Recently, I had the pleasure of photographing an Editorial Mini Session with Lisa Finch! Lisa is a a freelance brand consultant and you can find her work online at lisafinch.com. You can reach out to her on Instagram at @lisanfinch. Read on for an interview with Lisa, and to see some of the portraits from our Mini Session!
Q: Please introduce yourself!
I’m Lisa Finch, a freelance brand consultant who works at the intersection of creativity and business, crafting unique brand identities that resonate. From logo design to building websites and fine art painting, I bring an intense passion to every project, combining artistry with strategy to elevate brands.
Email me: lisa@lisafinch.co
Visit my website: https://www.lisafinch.com/
Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisanfinch/
Find me on IG @lisanfinch
Q: Can you tell me about how you started your business?
A: After working crazy hours at a big advertising agency for several years, I traveled to Tuscany for a 2-week painting class and realized that I needed to make a change and start living life more. This is also where I discovered a love of vibrant scarves and sunflowers. After the trip, I thought more about the legacy that I wanted to create. I woke up early one morning at 4 am and came up with a year’s worth of interactive ad ideas for a client. At the time, I had a studio in the North End on Thatcher Street with a sunrise view of Boston. I pitched those creative ideas and won my first retainer. I’ve been freelancing off and on ever since because it allows me the freedom to travel and make art. Nobody ever thought I belonged in a cubicle or said it looked good on me.
Q: What were you like as a child? Did any of your interests align with your current work?
A: I was born with an innate love of art, technology, and design that was nurtured and cultivated. Since kindergarten, I have excelled at art and loved it. My family put me in an art class and I sponge painted trees. We traveled all over because of the military and art was always my constant source of staying grounded. My dad got us a Commodore 64 when it first came out and we used it to code and make a dancing Christmas tree for my Aunt who was visiting us in Germany. I played video games frequently on the Atari taking more turns than my brother liked. In junior high, I won a billboard competition and sold my first work of fine art in high school to a large corporation. In college, I discovered the art of graphic design and liked that it blended business with art.
Q: What is your favorite part of your work / running your business?
A: I’m lucky to work with clients I enjoy and immensely respect. They are all inspiring high-achievers making a difference in the world. Art is a gift, and being able to use my talents to help and create work that makes my clients stand out and grow their business is what makes me happy. Beyond that, the flexibility and freedom to travel and constantly learning, and being able to share those experiences.
Q: Can you share a favorite story from running your business?
A: Collaborating with a broad range of clients keeps me refreshed along with visiting vibrant places and being immersed in different cultures. One story in particular stands out to me, closer to home. I had created a series of abstract iris paintings for a client with deep hues of blue and purple with pearl and luminous tones. She told me that when her baby saw my paintings, they would make the baby stop crying. Nothing else worked she told me. It was through her remarkable story that I understood how my work could help heal and inspire others. That baby is now all grown up and becoming a fashion designer.
Q: What is a typical day in your life like?
A: A wet nose from one of my wet dogs is usually in my face in the early hours. Then after coffee and time for meditation or contemplation, I start my day with getting organized and working on my top priorities. Many of my days are filled with researching and discovery, sketching and designing logos, doing UI/UX for websites, and doing custom digital art for marketing materials. I’ll often block out time to watercolor or paint on canvas. This is all balanced with Zoom calls and walks outside with my two rescue dogs. Depending on the day, I’ll make time for reading, working out, or golfing. If I’m traveling, I’ll explore, take numerous travel photos, and immerse myself in the culture.
Q: What are your hopes and dreams for your business?
A: To empower and continually unlock the creative spirit within myself and others. To keep growing and collaborating with the best minds in business. To make the world a better place where there is a continuous thread of inspiration and harmony.
Q: Are there any other businesses or people who inspire you with your work?
A: Oh gosh, yes! From teachers in school who encouraged me from an early to college age to the technologists, doctors, and leaders I work with today, all inspire me. Historically, a myriad of artists and thought-leaders: The transcendentalist poets in particular Walt Whitman, Edgar Allen Poe, Dante Alighieri, Tomato Studio, Zaha Hadid, Le Corbusier, Georgia O’Keefe, Ansel Adams, Mondrian, Monet, Alexander Calder, and Cy Twombly.
Q: Are there any words of wisdom that you live by in your work?
A: Go with your gut. In dealing with others come from a place of forgiveness, work with purpose, enjoy and create magic in your life, stay grateful, and keep going.
Q: Is there anything else you'd like to add to your interview?
A: Wherever you are, know that you and your life are going to change and evolve way beyond your expectations. Go farther, then go even farther. Remember that doing one thing is boring; take the time to do all the things you enjoy. Your time is yours, so spend it wisely.
About Editorial Mini Sessions
Editorial Mini Sessions are 15 or 30 minute portrait sessions for headshots, marketing photos or branding photos. Diana uses the same backdrops and lighting she uses when photographing magazine covers and feature stories.
If you’re interested in signing up for an Editorial Mini Session, please email dianalevinephotographer@gmail.com to be added to the mailing list, where you’ll receive all the upcoming dates and details! You can learn more at dianalevine.com/editorialminisessions
Diana’s Editorial Mini Sessions take place at various studio spaces in the Greater Boston, Massachusetts area. These Mini Session days are convenient for people who live in the Greater Boston or MetroWest Boston area, including: Newton, Needham, Wellesley, Framingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Natick, Westwood, Weston, Wayland, Sherborn, Dover, Medfield, Sudbury, Waltham, Ashland, Southborough, Concord, and Lexington.
At Diana’s Headshots Mini Sessions and Editorial Mini Sessions, she regularly photographs executives, attorneys, medical professionals, psychologists, realtors, business, marketing and communications specialists, journalists, authors, wellness and fitness instructors, designers, dancers, stylists, creatives, and professionals of all backgrounds in the Boston area. She uses the same studio lighting she uses for magazine editorial portraits, and retouching is included with all final selected photos.
About Diana
Diana Levine is a Boston based editorial photographer, specializing in portraits for magazines, headshots, branding portraits, families and children. Her clients include Boston Globe Magazine, Boston Magazine, BC Law Magazine, Simmons Magazine and more. She has photographed notable personalities such as Kim Kardashian, Alicia Keys, Usher, New Kids on the Block, One Direction, among many other musicians, actors, politicians, athletes and more. You can find her full portfolio at dianalevine.com
