Meet Jessica Villarreal | Maternity, Newborn and Family Photographer

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

Hi Jessica, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Since I moved to the United States, I thought of creating my own business. Photography was my first option, so before we moved my husband gave me a nice start camera as a gift.

I tried to start my portafolio, but because I didn’t know anyone, it was difficult and I stopped trying even though I did some sporadic sessions for free.

After that, I changed my mind and studied to become a teacher. I even volunteered for a few months to work as an assistant teacher but I realized that teaching wasn’t for me.

I also tried another business: baking and catering but again I quickly didn’t find myself excited and I stopped after completing some sales.

When my first child was born, I took him to take newborn photos, and I really liked the idea of starting up with newborn photography for my own business. However, it was difficult again because I got pregnant with my second child in less than a year and I couldn’t do it until she was born. Once my maternity life settled down, I took online courses to learn the basics while rising my kids and I rediscovered my passion and had pursued my dream since then happily.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Newborn photography is a very delicate niche. It requires a lot of props, very delicate materials and most of it requires a lot safety procedures.

Newborn photography is not easy at all. As a mom and artist, I need to make sure everything is clean and safe for baby. Even before COVID-19, cleaning all props before and after each session was a must.

Posing baby also has its challenges. Newborn Babies are so fragile. I need to make sure baby is pose in a safety position, and look for red flags as hands and toes turning blue, Check that the basket is safe and has enough weight in order to prevent falls. There are certain poses that require a composite edition in order to have the final picture.

All the challenges that newborn photography has are easy to overcome with practice. Is not easy, specially with sensitive babies though.

Thanks to my mentors, I learned about safety for newborn photography.

I create Little Tiny Memories for families who want to capture baby’s first days at very accessible price and too quality.

Photography in general is really expensive. Photography is not just taking a camera and take a few snaps. It requieres a lot more than that: how to manage your camera, your subject, manage the families, the weather condition, backdrops, edition, props, administration, etc. If I continue we can add more ande more. That is why photography can become super expensive.

In my case, yes I do this as a business because my time is valued, however I’m not seeking wealthy; I do newborn, maternity and family photography, because I’m my passionate about it, and I want to follow my heart to create beautiful memories for all the families.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Houston has a diversity of places to go eat and hang out. Thanks for all the different cultures and people from anywhere in the world, we can find anything for all tastes and likes.

The first place I will take them should be a boardwalk at Townlake, where you can find different shopping and food places plus beautiful sunsets in the evening.

Another good place is the Woodlands and the Galleria areas for shopping.

For touristic places, for sure is NASA and Galveston bay are must.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
To all my friends moms looking to succeed personally by doing something where you can find passion outside of their family time.

Website: https://book.usesession.com/i/9v_vK5-GK

Instagram: @littletinymemoriesjv oh

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/littletinymemoriesbyJV/

Image Credits
Photography by Jessica Villarreal at Little Tiny Memories