An Article Published on Bloodfire Studios’ Principle, Heather Fritz, by VoyageATL.com
ATLANTA: MARCH 13, 2019
Thanks for sharing your story with us Heather. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I’ve always been an artist, but I started in photography in high school with a pinhole class where we made our own camera. It was magic to see the image develop before my eyes and I was hooked. After that, I was a photojournalist for the award-winning Kennesaw State University newspaper, The Sentinel and loved meeting my subjects and being an objective observer. But other priorities pushed me into a corporate career after college; the priority of paying off a student loan.
I know now that I was in the flow, doing what I was meant to do back then, but chasing a dream and following your heart isn’t always practical. Or at least that’s what I thought. I didn’t believe that I could make enough money at photography to thrive, only survive, and I wasn’t interested in just surviving in this life. Funny how things come full circle because, after a stressful corporate career in marketing/communications, I went into survival mode when I discovered I had breast cancer in 2009.
A defining moment for me during that fight was a referral from a college friend for a wedding photography job; I hadn’t even had surgery yet and didn’t know what I was about to face, but something told me that God was going to bring me back to what I love and change my life. When the client said, “we know you are going to be fine by our wedding date and want you,” I knew that the worst would be behind me and that I was about to step into my purpose. I photographed that wedding bald, a week after my last chemo treatment.
When I came through that ordeal, I knew that I could never go back to “corporate.” I started contracting marketing/branding/graphics when a job came to me that put me in a position to start doing architectural photography. I used that to launch my commercial photography business and spent the next several years learning the technical aspects of architectural photography, composition for design, and obtaining the equipment I needed to be successful.
I discovered that my corporate experience had built a wall between me and human subjects and I avoided photographing people and weddings for my first seven years. Back when I was a journalist, I had no problem connecting, but after four lay-offs and some crazy back-stabbing experiences, I wasn’t the same. It was when my church offered a free portrait day that I decided to step out of my comfort zone and in doing so I experienced a lifting of the cynical weight that had shrouded me. I was free, and my connection to people and my inner self was restored. It may sound Woo Woo or Jesus Freak, but it was real and immediate and changed the course of my life and business.
Two months later, in February 2017, I was asked to photograph my neighbors’ destination wedding in Cancun and when I got excited about it, I knew that I was ready. I realized that I had been walking around the mountain for seven years – avoiding weddings out of fear, fear of not connecting and therefore not getting the best images possible.
It was during this time that I discovered that God is within me and all I have to do is prepare, put one foot in front of the other and show up. When I got to the resort in Mexico, the sun was BLAZING and I was scared! But I did my job, I scouted the resort and made a plan and location list. I also prayed for the confidence that everything would be perfect because I showed up and brought God with me. And wouldn’t you know, the day of the wedding God showed up and blew in the perfect thin clouds that diffused the harsh sun and made for lovely natural light ceremony images and fantastic off-camera flashed portraits on the beach.
My story isn’t about how I became a photographer, fought cancer or even survived. My story is about getting out of my own way, seeking myself and my inner beliefs and stepping into the flow of the universe and God’s will. We all have more power than we could imagine, but this world bombards us with messages to strip us of that power. You don’t have to swim upstream or beat your head against the wall because this is what you should be doing, what you were trained for or what you need to do to make money.
I now believe that there is truth in everything that man separates in order to divide us: science, magic, religion, and energy. We have to be discerning enough to seek ourselves and the truth, not just follow the herd. I started my journey to learn ‘how I function’ and ‘why I am’ several years ago, and what I have learned has blown the top off. I encourage everyone to learn about your subconscious self, your auto-pilot and challenge yourself to modify it to serve you. Freud had a lot of it right, we are the product of who and what we were exposed to as youngsters and that should scare and piss you off you because it controls your life, even after you grow up and learn and decide for yourself what you want and believe.
There is a quote from Buddha that I have discovered IS the truth: “What you think you become, what you feel you attract, what you imagine you create.” Your thoughts are real things that can come true, your feelings or emotions are the vibrations that work in the quantum field and the law of attraction, and everything that ever comes into being must be imagined first. If you have a disconnect in these three areas, you will run into the same challenges over and over, hit a limit or just sit and spin wondering what you are missing. My hope for anyone reading this is that you rise above this earth and it’s drama, reprogram your subconscious to serve your higher self, and accept the power of God inside you with gratitude; you can do anything you set your intention and actions to do. We are all creators, powerful beings. Your past has absolutely nothing to do with your potential unless you believe it does.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Bloodfire Studios, LLC – what should we know?
Bloodfire Studios in Atlanta, Georgia is known for stunning architectural image design. A commercial studio, businesses work with Bloodfire for commercial, industrial, product and lifestyle photography.
Owner and Principle, Heather Fritz is an award-winning, published photographer with over 25 years of experience and strives to create engaging and artistic images for businesses and individuals that represent a better reality. The Bloodfire brand is expanding with the addition of destination wedding imagery, a new line of custom and collaborative commercial art called Bloodfire Mandalas and is launching aerial drone imagery services by mid-2019. The brand is about collaboration, artistry, and love; she and her team bring these values into each project.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Not just in my business but in this life, love is the most important thing. Love shows up in how I treat my clients, how I treat myself and my team, and how I approach every project because I want my clients to love their images. Love translates into listening with my heart, treating people with respect, being flexible, open and honest communication, brainstorming solutions, and even calming an upset bride. Love is Integrity and is the force that pushes me to delight and over deliver.
