Meet Suzy Goodrick | Wedding Photographer for Free-Spirited Couples

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

Hi Suzy, other than deciding to work for yourself, what else do you think played a pivotal role in your story?
Other than working for myself, the single most important decision I’ve made is to unapologetically create a visual brand that aligns with my values and aesthetics. There are many different brands, voices, and styles of photography, but when I made the intentional decision to be myself and attract the specific clients I desired to work with, everything felt more natural and aligned more easily. This doesn’t mean it wasn’t hard work. It was incredibly hard work (and required some soul searching) to create a website and social media presence to attract adventurous and laid back couples. It took years to hone my craft and create brand recognition with depth and clarity, but it’s been 100% worth the work.

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’m incredibly proud of both the business I’ve built and the art I get to create with my clients. It’s been a balance to grow and create a business I love, while also creating art that my clients are excited about. It’s not always been easy. Especially in the early years, I explored the different avenues and editing styles of photography. I wanted to try new things, change my editing style, and make art for the sake of art’s sake. But this was confusing to clients who wanted to book me; they didn’t always know what they were signing up for. This was a huge challenge which eventually led me to completely rebrand my business. I invested in a new website, logo, colors, and brand voice. I began to unapologetically shoot and edit in a way that aligned with what I wanted to create. It took time and energy and finances, but eventually, I created a consistent brand that’s evolved and grown into what it is today. My desire is to share my perspective with the world through photos and art, whether that’s on a wedding day or to celebrate a milestone; they’re all important days to capture.

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?
Traveling is my love language, so getting to share my city (or state) with my bff would be amazing. Arizona has such beautiful landscapes, amazing restaurants, and great coffee that it would be hard to narrow down, but we’ll try! We would begin by taking a few days to explore Northern Arizona. Beginning in Prescott, we’d eat pizza and mac and cheese on the patio at Liqour Deli. Say we grab a few local wine bottles to go and then head to Flagstaff. We’d hit Snowbowl for a quick hike through the trees and make our way to downtown Flagstaff for burgers at Diablo. Food is such a central part of my travels! From here, we’d head to the Arizona/Utah border to explore Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon, and Monument Valley. There’s no place like Arizona, truly. Although much of our time would be spent road-tripping to see these wonders, it would be worth the time and effort! We’d end our travels back in Phoenix, grabbin’ coffee at Liberty Market in the East Valley and then maybe dinner at Taco Guild in Central Phoenix.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Without question, the community I have found in The Rising Tide Society have contributed immeasurably to my success as a small business owner and wedding photographer. The Rising Tide Society is an international community of creatives who believe in supporting one another in the spirit of community over competition. We have four local chapters and after attending for a few years, I now co-lead the East Valley Chapter. We meet monthly (virtually in 2020) and discuss various entrepreneurial topics and offer support and encouragement to one another. It’s an incredible community that I’ve made life long friends through, they get all the credit!

Website: https://suzygoodrick.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suzygoodrick/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/suzygoodrickphotography/

Image Credits
Suzy Goodrick, Sara Bishop, Julia Gonzales