One Year of Little Beams - what?!
I genuinely did not think this day would sneak up on me the way it did - sneaky.
One year ago I registered Little Beams Photography and reluctantly started telling people I was a photographer. Which — if you knew me then — you'd know felt a bit like announcing I was a dancing unicorn. Huge claim. One I was not entirely sure I could back up.
But here we are. One year in. Still showing up, still shooting, still absolutely obsessing over the moment a kid does something completely weird and wonderful, yet so perfect. So I figured I'd take a minute to actually reflect on it — the real version, not the highlight reel.
Why I started (the honest version)
This journey really started for me about a two years before my son ever even felt like a possibility. In 2022, I underwent multiple abdominal surgeries, one of which was an emergency laparotomy to untwist my small bowel, which left my lower abdomen pretty scarred. While horrific, this event was a major catalyst for change. I was tired of sitting on the sidelines and tired of hating my body - despite everything it had been through. I found a photographer in Raglan who specialised in the use of photography to empower women - shout out Nami Hampe! So I did something so unlike me. I booked a Goddess shoot with her to take my power back. Through Nami's images, I saw the beauty and the power of my body. I had no idea photography could do that. Nor that anyone could make me feel that way about my body, and that comfortable and powerful in front of a camera.
How was it possible that a picture could make me feel like that? That a photographer could make me feel so beautiful and comfortable while they came at me with a camera?!
And so I was inspired. Inspired to try and do that for other people. Families, women, whoever needed it.
So in the two years in-between, I met my amazing partner - had my beautiful son... and so it all began.
I started Little Beams because, like so many new mums, time seemed to take on a whole new dimension. It had both slowed, and hastened at the same time. All I wanted was for time to freeze, and speed up (those long nights- am I right?). When my son was born, we had photos done at home of him at 8 weeks - he is frozen forever on my walls at 8 weeks. The photos were visually gorgeous, but I had no idea how much more those photos would mean as time went on. As he got older. As the birth mark faded, the cheeks got chubbier, and the face more animated.
What I actually wanted to achieve— what I think most families in Hawke's Bay want — was someone to just capture what their family actually looks like. The chaos, the cuddles, the kid who won't look at the camera but is doing something hilarious in the background. That's the stuff you want to frame on your wall twenty years from now.
So I started Little Beams to be that photographer. The one who disappears into the background and just... watches (in a not creepy way).
What I thought it would be like vs. what it actually is
Okay, I had some ideas. Some of them were right. Most of them were not.
I thought the hard part would be the photography. Turns out that's actually the part I find easiest. The hard part is everything else — the admin, the late-night editing sessions, the moments where you wonder if you priced that session right or sent that email in the right tone or whether anyone is actually going to book in next month.
I also thought I'd feel more "ready" before I started. Spoiler: you never feel ready. You just start, and then you figure it out on the way. If I'd waited until I felt 100% confident, Little Beams wouldn't exist. I'm just following the vibes!
The thing that genuinely surprised me? How much I love it. Not just the shooting — all of it. The messages from clients when they get their galleries. The laughs and sh*t chat during the shoot. The mums who say they actually teared up looking at the photos. The families who come back for a second session because the first one felt so easy. That stuff makes the admin totally worth it.
My favourite moments
I think there are too amazing moments to single them out. It's been more a collection of moments. The first message from a previous client (a dad!) saying how much he enjoyed the first shoot, and would like to come back and get some updated family pictures - like, what?!
The moments when the sun hits just right and you know that this is the money shot. It's the shot from the inspo they sent you... but it's them, and their family in this moment.
One of the best parts of any shoot for me is actually the culling of the photos after. The time I spend going through every single photo from that session and I get to relive that hour we spent together. I look like a lunatic - I can't wipe the smile off my face.
What I know now that I really, really didn't know then
1. Comparison is a trap. There are so many incredible photographers out there and early on I spent way too much time looking at what everyone else was doing. It took me a while to realise that what I do is different on purpose — and that's a good thing.
2. Your clients are nervous too. Almost every family I photograph tells me they're awkward in front of a camera. Almost every family I photograph ends up completely relaxed by the end. It's not magic — it's just giving people permission to be themselves.
3. Rest is actually part of the job. I haven't quite nailed this yet. Everyone who knows me well knows that the plate is always full.
4. Community matters more than followers. The connections I've made with other photographers, small businesses and families here in Hawke's Bay have been worth more than any algorithm.
What year two looks like
Just more please?
More of what's been working. More candid family sessions, more maternity and newborn work — the stuff I genuinely love and feel like I'm getting good at. I'd love to keep building relationships with families across Napier, Hastings, and Havelock North who just want real photos, not a performance.
I'm also going to keep pushing myself creatively — trying new locations around the region, exploring light differently, and saying yes to the sessions that challenge me a bit.
Mostly, I just want to keep doing the thing that made me start this in the first place — helping people see themselves the way the people who love them see them.
Thank you, honestly
If you've booked a session with me, shared a post, sent a kind message, or even just followed along — thank you. Running a small business can feel pretty vulnerable sometimes, and knowing there are people out there rooting for Little Beams genuinely means everything.
Here's to year TWO!
If you've been thinking about booking a session, I'd love to hear from you — head over to the website or flick me a message on Instagram @littlebeams.photography. I don't bite, and I promise the session will be way less stressful than you think.
With love,
Kate xx
