everybody listening to this podcast probably knows either from practical experience or just intuitively that crafting a career as a photographer or other visual creator is no small feat. From staving off burnout to managing finances, freelancers have to DO IT ALL. So why is it then that freelancers so often fail to actually break out of the vicious cycle of feast or famine workloads? Well, our guest today is the perfect example of how to make it happen as a freelance photojournalist by diving in headfirst into new locations and experiences and figuring it all out along the way. Lauren Justice is a freelance photojournalist currently based in Madison, Wisconsin. Trust, intimacy, and time are cornerstones of her work and believes in using photography as a tool for education, awareness, and understanding. Clients of hers include The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and NPR just to name but a few. Lauren has attended the Eddie Adams workshop and the New York Portfolio Review (where we start today’s conversation – so if you’ve been pining after getting that invitation letter, we talk about everything you’ll want to know going into it). Lauren and I talk through her strategy as a two-time NYT portfolio review invitee and how in-person meetings with editors have led to far more work than cold emails or pitches. We then get into her career as an independent photojournalist and the path that took her across the country from Ohio to Flint, Michigan, Nebraska, and finally to Madison, Wisconsin and the visual stories she crafted along the way. And finally we go in deep on her recent incredible portrait series featured on the NYT Lens Blog ‘What Would I Have Done if I Would Have Killed Her That Night?’ and her process for long-term storytelling.