Toni Lovejoy is not your typical interior photographer. For one thing, she’s taken a long and windy journey to where she is today. With a background that involves modeling, accounting, and fine art photography, Toni brings plenty of fresh perspectives to the field! In this chat, we talk about her background, the unique approach she’s taken to shooting real estate photography, the decisions that she’s made to stay true to herself, and her advice for fellow women of color struggling to fit into the world of architectural and interior photography. It’s been a pleasure to call this woman a friend, and I’m incredibly excited for the rest of the world to get to know her. You’ll want to get to know Toni, too, because she’s just getting started!
(All photos by Toni Lovejoy)
We cover a lot of ground in this conversation! Here are some nuggets you may want to jump to:
3:10 - What happened when Toni felt “dead creatively”? ”I felt I had to learn how to serve people.”
5:10 - The journey of using photography to work through grief, and how that’s impacted her today. “The camera once again became a part of me.”
10:50 - The parts of her past experiences that have surprisingly, unexpectedly helpful in photographing interiors - “Landscape photography is the key.”
20:40 - Toni’s pet peeve with new photographers (I bet you’ll agree!) - “…and now we’ve all got to answer for that.”
30:30 - What book blew Toni’s mind (and which book I recommend to her for her next read) - “It just reinforced that inner-gut thing, but there’s so much more to it that I’m reading it again.”
41:43 - Why Toni is okay consistently over-delivering on real estate shoots - “I was being paid to learn.”
51:50 - Why “good enough” is not good enough - “Unlearning something is much harder than learning something.”
1:09:00 - How perfectionism works against Toni’s growth, and how that’s changed over the years - “I’m always thinking of where I want to get to.”
1:10:36 - Why you have to be willing to “fail up” - “I have to ask for more and be bold in the asking.”
1:27:00 - What every single photographer absolutely MUST do - “We’re not just a one-note band.”
1:44:07 - Toni’s advice for fellow women of color getting into interior photography - “There aren’t enough of us. That’s why you have to do it.”
“IF YOU COME WITH LOVE AND PASSION, NOTHING IS GONNA STOP YOU.”
~TONI LOVEJOY
Thank you so much for your time, Toni!
If you want to see more of Toni’s work and connect with her, you can find more information at www.mynameislovejoy.com or on IG at @mynameis.lovejoy.
Until next time,
xo
Natalia