Meet Alison McStravick | Pro Photographer

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

Hi Alison, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
Work life balance is a tough thing to navigate for any person, but especially those who run their own business. As a business owner you frequently feel as if you’re constantly working. Clients email, text, DM, Facebook message or call at all times of the day and night. I always have something I could be working on so it becomes difficult to put my work away and fully separate my work life from my personal life. As a wedding and family photographer I spend many weeknights shooting sessions and most weekends shooting weddings. In the fall I’m so busy with family sessions and weddings that I am typically shooting six or seven days a week. And this doesn’t include the numerous hours I spend editing all of the images I capture. As a mom of two young kiddos this means I often miss family dinners, and don’t always get to kiss my littles goodnight. That’s why it has been so important for me to set strict boundaries for myself in my business. Prior to having children I would work nonstop. I had zero balance and knew when we decided to grow our family that it had to change. I began enforcing boundaries for myself and now that balance I always craved has finally come into focus. When my kiddos are enjoying their weekday activities at school or with our sitter, I take that opportunity to work. I respond to clients, send invoices, blog, edit, and do all the things that are difficult to complete with my children at home. Then, once they come home, my work day ends and I don’t do anything else business related for the rest of the day. I spend the days and evenings I’m free with my family and I don’t open work email or even get on my computer. I also try to remember to practice self-care whenever I can. This is so important and usually the thing we put last! I still struggle with balance from time to time, but overall I’m in a much better place than I was when I started my business.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a wedding and family photographer that offers a custom, personalized experience to my clients. Building my business has been a long and trying process, and I’ve finally reached a place where I feel stable and happy with what I’ve created. Running a business is not always easy, but watching it flourish makes all the hard work worth it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
There are so many fun things to do in the DFW area, but my favorite place to hang is in my local town of Denton, TX. We have lots of great restaurants like Boca 31, 940s Kitchen and Cocktails and Barley and Board on the square. You can also hit up some fun shows at Dan’s Silverleaf or rummage through old books and records at Recycled, located in the old Opera House on the corner of Locust and Oak.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout has to be to my man! My husband works a demanding full time job during the week and supports my crazy night and weekend schedule by caring for our kids and taking care of everything when I’m gone. He prepares dinners, kisses boo boos and even cleans the kitchen (definitely a keeper!). He is the glue that holds our family together and I am so grateful!

Website: www.juliaalisonphotography.com
Instagram: @juliaalisonphoto
Facebook: www.facebook.com/juliaalisonphotography

Image Credits
Kevin + Stephanie for the headshot