54 AUSTRALIANPHOTOGRAPHY.COM AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY + DIGITAL JULY 2015
so they could run it together. In 2014, besides picking up a
number of significant industry accolades, Brown photographed
139 newborn babies, privately mentored 23 photographers, gave
19 newborn posing classes in 12 countries to 193 photographers
and was invited to speak at three photography conferences. This
year is likely to be just as busy, if not busier. The Baby Summit
- three-day conference, on the gold Coast in early August –
has been conceived (no pun intended!), by Brown and her
husband. It’s the first of its kind: an event for photographers who
specialise in the maternity, birth, newborn and baby genres, with
presenters from all over the world.
Any photographer typically regarded as being “successful”
will tell you that the actual photography is just one piece of
the puzzle. “In the beginning,” Brown says, “I believed it was
all about taking amazing photos. Now I know that running a
successful photography business is closer to, say, 70% business
and only 30% taking photos. Running a business requires one to
wear so many different hats.” She’s not afraid to share her secrets.
And as it turns out, it’s a simple formula. The key to success
is...hard work! “You have to work hard for what you want,”
