108: Ana Hinojosa – Expectations vs Surrender & Creating Healthy Habits

September 20, 2023

“Everything gets better when you take the time to get to know yourself & love yourself.”

ANA HINOJOSA

Hey everyone! It’s Sally here, from Studio Ninja. Today’s episode is all about Ana Hinojosa!

Ana Hinojosa is a mexican photographer with a career spanning over 14 years, during which she has embarked on a remarkable journey across the globe. Her photography is far more than a profession; it’s a profound mission to ignite the same love and joy for life in others that her mother’s photographs of Ana’s childhood once kindled within her own heart.

Today, Ana finds herself nestled in the captivating colonial town of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico where she has chosen to make her home base. She continues her quest to immortalize the essence of love stories and to capture the ephemeral moments that render our time in this world.

Ana’s relentless dedication to her craft has led to the creation of two extraordinary projects: “Amor, Amor” and “Amorcito Corazón.” “Amorcito Corazon” holds a special place among them, as it embarks on a nomadic journey around the world. In this transformative workshop, Ana serves as a guide, helping participants discover their unique creative voices and empowering them to infuse creativity into both their work and their lives.

Check out some of the biggest points from Ana’s interview below:

  • Ana’s journey in the Photography Industry
  • How to navigate burnout
  • What you can do in your daily life to avoid burnout

  • How to create healthy habits
  • The trick behind turning habits into routine

  • Expectation vs Surrender for photographers

  • Tips for building relationships with clients

  • The importance of storytelling
  • What a huge impact getting to know yourself can have on your business

  • The one thing that made a difference to Ana’s business!

Let’s talk: Expectation vs Surrender?

I love that subject because it’s something that completely changed the way I’m. I approach not only photography, but in weddings, but but life. And it’s about I learned it through photography and weddings.

But, um, I was, I was in the past years ago, um, like entering a wedding, having all these ideas that I wanted to, for this to be like. Like the images I wanted to deliver. And unconsciously I was, of course, with expectations setting up for failure. Um. Yeah, because I was stressed. I was not present at all because I had this vision in my head. So I was like chasing that vision, that image in my head when in reality there was a whole nother thing. Of course, always, like, more beautiful than what what I had in mind if I surrender. And ta ta ta. What’s presented to me and not having. Expert expectations because think in that context, like expectations are also like, um, judging. The situation, the situation or people or work or cells. And so unveiling like taking out that that veil for me was just like, I don’t stress anymore. I go to weddings being feeling like so rested because I slept, because I’m not stressed that tomorrow I’m having a wedding because I know that I’m going to do my best and that whatever is presented there for me, um, is just a beautiful opportunity to create together and not for me to impose an idea or style or my, you know, style or myself.

So just. Let it go and flow and enter the room with gratitude and love and just shoot that love that.

How do you build relationships with your clients?

You know what more than that mean? Yes, but more than that. Um, because sometimes that’s not possible. And also. Well, yes, like we don’t have time or it’s not very. Um. I don’t know how to say it. Yeah. Realistic to, like, make time for coffee drinks for every client. But more than that, than creating that bond in that relationship with your clients is make it with yourself. Because that way when yeah, we’re always looking for everything outside us and it’s always there.

So when, when for me, that’s, that’s the journey like I’ve been in that getting to know myself again in so many levels and spending time with myself and get away of like the noise and doing that allows me to be, um, very quick in relating and making a connection with others. Um, so maybe for, for me that’s the key. Like I meet someone and especially during the wedding day and I’m not forcing myself into having this relationship or anything, but it comes naturally. The constant is like, I feel like I’ve known you for years because you come in with like, that honesty and rawness. And for me, it’s been like knowing how to read, like just to read a room and being very perceptive and sensible, sensitive, uh, to others, to other people being compassionate, basically. So that gives you like the map or like how to navigate around people and, and around wedding day that is filled with emotions, which.

If you could add one final piece of advice, something that’s made a difference in your personal life or your business life, what would that piece of advice be?

I think the thing I would have loved to know is that I was not alone in this. That if that. Well, I did. I did what I could with what I knew. But I love knowing now and, and yeah. Taking everything about like the community thing for, for years, years, years I, I felt like I was by myself in this and in the industry like everyone it was another time 14 years ago and it was a little bit more the opposite of community and there was a lot of help in hand. And with women also we were like, Yeah, no, you go back to your little coffee dates and whatever, and um, and but there were other, you know, um, fellow photographers, women as well that were in the same, in the same row and the same journey. So I wish, I wish I knew that. And so I didn’t feel so alone and probably them as well. But I’m very happy now to have this beautiful community mean to be talking to you right now.

Thank you!

Thanks again to you all for joining us and a huge thanks to Ana for joining us on the show!

If you have any suggestions, comments or questions about this episode, please be sure to leave them below in the comment section of this post, and if you liked the episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of the post!

That’s it for me this week, I hope you all enjoyed this episode.

See you soon,

Sally

About Ana Hinojosa

Ana Hinojosa is a mexican photographer with a career spanning over 14 years, during which she has embarked on a remarkable journey across the globe. Her photography is far more than a profession; it’s a profound mission to ignite the same love and joy for life in others that her mother’s photographs of Ana’s childhood once kindled within her own heart.