The Story Behind Our New Website (And the Three That Came Before It)
I’m going to tell you something slightly embarrassing.
My first website had an entire section dedicated to my camera equipment. Lens specifications. Body model numbers. Megapixel counts. As if anyone looking for a family portrait photographer in Tampa Bay was thinking, “Yes, but what’s her ISO range?”
I know. I know.
But that website — cringe-worthy as it was — represents the beginning of something I didn’t fully understand yet. It was the first version of a home I’ve been building and rebuilding for five years. And today, I finally have one that feels right.
This is the story of how I got here. Fair warning: there are three websites, one pandemic, a failed jewelry business, and absolutely zero regrets.
Chapter 1: A Camera, a Pandemic, and a WIX Account
I didn’t set out to become a photographer. I fell into it the way people fall into things they’re meant to do — sideways, during a crisis, with no backup plan.
Before 2020, I was working alongside a renowned French photographer, doing behind-the-scenes work for a movie production company, editing for established photographers. I loved the craft, but I hadn’t claimed it as mine yet. I also had a jewelry business on the side — photographing my own pieces, learning lighting and composition out of necessity.
Then COVID happened.
The jewelry business didn’t survive. The production work dried up. But the camera stayed. And somewhere in the stillness of 2020, I realized it had always been the constant. Not the jewelry, not the editing desk — the camera.
So I did what any newly self-aware photographer with zero web development experience does: I took a UX/UI course on Udemy, opened a WIX account, and built a website.
It was… functional. The photos were good because I knew how to take photos. The website itself? Let’s just say the “About Me” page was a love letter to my Canon EOS R6. No one needs to read about your autofocus capabilities, Olga.
Yes, this was real. Yes, my “About Me” was a gear list.
But the part that really makes me wince looking back wasn’t the equipment list. It was what was missing. No contact form. No consultation process. No way for a potential client to get a feel for who I was before showing up to their session. I would meet families for the first time at the shoot. No conversation beforehand. No wardrobe guidance. No preparation at all.
They trusted me with their memories, and I didn’t even ask them what they were hoping for.
It worked — people booked, sessions happened, beautiful photos were delivered. But it wasn’t an experience. It was a transaction.
Chapter 2: A Studio, a Second Website, and Growing Pains
By 2023, everything had changed except the website.
I’d opened my own studio in Lithia, Florida — a real, physical space designed for the kind of work I’d grown into. I’d invested in backdrops, lighting, a styling area, a presentation room. The photography had evolved from “outdoor sessions at golden hour” to something much more intentional.
So I redesigned the website. Still on WIX, but better. Cleaner. More professional.
It was an improvement, but I could already feel the limitations pressing in. WIX gave me templates, not freedom. I could make it nice, but I couldn’t make it mine. The website said “professional photographer,” but it didn’t say “step into my studio and let me take care of everything.”
And by 2024, “everything” had become a lot more.
Chapter 3: When Sessions Became Experiences
Somewhere between the second website and the third, my work transformed. It happened gradually, then all at once — the way most important things do.
Photo sessions became photographic experiences.
I developed what I now call the 5 Simple Steps: Discover, Dream, Document, Design, Display. Each one matters. Each one is intentional.
It starts with a heartfelt conversation — Discover — where I learn what matters most to you. Not what poses you want, but what you’re celebrating. What you want to remember. Who you want to see when you look at your walls twenty years from now.
Then we Dream together. Style consultations. Preparation guides. Wardrobe planning — and yes, I now have a fully stocked client wardrobe with curated pieces, accessories, and styling options. Professional hair and makeup artistry is included in every session. By the time you walk into the studio, you feel ready. You feel beautiful.
Document is the session itself — up to two hours, up to five wardrobe changes, and an environment designed so you can simply be yourself. The studio has cozy corners, snacks, beverages, and a dedicated styling area. No rushing. No stress.
But here’s the part that really changed everything: the same-day cinematic reveal.
After your session, you sit in our private presentation room and see your portraits for the first time — that same day. Not two weeks later in an email. Not as tiny thumbnails on a phone screen. Full-size, professionally edited, on a screen designed for this moment.
This is where people cry. Where hands cover mouths. Where someone sees themselves — truly sees themselves — and says, “That’s really me?”
Then we Design your artwork together. Wall art — statement pieces, collections, composites. Fine art albums with luxurious layflat binding. The Diamond Portrait Box. The Premium Wood Box with its patented tempered glass window. The Trifolio that opens like a book to reveal three of your favorites. The Folio Art Frame — a magnetic display you can rotate with the seasons. Even a Retro Viewer that brings your portraits to life in 3D.
And finally, Display. Your artwork arrives, and your story lives on your walls.
None of this — not one piece of it — was reflected on that second website.
Chapter 4: Starting from Scratch
I looked at my website and my studio, and they felt like they belonged to two different businesses.
The studio said: “You are safe here. I’ve thought of everything. Let me take care of you.”
The website said: “Here are some photos. Here’s a contact page. Good luck.”
I needed to start over. Not a redesign — a rebuild.
I wanted every page to feel like walking into the studio. Intentional. Warm. Considered. I wanted someone to land on the homepage and feel what it’s like to work with me before we ever meet.
But I’m a photographer, not a developer. And the kind of website I envisioned — fully custom, no templates, no drag-and-drop limitations — that usually means hiring a development agency and spending tens of thousands of dollars.
Then I found Operum.
I’ll be honest — when I became an alpha tester for Operum.ai, I wasn’t sure what to expect. An AI-powered development tool sounded impressive, but I’d been burned by “impressive-sounding” website builders before. What I got was something genuinely different: a tool that could take my vision — my actual creative vision, not a template approximation of it — and build it.
Every gallery page, every transition, every piece of text on this website exists because I wanted it there, not because a template demanded it. The 5 Simple Steps flow the way I designed them to flow. The product pages showcase artwork the way I present it in my studio. The pricing page reflects my actual philosophy — no preset packages, no pressure, just artwork made for your space and your memories.
For the first time, my website and my studio speak the same language.
Where Your Story Becomes Art
That’s our new brand line, and it took me five years to find it.
Where Your Story Becomes Art.
It’s not just a tagline. It’s a promise. It’s what happens when you walk into the studio and again when you walk through your front door and see your family on your walls. It’s the thread that runs through every consultation, every session, every reveal, every piece of artwork we create together.
The first website was a photographer trying to get booked. The second was a professional trying to look the part. This one? This is a fine art portrait studio in Lithia, Florida that knows exactly what it is and isn’t afraid to show you.
New look. Same heart. Same promise.
And no — the About page does not list my camera equipment.
(It’s a Canon EOS R6 now, if you’re curious. But you didn’t hear that from me.)
Ready to experience the difference for yourself? Start your portrait journey here — I’d love to hear your story.