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photography mentoring

 

WITH NINA MACE

Photography mentorship

welcome

Build the photography business you have always dreamed of

Building a photography business from the ground up that both supports you financially and speaks to your passions might seem like a daunting project. As a highly qualified and well-respected photography mentor and trainer, I have the skills and experience to help you get there.

I’m recognised throughout the industry (both UK and abroad) as one of the very best people to turn to for photographer mentoring and I was even named as top Professional Photographer Trainer in the UK by The Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographer. I’ve helped hundreds of photographers with passion grow their brands, find their ideal model in their chosen industry and clear a path towards running a small business in a way that works for them. 

best photography mentor

Who is photography mentoring for?

There is certainly a time in your photography journey where group training is very valuable but you may have found that you wish to have more 1 on 1 time to really hone your skills, find YOUR style and build a business using your vision. This is where photography mentoring can really accelerate your learning. Think of me as a trusted advisor who has been in your shoes with my own photography business.  Because of its bespoke nature mentoring can work for photographers at any stage of the their journey

You may be an aspiring photographer

You love photography and maybe you are working in another industry but you would love to make your passion a full time job

You may be in the middle of your career

You have found your style and now you need support to refine your skills and grow your business in a way that works for you 

You may be an experienced professional

You might want to focus on some really specific areas for growth or take that next step so you have a constant flow of ideal customers

I want to help expand your skill set, fulfil your creative potential and build a meaningful living as a photographer. Our mentoring sessions can focus on :

Photography Trainng Photography Workshops, Photography Mentor Nina Mace

Shooting 

We will work to identify your photography style and vision and then shoot together to create portfolio images that you love! My speciality is outdoor family photography and I can teach you everything I know about light, composition and posing naturally.  Shooting alongside one another helps to clarify how YOU wish to work and what you love on an outdoor shoot.

Editing 

Editing is a fundamental skill for photographers and I can teach you Lightroom and Photoshop and even help you to create your own presets and actions. I edit in a colourful clean style but I have the knowledge to support you in finding your editing style – mentoring is all about you and your vision and taking everything I have learnt to create your story.

Business & marketing

For fifteen years, I was a brand and marketing manager which has proved incredibly helpful when branching out on my own. I’ve built a reputation for offering honest, effective advice and being generous with the skills I’ve accrued over the years. Social media, SEO, websites, Facebook and Instagram advertising are all areas that I know very well and I can pass this knowledge on.

Creating a mentoring package that’s just for you

Photography mentoring with Nina mace

Choose from 1, 4 or 12 sessions

I have options to suit all needs from a 1 hour power hour, to quarterly sessions or a 12 month package.

Family photographer mentoring

Online or in person

I am based in Camberley, Surrey (UK) and mentoring sessions can take place in person or online depending on what we plan to cover

Photography mentorship

Flexible hours

On the quarterly and 12 month programme, you can combine your 1-hour sessions into longer days – you have total flexibility

Photography mentoring

Pay as you go

On my 4 and 12 month programme you can pay as you go accessing monthly payments to help spread the cost 

Top photography mentor Nina Mace

Free content

Those photographers on my 12-month programme get first access to mini courses and free content such as my Facebook advertising for photographers course. My mentees are also the first to be asked to assist and second shoot. 

Goal setting & tracking

Each mentee is given a Trello board where we summarise the tasks and goals every month and track progress. This makes being accountable much simpler

” I’ve been through every twist and turn that a photography business can experience and there’s very little that I haven’t navigated. So when it comes to mentoring your business, I have a wealth of knowledge that’s yours to utilise.”

Photography Mentoring Options

Photography mentoring with Nina Mace

1 hour online

A BESPOKE ZOOM SESSION TAILORED TO YOUR NEEDS

Targeted session to cover any of the following areas:

Branding, Social media planning, pricing, website review, finding your ideal clients, family shoot reviews and portfolio reviews.

£199

Photography mentoring with Nina Mace

2 hours

SHOOT WITH NINA

Would you like to come on a family shoot with Nina and be trained 1-2-1?

Choose from outdoor locations including a lake, forest or urban. Camberley area or travel to your location if you are within 15 miles.

£399

Photography mentoring with Nina Mace

3 x 1 hour sessions

3 HOURS ZOOM TRAINING TAILORED TO YOUR NEEDS

Pre Purchase a 3-hour block of Mentoring to be used over a 12 month period.

Sessions can be used 1 hour at a time or grouped together depending on the subject area. We can cover shooting, editing, business or marketing.

Save £50 by booking a block of 3 sessions

£549

Photography mentoring with Nina Mace

12 months

THE COMPLETE PROGRAMME TO ACCELERATE YOUR BUSINESS

12 months of bespoke mentoring to cover ANY subject (shooting, editing, business & marketing).

1-hour a month (these can be combined at any time to create longer sessions)

PRIORITY BOOKING ahead of other mentoring sessions

Paid Quarterly saves £400

£499 a quarter

Do we sound like a good fit?

Please complete the form below and I will be in touch to discuss mentoring options. 

P.S. By completing the form you are not committing to booking just to have an open chat with Nina about what she offers 🙂

Chat with Nina about photography mentoring

Have you worked with Nina before?

Join the hundreds of photographers who have already seen their photography business bloom under Nina’s guidance

After hearing so many amazing things about Nina's 1-2-1 course and having struggled with lots of things on the business side of photography, I decided to book on, I'm only on my 4th meeting and already Nina has given me so much knowledge about brand awareness and effective strategies for my business. I like how she listens to your business needs, offers honest feedback and creates tailored tactics for your business. I'm really looking forward to seeing where I will be at the end of the year!

Liz
Like a lot of us, lockdown threw me off, as a wedding photographer of 7 years, this business that I love and had grown, suddenly had no business and no income. I had just bought my home 2 years early and lived on my own, so no other salary to depend on. I had met Nina at SWPP a couple of times and loved her way of training. So I became a member of her Facebook group and joined her on their lockdown training. In 3 months I did a website makeover, family posing training, editing, business training. I was ready. End of lockdown I contacted my old wedding clients offering a family shoot for the bargain price of 100 euros. I did 10 in 2 weeks. So I had a portfolio to show. I still had no weddings but families were booking me I started a one on one mentorship with Nina. This has turned my business around. So detailed and perfectly personalized. 2021 is my best year yet. 2022 I open my new studio. Thank you, Nina
Lisa Derevycka 
Lisa Derevycka

As part of Nina's 12-month mentoring programme, we focused on my website visibility and SEO position. I have to admit it was all new to me but she explained it in such a simple way and gave me specific tasks to deliver each month and as a result, my website is now on the first page of Google. I am also clear what are the most important tasks to focus on going forwards so I no longer waste time.

Gill  
Gill

I wanted to thank you for the very valuable mentoring session this morning. That was the first photography discussion since months which let me feel again my lost passion for this art. I am really impressed by your deep and broad knowledge combined with your genuine approach to teaching/coaching. Your advice is always spot on and hands on. You are definitely the most inspiring person I have met along my photography journey. I hope that I will have once the chance to meet you in person and attend one of your workshops in the UK. Until then I will certainly come back for another Skype session.

Swiss Family Photographer  
Swiss Family Photographer

I choose to book a photography mentoring session with Nina I felt that I needed advice and direction with brand awareness and business support. Her training was much better than expected. I was particularly impressed with how she had taken the time to do appropriate background research before the session. I will recommend her to other professional photographers and have already done so. I know other photographers who would benefit from Nina’s guidance.

John Ferrett

I booked a Photography Mentoring session with Nina because of the rave reviews from other photographers on Facebook.  I always go back and forth on booking a mentor or a training course.  I’m not a beginner in photography, there are always areas for improvement.  Especially when it comes to marketing.  It’s hard to find group courses that would fit my needs.  Since Nina offered 1-2-1 I decided to quit stalling and just book. 1-2-1 was definitely the way to go for me.  I haven’t had any other courses on marketing or business planning so am unable to compare.  But I can say Nina is very knowledgeable and completely transparent with her strategy and teaching.  We live relatively close to each other; I wasn’t sure if that would be a problem for getting help marketing myself.  I was very surprised at the level of advice I received.  She shared everything with me. Nina’s session wasn’t what I was expecting…. It’s hard to articulate, BUT when I left, I felt great about my business plan and the direction I wanted to take it in.  I felt REALLY excited about the new year and new plan.  After my first visit, I wanted to put Nina on retainer!  I LOVE NINA!  She also provided some valuable help with website SEO and driving traffic to my page. Nina has a great personality.  I clicked with her right away, which is so important when working in a creative field and hell yes I would recommend her! She kicks ass.

Johanna Birch

I chose to book a photography mentoring session with Nina because I needed guidance on the next step for my business and sound business and marketing advice. I walked away so happy, buzzing with excitement and Nina answered every question and more that I needed answers for. I found the advice on my brand and how to expand it to reflect me the most useful and would 100% book again. I would recommend Nina because she is so professional, great, chatty, puts you at ease and a perfect mentor and an awesome photographer so you respect her opinion.

Kika Mitchell

“I booked a Photography Mentoring session with Nina after seeing her talk at Photohubs. I found the talk very inspiring and jammed packed with useful information. I decided last year that I wanted to seek professional mentoring and this confirmed Nina would be the right person. Compared to other training I felt like Nina had obviously taken the time to investigate and research my business and I think this helped maximise the time we had in the session. I found the whole session valid and useful, particularly my pricing. I finished my session feeling revitalised and had a clear vision of what my next steps are. Nina is very easy going and very engaging, this coupled with her expertise and experience I would pass on her details to anyone that needs clarity in their photography business ”

Ellie

I’ve followed Nina in the shadows as such for a long time and have always been impressed with not only how knowledgeable she is in both the art of photography and the business/marketing side of things – but also how she is very open with the knowledge she’s gained and always comes across as friendly and personable. Not at all intimidating. I found the Skype session to be the best way forward as its more relaxed and friendly and we focused on Mastering the art of Google plus. I would definitely consider booking a session again this time focusing on Google Adwords. Highly Recommended Mentoring for photographers

Sarah Morris  Sarah K Morris Photography
Sarah Morris

After hearing so many good things about Nina and her mentoring from my photographer friends, I decided to book a session with her to help me with my business. Not only does she give advice on how to improve your photography, she also tailor strategies to get your business to the next level. I am sure that I will get where I want to be thanks to Nina’s help and I’m already looking into booking a photography workshop with her!

Sandra Cullen  Sandra Cullen Photography
Sandra Cullen

Have questions about Photography Mentoring?

What does a photography mentor do?

Working with a photography mentor can be incredibly beneficial to support you creatively and technically to become the best photographer you can be. A good mentor will be a photographer who has experienced that journey themselves and can pass this knowledge on to you. They will give you clarity over what to focus on helping you to avoid overwhelm not just with your photography style but also helping you to achieve your long term goals.

How do I reach out to a photographer for mentorship?

If you are looking to reach out for a photogapher to begin mentoring with them here are my top tips 

1. Write down your goals. Have a list of what you are looking to achive for your photography and business. Make these goals SMART for example setting a time frame or volume against each objective. For example would you like to get a Gold with the SWPP by the end of the year? Are you aiming to book 6 family shootss a month within the next 6 months?

2. Have a budget 

Photographers who mentor other photographers will charge for their time so consider your budget before reaching out. 

3. Ask in the photography community for recommendations 

If you are in any photograpy groups ask advice on who other photographers have mentored with and what results they have seen. A good mentor will be able to give you references of who they have worked with 

Is it hard to find a photography mentor?

There are a lot of photography mentors but what is key is finding the right mentor for you! Again think back to your goals and what you are looking to achieve before you start looking. 

Dive deeper into photography mentoring topics

 

THE LIST BELOW GIVES AN IDEA OF THE TOPICS THAT CAN BE COVERED ON MY PHOTOGRAPHY MENTORING SESSIONS.

  • Portfolio review for your website/ socials
  •  Real family photoshoot critique to deliver a full shoot which your clients will love
  •  Getting your best images straight out of the camera 
  • Editing for real family photoshoots. Fast yet impactful ACR/ Lightroom and Photoshop editing to take your images from great to wow!
  •  On location, family shoots where we work together to deliver a full family gallery
  • How to navigate social media (Google +, Facebook, Instagram) to drive more of the right type of customers
  • Developing a marketing plan so you are clear on what to say and when
  • Website visibility including basic SEO and blogging.
  • Photography Pricing and products that work for your business model
  • Raising your local visibility – How to become the most famous photographer in your area
  • Branding – understanding what your brand looks like and how to bring this to life with language and design
  • Facebook & Instagram Advertising. Learn how to create campaigns that actually deliver by using the right audiences and best creative possible

6 tips for finding the right photography mentor for you

 

There are a lot of fantastic photographers offering photography mentoring in the UK and after I have spoken to some photographers I have actually referred them onto another mentor who I feel fits their style and needs the best. Therefore, I thought it would be useful to offer my top tips on finding the best photography mentor for you:

 

  1. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

The first question is whether you would like to meet your mentor in person or whether you would be happy to do the sessions over Skype. From experience, I find that Business & Marketing and editing Mentoring can work really well over Skype but for photography training its best to do this in person. Its also especially valuable if your mentor can travel to you so you can shoot at locations you plan to use again for future family shoots. Some photography mentors have a minimum distance that works within so to reduce any future issues with photographers developing the same style.

 

2. ASK FOR REFERENCES

Any great mentor will be able to give you details of people they have worked with and should be happy for you to contact them to discuss how the session went and what they felt they got from it. No amount of testimonials online can replace a real chat with a photographer who has worked with that mentor before.

 

3. CHECK THE MENTORS STRENGTHS MATCH YOUR NEEDS

Its human nature to be naturally better at some things than others  – for example, my strengths lie with Business & Marketing and outdoor children’s photography. If a possible mentoree approached me about studio lighting and newborn photography I would direct them to some of my recommended partners shown below.  This leads very much to tip 4 which is…

 

4. BE CLEAR ON WHAT YOU WANT TO ACHEIVE FROM THE SESSION

Work to set some SMART targets ahead of your session and let your mentor know what these are. All your chosen mentor wants is for you to get the most from your session so they more information you can give them the better. Try to quantify your objectives as much as possible. For example, you could say you want to review your online portfolio so you have more of a consistent style for potential clients OR that you want to target getting onto Page 1 of Google for your keyword within 6 months.

 

5. TAKE NOTES

You would be surprised how much you can cover in a mentoring session so try to take as many notes as you can and then work with your Mentor to put them into PRIORITY ORDER. A good mentoring session can leave you with an incredibly long to do list which can feel overwhelming so breaking it into manageable chunks is a good idea.

 

6. ASK ABOUT THEIR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS BEFORE THEY BECAME A MENTOR

Does your mentor still photograph and drive an income from photography? If not, and they have left photography, how successful was their business in terms of profit? I think it’s important that mentors keep one foot in the market, and are able to illustrate that they have made their own photography business a real success. I have seen real shifts in the market in the last 2 years (going into my 10th year in business) and that has enabled me to pass these insights onto my mentorees.

Andy Dane - Website Guru & Technical Genius

Whether you need a site built from scratch, a refresh of an existing site or simply to move a current site over to a faster host Andy can help. Services include moving your site from Zenfolio, SquarespaceWix to a WordPress based site with a theme or setting everything up so you can design the site yourself. He can even spend time with you training you before he hands your new site over.  No matter how big or small your project, Andy is your man!

photography mentoring

Gary Hill - Lighting and Studio Expert

Gary has won every accolade and competition there is going and his knowledge and understanding of light are second to none.

If you are looking to up your lighting game and know your speed lights from your Rotolux, then this is who I would suggest you speak to about training. He offers group workings and 1-2-1 mentoring throughout the UK & Ireland

photography mentoring

Stephanie Belton - Lifestyle Newborn Photography

I have known Stephanie for 7 years now (she was the lady who started my photography journey!) and if you would like to learn indoor lifestyle newborn photography then she is the best. Stephanies understanding of light and how to naturally pose families is second to none and she runs a very successful family photography business. You can drop her an email to discuss training or mentoring.

mentoring for photographers

Digitalab - Professional Print Lab

I have worked with Digitalab for the past year and have gotten to know their entire team personally and they are my professional lab of choice. I use them for all my printing from loose prints to print boxes and frames. They are consistent, always deliver on time but also take the time to really get to know their clients.

They have also just won Large Trader of the Year at the Newborn Photography Show.

Kayleigh - Brand designer

KW Design specialises in Logo, Brand Design and Retail Display, helping independent businesses and retailers to grow. Kayleigh’s studio is located in the heart of the beautiful Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.

I have personally worked with Kayleigh on my brand design and I enjoyed the process so much she is now my designer of choice. She has a real understanding of the challenges (and budget!) that small business like us have and can on small design projects all the way up to a complete rebrand.

 

photography mentoring

Maggie Robinson - In Person Sales Trainer

Maggie from Dinky Feet Photography (who you may also know from running the Brutal Feedback Facebook group) has launched IPS training on the back of her own successful studio photography business. If you currently offering online galleries to your clients and want to move to In-Person Sales or you have been offering IPS for a while now but you feel you are not 100% confident in running it successfully then get in touch. She offers group training but also 1-2-1 Skype sessions.

photography mentoring

Harmony & Blue Photographers Resources

One of the most asked questions by Photographers is where they can obtain legal contracts for their business. Harmony & Blue have been working a top UK legal City Law Firm to resolve this & create a comprehensive contract template that will cover you, your client & your business. Alongside the contract, they include a very detailed step by step walkthrough, so you can customize with ease without accidentally amending any legal terms. The forms have been written by current professional Portrait Photographers making them up to date and relevant.

photography mentoring

Animoto for Marketing videos

Want to make professional looking marketing videos in minutes? With templates and over 3000+ music tracks, all my videos are made with Animoto.

I am pleased to say that I am now running a partnership scheme with Animoto to help professional photographers share a business plan, therefore, saving them up to 50% on their annual subscription.

To be sent details of how to join please send me an email to [email protected]

Surrey family photographer

Photography Training & Workshops

Business & Marketing Mentor

 

 

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