11 Brand photographer Rio Chantel on getting back to one's boundaries
Rio Chantel: A brand photographer’s journey from high volume/high anxiety to boundaries and time freedom
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“do you want fries with that?”
That’s what Rio’s aunt asked her in response when Rio said she was getting a liberal arts degree — she is now a successful brand photographer with her own beautiful studio, and she does want fries with that.
RIO CHANTEL
Rio Chantel is a Missoula-based brand photographer and the coolest person I know — everything about her is just rad and makes me want to live a more intentional, creative, aesthetic life. I’ve been drawn to Rio since the first photo I saw of her — platonic love at first sight, truly, so this was a freaking treat.
Rio also owns our favorite creative studio space, Oi Yoi, where we shoot all of our branding + educational video content. Go check it out and book it nowwww!
What do we hold space for?
Rio and I chat about our shared experiences as children of large, nomadic families. We dissect what it is to relate to others and hold space for people, to empathize, and to give grace — and how all of this relates to creativity and business.
The fear of being misunderstood
Rio and I also connect on having a deep, life-long fear of being misunderstood, and the challenges this fear creates in being ethical communicators. Rio speaks to her own personal journey with giving herself grace — grace, in relation to herself, means “forgiving herself for being human.”
Being human is hard.
Therapy has been a huge part of forgiveness + relationship mending for Rio over the past year and a half. She details her experience with therapy and how it has helped her.
From playing photographer to becoming “the worst boss in the world.”
Rio shares how high-volume and low-ticket her offerings used to be, and the anxiety that business structure caused. She mentions her early business “depleting (her) creative resources.” Rio’s process of niching down, raising her prices, and reconciling her business with the lifestyle she wants to lead will resonate with creatives of every niche.
Let’s end with some true wisdom
We all know by now that I’m trashhhh at ending these blog posts, but I want to leave you today with my favorite quote from Rio’s episode of the pod: “Part of my journey is that if I make a sacrifice of my integrity then the universe will tell me to get back to my boundaries.”
Oof. Yes. Thank you, Rio.
Check out Rio’s website
If you want to learn more about Rio, click here to check out her website!
hey, photog friend!
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