Personal Branding images are becoming more and more important as social media has dominated how clients find your services. Michelle knows the importance of putting her best foot forward with professional personal branding images and I am so thrilled she has these beautiful images to market her business with. Here is a little about Michelle and her business adventures.
I was born in Eugene, Oregon and moved around A LOT when I was a kid — I think at last count it was 14 different schools — finally settling back in the Pacific Northwest as a young adult. Bend, Oregon is my “hometown”!
I love animals so much; I am especially connected to my rescued foxhound Elvis.
I enjoy being outside doing anything (or nothing) on a sunny day, feeding my creative vitality with crafts, learning, and organizing whatever I can get my hands on. (Weird hobby, I know.
I am married to the most wonderful man, my true Prince Charming, soul mate and best friend, Matt. Together we have five children, all grown, and it makes my heart happy that they are having adventures around the globe.
In late 2013, after what was supposed to be just a weekend trip to the island, Matt and I bought our future *retirement home* on Whidbey. I visited our sweet home away from home for a week or so every other month for two years, commuting from the Denver area.
For the first 10 years of my professional career, I was a court reporter and then was grandfathered into paralegal work for another 10 years, doing mostly criminal defense and debtor bankruptcy representation. In 2008, I decided to make a 180 degree career change and went into therapeutic massage. During that time I was able to travel to Costa Rica, Cambodia, and further my studies for an extended period of time at a respected retreat center in Big Sur, California. I settled for a bit in Colorado and created a wellness cooperative with other practitioners in the Denver area. In 2014, Ripple Effect was voted “Best of the Best Massage Company”!
Later that year, I spent a month at an ashram and added yoga instruction to my skillset.
Recently I launched a new business endeavor called “Dandelion Adventures” mentoring women entrepreneurs to find more clarity, inspiration, and joy in small business. I want to present myself in my new venture as the competent business woman that I have grown to be and thought that professional photographs would complement my new web site and branding/marketing efforts. With that being said, I HATE to get my picture taken! I understand that I could not ask my clients to do something that was outside of their comfort zone unless I was willing to do it myself, so I made the appointment for corporate headshots and committed to actually showing up for the photo shoot!
I was warmly received at Shonda Hilton Photography from the very beginning of the session and felt I was given so much TLC during the entire time. I have never worn makeup and it was fun to have a makeup session, too! I brought a variety of outfits to pick from and Shonda made suggestions on what would look good with the lights, props, and backdrops. Her cueing into positions was so effortless. The entire photo shoot moved with so much ease and flow and Shonda is definitely a professional. The best part was receiving the proofs via email so soon thereafter! I was thrilled with the results!
