. He does a lot of the photography stuff.

SPEAKER_01

So from early on, when you're just getting folks asking you here and there, hey, can you help me with this to now being booked out a year in advance? What would you say your biggest driver of that is, like the growth of the business?

SPEAKER_02

Well, so I definitely think I had to put my efforts into it. You can't have a foot half in. That's what I thought. I lived on the fence for a long time of like, I have to keep doing this because, you know, it's fear. It's kind of scary. And then when you actually make that jump from fear, I feel like that is what drove it. I got to put all of my effort, all my attention into that. Um, when you love something and you really put all your effort into it, I think that's when it started really going. Um, I could focus on, like I said, making them more personal. It wasn't just, okay, meet me here and I'll do a photo shoot. It's more like I put thought into it. I really focus on where we're gonna go. I help them with outfit choices. I just think it it just created something that was a little bit more in-depth to where I think people noticed it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, no doubt about it. When you're able to make that decision that, hey, I'm gonna focus a thousand percent right here. It's amazing what what can happen. I mean, there's that old saying you can't serve two masters. So if you're trying to spread yourself between two things too much, one of them's gonna get it.

SPEAKER_02

It is. And I I felt that like, you know, before I was trying to do so many things. And when you're younger and you're trying to raise kids and you're torn in so many ways, you cannot be the best at anything. And I just felt like I wasn't being the best at anything that I could do. And I wanted to um just really see if I could do it. If if I failed, then I just could have went back and I tried it. Right. I tried, but I didn't fail.

SPEAKER_01

Right.

SPEAKER_02

I didn't fail, but I didn't I would never know if I didn't try. Right. So I always say, like, I did afraid. I just kind of popped in and and did it. And I think that that's what I started noticing, you know, more and more people um noticed the effort that I was putting into. Because I do, I put a ton. It's you know, it's my love. So I love it.

SPEAKER_01

I love it. Yeah, it's amazing. It's that for most people, it's the start that stops most people. It's they're taking that jump that people don't want to do.

SPEAKER_02

It's the fear, you know. People I sometimes think it it's it's too fearful. What if I fail or what if I don't make the money? Or you know, but at the end of the day, don't look back and have something that you regret. You don't want to live with regret.

SPEAKER_01

Exactly. Like you said, if I fail, I fail. But I tried, I went with my my passion and I tried it out.

SPEAKER_02

Right. And that's where I'm at.

SPEAKER_01

So obviously you didn't fail. You've grown tremendously. Yes. What are some of the other sides of the business right now? You've got your senior reps, I got my senior reps. What else you got going on?

SPEAKER_02

So weddings were huge. COVID hit, and my weddings kind of took a little step back. That was kind of when I was starting to pivot. I needed to transition. That is right when I stopped teaching and got a studio downtown. And then all of a sudden, COVID hit nine nine months later, and I'm like, what in the world? Oh what did I do? So I weddings started falling off. I started hitting the like senior senior program a little bit harder. But also too, weddings were starting to get to where I love, I love them again. Okay, I'm at the point where I love them again. It was every weekend, even sometimes to a weekend, Friday and Saturday nights. I was editing them. It was, it was a lot. Um, and I got to where I'm now at the point in my business where I get to where I want to do something because I love it because I think you can see it in my work. And at that time, I was starting to feel like I was overwhelmed. So I took a step back. I didn't shoot weddings mainly for a couple years. I thought, no, I don't want to. And I missed it. I really did. I love them. I love, I love love. It I still cry when they like walk down the aisle. Right. I still cry when they give the, you know, toasts. I'm like over there, like, oh, oh yeah, I have to be taking pictures. Right, I gotta catch this. I gotta do this. Um, so I realized I missed it. And so now I just had to put up a boundary. You know, I had to learn boundaries in a business when when When you're running your own business, you learn. I don't do two weddings in a weekend. I actually don't even, I only do two weddings in a month because I want to still really love it. I don't want to be exhausted. I want to put all of my effort into it. Again, I that's where I'm at. So a boundary had to be put up. And if I already have two weddings booked that month, I'm booked.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, like I said, you don't want to feel like you're going through the motions. Like you've got so many weddings that you're just like, right? I'm here, I'm doing it, but I feel like I'm going through the motions. Right.

SPEAKER_02

And I am more perfectionist when it comes to that. I don't want to see it in my work. Like, oh my gosh, you were so tired. You know, nobody else could see it, but I am hard on myself. So yeah, it got to where I'm like, you know what? I just need to put up a boundary. I need to say no. No is a really big word that I had to learn. I didn't know no for a long time. And I wore myself really thin.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, if you wanted to be in social work, a lot of times like you can be a little bit of a people pleaser in that realm. So yeah, that's completely that was me.

SPEAKER_02

And then running a business where you could definitely run yourself thin and get take. I mean, I was so proud of myself the other day. Somebody called and needed a gift card, and I wasn't at my studio. Normally I would have like been like, okay, I'll stop what I'm doing. And I was like, I won't be there till five. And I was like, oh, look at you, Christy. You have learned. That's right. So yeah, I had to learn boundaries. And then that has been great because now every wedding that I do am really like I can't wait for this May wedding because I, you know, haven't done a wedding for a little while. Yeah, I have 10 this year.

SPEAKER_03

Nice.

SPEAKER_02

So that's a perfect little number for me. Oh, and then I still have my seniors and I pop into some families. I still do, you know, I have my headshots for my people downtown. I love that. I've started really liking like marketing, business marketing, doing some for some med spas, doing for some small businesses. I really love that.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that's fun.

SPEAKER_02

It is watching businesses grow, helping them do that, giving my input on some of their marketing. I like it.

SPEAKER_01

Love it. So those 10 weddings, are they all local or do you travel a little bit for those?

SPEAKER_02

I do travel a little bit. Yes. I I wish I could get weddings all over.

SPEAKER_03

Right.

SPEAKER_02

So if anybody needs a wedding in Italy, I absolutely love that. Yeah, they're mainly local, but you know, I'm still going um to St. Louis, um, Champaign area, Peoria area. So mainly in the central Lonloy area, but um, but I'm not ever opposed to if anybody wants to travel. There you go.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, we were talking with Audrey from Polarn. She does Disney weddings. You know, she gets so she goes down there a lot and does the Disney weddings. She's not the photographer, but she plans them down there.

SPEAKER_02

So yeah, that's really cool. That is so cool. Yeah. If I could, I mean, that's always my retirement goal. If anybody asks, like, what are you gonna do? Eventually, I always said when my kids flew away and had their own lives that I wanted to mainly be a destination photographer. So part of it. So part of the year destination, part of the year, gotta come back here to my roots. But hopefully that's what happened.

SPEAKER_01

Very cool. Any other lines of the business that you're doing right now?

SPEAKER_02

Weddings, seniors, like I said, marketing. I have that headshots. Having the studio downtown is pretty awesome. So it gives me a lot of flexibility. There's not a lot of time for a lot of other stuff.

SPEAKER_01

Right, right. Are you still doing the boudoir stuff?

SPEAKER_02

I am. Yes. So those are really big.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. My bad.

SPEAKER_02

It's one of the things that I don't get to market as as easily, which I completely understand. It's a word of the mouth thing. Um, but I love, I love it. Yeah, I just had a husband come up to me just the other day and was like, I loved the book. And I was like, oh my gosh, I love it. I was like, I didn't know if I should say something yet or not. Right, right.

SPEAKER_03

Okay.

SPEAKER_02

You know, I do those for um some brides, women, different phases of their life. That's another thing. I'm such a huge women supporter. It's with the seniors, it's mainly girls. It's a hard age. I do not do dudoir.

SPEAKER_01

No doudoir. I've never heard that term.

SPEAKER_02

People will call and ask, and I'm like, I do not do doudoir. I got into it because I wanted to empower women, make them feel beautiful. I don't, I don't, you know, guys feel guys feel beautiful now.

SPEAKER_01

Do you get asked that a lot by guys?

SPEAKER_02

I do. So I had I actually like upset a guy once. He kind of was offended that I would not photograph him. So I will say I do couples. So I always say, like, if the guy has a girl with him, I will do that. But it's mainly for these ladies. I love when they're hitting a big age, maybe helping them over that, or you know, if they've gone through a divorce, you know, needing to get that spark back or something. I love it. Awesome. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Well, tell us a little bit about your studio. What's it like in there? What can people expect if they go up to your studio?

SPEAKER_02

It is a lot like this. It's gorgeous. It's a downtown building, so it's old. Original brick, original hardwood floors. So I love that. Yeah. Um, it's about 1,400 uh square foot. Um, I have beautiful natural light, you know. So for boudoir, that's usually when I do them during the day. So it's got that gorgeous light on them. Um, and then I have space for studio lights. So I can do the headshots or anything like that. I always say that people walk in and I've got about 19 couches in there. They're like, Do you have an issue? I'm like, I do. I'm a couch a holic. If I have to be addicted to something, it's couches.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that's not a bad addiction, I guess.

SPEAKER_02

I have couches of every color because I love putting people on it. I love taking couches and putting them in weird spaces. All right. Um, so yeah, I have tons of couches and everybody walks in. It's really beautiful, it's a really cool space. So yeah, big enough too for groups. So I always tell my brides if they want to get ready there. It's gorgeous.

SPEAKER_01

Very good. Yeah. I'll have to do an on-location podcast over there sometimes.

SPEAKER_02

I'm sure though you don't like having to take all your stuff. It's like me loading up my lighting. Right.

SPEAKER_01

It it is to a degree, but I've got a pretty standard mobile set that I can bring that's not too bad. That it only take me about 15 minutes to get all set up, so it won't be too bad at all because I've got extra mics that I don't necessarily have to take everything down here. Got my little mobile set up and off we go. Gotcha.

SPEAKER_02

I'm because I have people who ask me to bring my stuff and it's more of a hassle. It is. Obviously, and I'm always like, but you don't want to love my space too.

SPEAKER_01

It's fun though. Going, I mean, I've done quite a few on-location ones, and that it's it's always good stuff. You it is a little variety in the change up, yeah.

SPEAKER_02

And that's what it is when I like I said, I do some marketing for some small businesses. I love going into their space, and that makes it a little bit more personal for them too, not just headshots at my space, but you can see where people can expect to walk into their spaces too.

SPEAKER_01

Do you do most of your work at your studio or a lot of your clients want on location stuff somewhere?

SPEAKER_02

Um, it kind of depends. For my seniors, it's a really good meeting ground. We always get some headshots, either natural light or studio light. It's a great space for them to change, leave their clothing. But then we always will go, like I said, I make it personal. Like I'll do an interview. What do you like? Are you more urban? Are you more country? Give me some thoughts and ideas on what you want. So then we would go out to downtown stuff. Obviously, I'm a downtown lover, so I'll encourage downtown stuff. There's so many things. You don't know how many people are like, I never knew this existed. I'm like, come downtown. Walk around a little bit, check it out. Right. But you don't have to go in alleys like I do. But then then we I go around. There's a lot of spaces around town that I love to um photograph. Springfield's got some really cool stuff, but mainly, obviously, my boudoir stuff, unless they wanted a more personal space, like at their home or something. That's what I do there. Headshots at MySpace, mainly, unless some companies will hire me that have 30 or 40 that they need done. I'll take my stuff there. But um, yeah, mainly. Well, you can find me there.

SPEAKER_01

Do you have a personal favorite spot in Springfield or picture?

SPEAKER_02

Personal favorite.

SPEAKER_01

And it might be something where nobody knows about it and you don't want to put it out there for the folks.

SPEAKER_02

I'm such a sharer. Again, I'm I'm such the yeser. Christy, where was this taken? Well, you go to the corner of Fifth and Monroe and it's right there. It depends, you know, and it changes with photography. I love the way that the light changes. So if you ask me in June what field I like, I love this field at Lincoln Memorial Gardens. Not even in the main area, but right off to the side. Um, it's, you know, about waist high. It's got a whole bunch of, you know, wildflowers in it, and the sun sets right behind the trees. And so it's amazing. If I'm shooting downtown the capital shot right at sunset, you can hit that sun right behind the capital. It's like it's a shot. Yes. So it depends on the the season too. You know, if fall, the sun changes, the fields change. Sometimes I'll get a little scare and I go to the field I thought was up the day before and it got mowed down.

SPEAKER_03

Right.

SPEAKER_02

I'm like, why wouldn't you check with me? I know that it doesn't belong to me. Right. I feel like I own it.

SPEAKER_01

Like I should know that when that's gonna happen.

SPEAKER_02

Right. I feel like I need to talk about that sometimes because it's a whole vent. Like, then then just mowed down this field. Now I have to go and hunt for a different one.

SPEAKER_01

Right, right. So well, so much great stuff business wise. Let's flip over to the person a little bit. Anything you do to elevate your life personally?

SPEAKER_02

Well, I, if you know me at all or get to know me, I'm a travel junkie and love traveling. Where's your favorite place?

SPEAKER_01

Because of all the memories with the kids, probably Disney, just because of the way we all feel when we're when we're there. But I love everywhere. I mean, I'm a I'm a big beach person. I love the southwest. If we're just talking U.S. stuff, I love the southwest area with Moab and over to Sedona and Arizona and that. Scott's I love all that area too. Yeah. And one place that we really enjoyed here recently that we hadn't done is Yellowstone. We hadn't done Yellowstone yet.

SPEAKER_02

I haven't either. It's a bucket list.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah. But that was one of our things where we got to do it at some point, and then we finally did it. We took the road trip and did the whole thing out there, and Utah was gorgeous, and then I've been to Yellowstone.

SPEAKER_02

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_01

Been out west more recently than we ever used to. And 'cause you used to get drawn to a beach. Yeah, we'd get drawn to a beach and we'd always be going east or south. Yeah. So we'd always be going that way. And we never, never went west, but we've made an effort to go a few times here recently out west. So I love that. Into Colorado, did Vale and did that whole thing down into Moab. I'm just super cool over there. But I don't have a true favorite, I guess, other than Disney.

SPEAKER_02

Disney, because you have a magical day.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, exactly. And we've we've been there so many times over the years. It's just a place that we all have those memories, and no matter how many times we go, I love that. First time going back.

SPEAKER_02

Isn't it crazy? I remember the first time planning Disney. It's like a job.

SPEAKER_01

It is. It is.

SPEAKER_02

I had the Disney person helping me because I was so overwhelmed with everything with Disney. I was like, people do this multiple times. Like I remember feeling so overwhelmed. But then you get there and you're like, I see why. Yeah, exactly. It is more magical. If you haven't been, you have to just be like, you have to go.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

And even my grown children, um, last December, I took them again. And I think they loved it even as adults.

SPEAKER_01

We can all be kids again while we're there. It's just kind of a cool It is.

SPEAKER_02

I love I'm a Disney lover too. Yellowstone and Jackson Hole are on my like bucket list.

SPEAKER_01

Jackson's great. Yep.

SPEAKER_02

I really want to take snowboarding lessons. That's on that's on my bucket list of. I mean, hopefully I need to do it sooner than I get older, but I've always wanted to just go out and take some time and do that. But I'm the same as you. I always got to drawn to a beach. I was like, I want to go to Aruba or St. Thomas or somewhere on a beach. And then this last February, I went to Italy and Sicily. I always said I wanted to do a European trip, but again, I kept being like, but I like warm. Right. I love the sun.

SPEAKER_01

I oh man, I'm that your favorite now, the Italy trip.

SPEAKER_02

It was. It was breathtaking. Just the architecture as a photographer, just everything seemed like I feel like it sparked my photography like desire times a hundred. Like every building was just amazing. Old and beautiful it is. It's so different than here.

SPEAKER_01

It's a huge difference. Here, 100 or 200 years old is old. Right. But there at a thousand or twelve hundred years old is a good thing.

SPEAKER_02

And how they don't tear it down. You know, they just keep building on and preserving it. And it is amazing. Yes. So yeah, I got to fly into Florence and and see that and stayed in the you know Tuscany area for a little bit. I'm a I'm a wine lover. So that was kind of a thing. Um, and then went down to Sicily. So it was very cool. Yeah. Nice.

SPEAKER_01

No, I'm kind of uh said it before on here, got that wander lust where I just I gotta get out. I love going and traveling. Let's just go explore for a couple of weeks or let's explore for a week, whatever.

SPEAKER_02

And I always feel I've seen about it too, because I'm like, this is me. Like I feel better when I have a trip planned. What's my next trip? I have to plan it. My sister-in-law, right before I walked in, was like, what are we doing for Christmas? Now that our kids are a little older, and instead of presents, because you know, kids have everything. We try to travel and meet somewhere. Since they live up in Minnesota, we always try to meet somewhere for Christmas. Very nice.

SPEAKER_01

That's cool. We did Disney one year for Christmas. That was really fun. We did too. Yeah, that was fun. It was crazy busy, but it was fun.

SPEAKER_02

It was crazy busy, but like poinsettas everywhere.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

It was amazing. I agree. I loved Disney there. We've done a lot of stuff. We went to um St. Thomas one year for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary. And we all wore, you know, the photographer to me. I made everybody wear red swimming trunks or swimming suits with like Santa hats on the beach. And my boys, I'm like, mom, you're such a dork. And I'm like, I am, and I love every second of the make for a great shot. And it is now. I love everybody loves the picture, but you know.

SPEAKER_01

Right.

SPEAKER_02

But I I'm drawn to a beach, but I'm making efforts to go other places. So next time I talk to you, hopefully I've gone to Jackson Hole.

SPEAKER_01

There you go. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

I want to do Yellowstone. I do love Sedona. I love hiking out there. So I've been there multiple times. So I have gone there.

SPEAKER_01

Jackson is great. We stayed in downtown, I mean if you want to call it downtown Jackson. I mean, it's a small little town, but they've got a cool little square there with a lot of stuff. Stayed right down there. You can walk to all the little shops, all the little cafes, and then the Grand Tetons are right down the road. And then you got Yellowstone a little bit further than that.

SPEAKER_02

So that's gonna be my next big trip. I wanted to do it during COVID. And you know, I always think I can do everything. I wanted to run an RV by myself and drive my kids. My parents like were like, you are not driving an RV by yourself. I'm like, I feel like I could do anything. I can do that. But then somebody else was like, You probably shouldn't. So I'm glad I did it. But I will go out there and I want to do a couple weeks and hike and stay in different towns and stuff. I just yeah, it feeds it feeds me.

SPEAKER_01

We went out there, we were gone for it was probably almost two weeks because we I was going out for a conference in Salt Lake City. So we're we drove up through there, went to the conference, then came back through and did the whole Jackson Hole thing, did Yellowstone. Love it. It was just great.

SPEAKER_02

Are you guys hikers?

SPEAKER_01

Yes. I like hiking and my girls somewhat do. But they love good, they loved the rocks closer to Scottsdale. The smaller, like you know, the smaller, yeah. They're not big on the big ones, on the big hiking ones, but they'll go up on on the ones that are down near Scottsdale and Phoenix, the mountain range is called. They're not super huge, but they're still cool.

SPEAKER_02

But they're cool, yeah. They're not scary.

SPEAKER_01

Right. Yeah, not scary where you're going up and feel like you're gonna fall off or something, but yeah, that was really fun. But that's that's one place that I could go off and I could probably I could easily retire there, like in Scottsdale area, because then you're so close to all this other stuff too.

SPEAKER_02

I just think that that area is really cool because a few hours you're like you can go to a beach in California or you can go to Vegas or you can go up to Flagstaff if you're a skier. Like I just feel like it's so cool how in just a few hours you can be in such different spaces. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. No, we made the mistake once when we were down in Scottsdale, beautiful down near Phoenix and everything, it's 80 some degrees. And so, well, we're gonna drive up to the Grand Canyon, we're gonna go check out the Grand Canyon and we're gonna come back. I'm there in my shorts and t-shirt, and it's because it's 80 degrees. Right. Didn't even didn't even think about it. Didn't I hadn't just didn't cross my mind. Got up, got up to the Grand Canyon and it was like 28.

SPEAKER_02

You're like, oh my gosh.

unknown

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

So do you have to go shopping? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

So I'm like, well, let's go, let's everybody get a hoodie. Let's go.

SPEAKER_02

That's yeah, you don't think about it's such a didn't even cross my mind.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, it was only what three and a half hours away, something like that. So it's not even that far of a drive.

SPEAKER_02

But when you're in that valley, that the the valley, you know, they even say it when you're in the valley, you know.

SPEAKER_01

So huge difference.

SPEAKER_02

Yes, yes. But yeah, so that's traveling feeds me. Working out, I love it. Friend time, you know, you have to make that time for yourself. That's another thing that I had to learn, you know.

SPEAKER_01

What's your favorite thing about downtown Springfield?

SPEAKER_02

I love all the like shops. Like, go, I love all the little local boutiques, I love all the local restaurants. I'm such a downtown lover, and I love to like to support it. And I mean, even tonight, um, I do a lot of stuff with Illinois Women in Leadership. We do a lot of pop-ups um down here. Just it I love encouraging people to go shop. If you have not been and taken time to shop down here, there's some cool spaces down here. There are cool restaurants down here. I love when the music starts on Thursday nights. It's a very cool thing. Um, encourage everybody to go do that too. That's a really cool Springfield thing. You know, there's not a lot of cities that have that. There's food trucks and such different music, and you see all kinds of people. Right. So yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Music itself, I mean, the entertainment is completely free.

SPEAKER_02

It's free. You can take your lawn chair. You like kids are take your dogs. Yeah, it's such a cool thing. So that is starting. I actually have several Thursdays marked off because I hate when I overbook myself and I'm like, oh, I can't make it. Yes. Um, I love when they're bringing Oyster and Beer Festival back. So that's cool. Just all the different things that downtown has to offer. I'm a farmer's market junkie. So when that starts on Saturday mornings, you'll find me down there. So yeah, just everything that downtown has to offer. I think people sometimes are like, I don't ever go down there. I'm like, why? There's so many cool things to do down here. So yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Farmers market's great. I always get uh the gross farms, the beefalo guy. Always get always get me some beefalo.

SPEAKER_02

Yes, you have to do that. I buy myself flowers if you know somebody doesn't buy them for me. I'm a flower person, grab a cup of coffee down there, just trying to be down there supporting local businesses and pop into a boutique.

SPEAKER_01

That's right. So come on downtown.

SPEAKER_02

Come downtown, support local, let's go. You gotta you gotta support it. I know that I work really hard and I know all these other people, this is their heart and soul and bread and butter. You don't want to see it go.

SPEAKER_03

No, you don't.

SPEAKER_02

We would be really sad. Everybody'd be really sad if there wasn't anything downtown, but so you have to support it.

SPEAKER_01

So absolutely. Well, Christy, so much great stuff today. Let's leave the audience with these last couple of things.

SPEAKER_03

Okay.

SPEAKER_01

So let's give them a piece of advice, one on the personal side and one on the professional side to help them elevate their life or business.

SPEAKER_02

Okay, for business. Well, I think that we covered it. So personally, I had to learn boundaries and just going with like go with your passion. Live for the moment and don't let fear stop you. Don't live with regrets. So that was one of the things for that I always if I ever am on the fence about it, I just do it. Especially too with even traveling. Like, am I ever gonna have, you know, do I have the money for that? You know what? Make the money. Make the money, make the memories, because you never know. Like you have to live, live life for every moment you can because that's that's what I think all the time. So I try to live my life like that.

SPEAKER_01

Love it. And is there anything we can all do community-wide to help us all elevate Springfield and the surrounding communities?

SPEAKER_02

Support local businesses. That's where I will shout it from the rooftops. If you're gonna go buy a gift, think of a local business, try to support local restaurants. If you're gonna just run in and grab something to eat, try to come downtown. Even West. West End has a lot of local businesses just need your support. So if we could try to do that, everybody come together, it would be better. More local businesses in the community than more people I think would open up too.

SPEAKER_01

That's right. When we support each other, we grow together. So let's go.

SPEAKER_02

We do. So well, thank you.

SPEAKER_01

Well, Christy, so much great stuff today. If uh folks want to work with you or learn more about you, where do they go to do that?

SPEAKER_02

You can hit my website, Christy Mitchell Photography.com, follow me on socials, same Instagram or Facebook, Christy Mitchell Photography.com. And right now, if you have a 2027 senior, I am booking. I know it seems crazy, moms, but they're booking.

SPEAKER_01

Let's go. Yes. Get a hold of her.

SPEAKER_02

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01

Well, we're gonna let Christy get back to Elevate in Springfield from right here in downtown. But for the rest of y'all, we'll be right back. Looking for expert tree care with hometown integrity, look no further than Sangamon Tree Service. They're your trusted local pros, delivering quality workmanship, exceptional customer service, and fair, honest pricing every time. Whether it's trimming, removal, or storm cleanup, their team brings professionalism and care to every job, big or small. Call the name your neighbors trust, Sangaman Tree Service, or visit them today at SangmanTreeService.com. Sangamon Tree Service, rooted in quality, built on trust. Looking for personalized insurance with hometown care, David Hilst, American Family Insurance Agent is here to help you protect what matters most your family, your home, and your dreams. Whether it's auto, home, life, business, David and his team are proud to serve the Springfield community with trusted advice and reliable coverage. Local service, real relationships, peace of mind. Call today or stop by their office. They can build your dream protection plan together. Call 217-726-6343. Well, thank you for joining us today, everybody. Appreciate you making us a part of your day. Hey, don't forget while you're out on social, check ours out. You can check my personal one out at RobertFarrell at everywhere. Check out those Elevate Springfield pages, those big dog business coaching pages as well. Check us out over on YouTube. Give us a subscribe, give us a like or a follow on any of those channels. We would certainly appreciate it. So hey, take what you learned today. You bring the discipline and follow through and together, as right, y'all. We're gonna elevate Springfield. Be great.

SPEAKER_00

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