Meet Candice Eaton | Photographer and budding professional philanthropist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Candice Eaton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Candice, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think about risk as a necessary part of everyday life. We don’t often think of the risk of going to the store or getting in the shower, because those things are mundane and relatively low risk. I think the mundane is the most important part of the equation, though. The repetitiveness of the task or the risk-taking makes it more acceptable each time. Take skydiving for instance, jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. The first time you do it, it will be a rush so big that you think it might kill you. Maybe even the 2nd and 10th time that happens too. However, I know people who do it several times every week. They step out of a plane like I step off of a curb. They do flips and tricks and wait to open their chute longer than recommended. It could be argued that because of complacency and the added difficulty of what they do, their risk is equal to, if not even greater than, that of the first-timers, but because the task has become common-place, they no longer dwell on the risk, just like you and I don’t consider the risk of going grocery shopping.

Learning to assess and be comfortable taking risks has significantly benefitted my life. It has also worked to my detriment, but all things considered, I believe there has been a net positive effect. I took a huge risk when I left my sales career to start my own business. It bankrupted me. I lost everything. What I gained, though, was the realization that I could lose everything and live. It didn’t kill me. You see, science can confirm that the worst thing about a bad outcome is not the outcome itself; it’s our own imaginations of what the outcome will be in the time leading up to the outcome that we suffer from the most. Now, when I look at a risky situation, I think, what was the worst thing ever happening to me? Did it kill me? No. Did it even hurt as badly as I imagined it would? No. Will the potential negative outcome from this kill me or hurt me as badly as I imagine it will? As long as the answer is “probably not” then I will probably do it.

I recently attended a networking event where we were rock climbing at a gym. I was trying out routes well beyond my skill level as a first-timer. One of the guys watched me try a jumping move to get from one hold to the next. In the process, I hit my hand on another hold that stuck out farther than I had accounted for. Of course, I fell off the wall, bounced around like a doll as the auto-belay slowly let me down, and landed on the mats laughing at my own miscalculation. One of the guys in the group came over and said, “You must go climbing often.” I was stunned after that showing and asked, “Why do you think that? Because, dude, I’ve been a total of 4 times ever, and this is the first time in over 10 years.” ” He said, because of that jump thing you just did, you seemed like you know what you were doing.” I laughed a little more and said, “Nope, I have no idea what I’m doing, but I am strapped to a rope that’s attached to a machine built to keep me from falling. This is a relatively low risk environment for me to be trying to do something that’s way outside of my skill level. This is a good time to practice risk-taking.”

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a photographer. I specialize in creating pet portraits and brand stories. What set me apart from other photographers is my burning desire to not fit in. A photography mentor once told me that learning the rules wasn’t so we could create art because there are no “rules” in art. We learned the rules so that we knew how to break them intentionally because breaking the rules with intent and vision is how you create art. I want to break the rules and stand out in a world where everyone and everything looks more and more the same each day.

I am most proud of the fact that I’ve made it nearly 5 years from inception, all on my own. I have nearly beat the first 80% rule (80% of business close in 5 years) and that’s the first step. The first 5 years are known for being a slog but for the first time the slog is getting a tiny bit easier with experience, relationships and some sense of direction backing me now.

I got where I am all on my own. I stayed up nights and neglected my personal life and made do on very little to get here. It was profoundly hard. I wake up often at 3 am, which I call the entrepreneur’s witching hour, in a total panic. I woke up scared that I won’t be able to make the rent next month. I wake up wondering how I’m going to buy groceries. I wake up thinking that I need to give it up and go get a job. I overcome this by doing. I just keep doing. When I’m confident, I do. When I’m uncertain, I do. And especially when I’m scared shitless, that’s when I do the most. I think of myself as a bicycle. Bicycles cannot balance unless they are moving, preferably forward, and pedaling adds to the balance effect more than just coasting, so when shit starts to get sideways, I just keep pedaling.

I want the world to know that my brand is about doing the right thing at all costs. It’s about serving and helping, and supporting my clients, friends, and the world around me. I want to be known as someone who became wildly successful by giving more than I take.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My friend and I were coming to Tucson for a week and had NEVER been here before. I would take them to the Desert Museum, hiking in Saguaro National Park and to the plane crash on Mt Lemmon. I would take them downtown and restaurant/bar hop while hitting up all the cool historical places. I’d take them to Pats Hot Dogs, seis kitchen, eegees, and the buffet. I would take them on the drive to Sonoita, one of the best trips in So AZ so far as I’m concerned, then down to Bisbee for ghost and mine tours.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Jon Gilbert; is the Founder of Tucson Rescue Now and a long-time entrepreneur. He was the only one who encouraged me to leave the miserable job that was killing me and take up photography full-time. He praised my work and my growth, and he challenged my ability to disagree fundamentally with a friend, set boundaries es for myself, and, in the end, remain friends. If it wasn’t for his constant hounding me to quit the job I hated and make this my sole focus, I never would have.

Website: www.ceatonphotography.com

Instagram: ceatonphoto

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candice-eaton-b00886205/

Facebook: capturing everybuddy and C. Eaton Photography

Image Credits
Candice Eaton, C. Eaton Photography, LLC