There’s nothing that makes me feel more ready than people telling me I’m not ready.
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When Rachel Collet was 18 she didn’t think she was signing up for a lifetime of photography. She just wanted to take a geography class. But somewhere between choosing her first college electives and spending hours alone in the darkroom with rolls of film, something clicked. Her dad, a photographer and architectural draftsman, had given her a camera. The rest unfolded from there.
Sort of.
Rachel’s path wasn’t direct. She left art school when she decided she wasn’t competitive enough for the industry. She spent years working for airlines, moving across borders, and living in Quebec where a job at a small newspaper pulled her back behind the lens. Eventually a feature on a Miami real estate photographer sparked an idea and Rachel found herself back in Florida with one goal in mind: start her own business photographing homes.
But it wasn’t real estate that truly lit her up. It was the stillness. The silence. The ability to take her time and photograph things that don’t move.
Today Rachel runs Loft Architectural Photography and specializes in capturing the essence of spaces, from high-end interiors to yachts gliding across Florida waters. She’s a self-taught creative who leans into natural light, prefers old gear over new trends and isn’t afraid to learn things the hard way if it means staying true to her visual instincts.
In this episode Rachel shares her honest, winding journey into architectural photography. We talk about burnout, drones, difficult clients and how finding freedom in your craft can sometimes mean dropping the word “real estate” from your business name.
Here’s what we get into:
- How Rachel transitioned from photojournalism in Quebec to architectural photography in Florida
- The unexpected power of SEO (and why changing one word changed her client base)
- Why photographing yachts makes her feel like she’s “found the thing”
- How she uses her smartphone as a creative compass during shoots
- The pros and cons of staying analog in a digital-first industry
- Honest thoughts on pricing, confidence and the pressure to always be “on”
Rachel’s story is a quiet reminder that you don’t have to be loud to be successful, you just have to be consistent, curious and true to what you love. Whether you’re deep into a creative career or still figuring out what moves you, this one’s worth a listen.
Q: What obstacles did you come across when you kind of transitioned to real estate photography?
Rachel: I actually took a full year before moving to Florida to prepare. I was taking business classes and photography classes online to get ready. But even with all that, there were challenges-like lighting issues I didn’t anticipate until I was on-site. You get home and realize your photos look way too yellow, even though they didn’t on your camera. And people online don’t often share their real workflows, so I had to figure a lot out through trial and error. It probably took about three years to feel really confident.
Q: How did you go from real estate photography to architectural photography?
Rachel: That shift happened partly because real estate clients often just want quick turnaround-they’re not really appreciating the work. Sometimes I felt like they wouldn’t care if I just used my phone to take the photos. I wanted to work with people who valued what I was doing and to make more money. Eventually, I even dropped “real estate” from my business name, and once I did that, all the inquiries I got were from the types of clients I actually wanted to work with.
Q: What advice would you give someone who may not be as keen in terms of conceptualizing what a photo should look like, but is still interested in architectural photography?
Rachel: I’d say start with a walkthrough using your cell phone. There was a shoot I did for a designer, and the best photo I got was actually taken with my phone. I also learned the hard way that even forgetting to switch your lens can ruin a shoot. So keep experimenting. People don’t always want to share their methods, but if you’re persistent and keep trying, you’ll start figuring things out.
🔗 Connect with Rachel
🧭 What We Talked About
🎼 Early Journey / Origins
- Rachel’s journey began at 18 when she picked up photography in college, encouraged by her photographer and architectural draftsman father.
- Her first love was film photography and spending hours in the darkroom, but a comment from a professor about needing to be “competitive” led her to step away from the field for a time.
- She returned through a serendipitous job as a photojournalist in Quebec, reigniting her love for visual storytelling.
- Eventually, Rachel found her path in real estate photography, inspired by an article about a Miami-based photographer. She moved back to Florida and built her business from the ground up.
📖 Philosophy / Vision / Storytelling
- Rachel is deeply visual and intuitive, often scouting with her phone before placing her DSLR, a method she finds more organic and freeing.
- She avoids over-technical thinking and focuses instead on feeling and translating atmosphere into the frame.
- A key personal insight: “You can lose yourself in it, but by losing yourself in it, you find yourself.”
📷 Tools, Gear, and Behind the Scenes
- Shoots exclusively in natural light, often in HDR (three exposures) for maximum dynamic range.
- Main camera: Canon 5D Mark III – a workhorse she’s loyal to despite considering mirrorless upgrades.
- Editing tools: Lightroom and Photoshop, with around 9 hours spent per shoot in post-processing.
- Uses drones for architectural and yacht photography, adding perspective and cinematic flair to her work.
- Favorite shoots? Yachts. Blending architecture with motion and water adds a unique creative thrill.
🔁 Practice, Teaching, Platforms
- Rachel built her business with deliberate planning, took a year off to prepare, joined SCORE, and learned through trial and error.
- She emphasizes physical outreach: printing postcards, visiting real estate offices, and directly marketing herself locally.
- Learned to read the room when dealing with clients, whether they want full creative control or expect her to follow their vision.
💬 Advice, Creative Strategy, or Challenges
- Introverts can thrive in photography: ask the right questions early, assess client needs quickly, and build trust through empathy and adaptability.
- When clients have budget constraints, she customizes deliverables rather than discounting her full services.
- Her advice for beginners? Use your phone to scout, experiment fearlessly, and don’t put pressure on every shot. The best image might just be the unexpected one.
🌍 Influences, People, Brands, or Places
- Clients and publications: The Wall Street Journal, Crate & Barrel, LL Bean.
- Gear: Canon 5D Mark III, DJI drone.
- Software: Lightroom, Photoshop.
- Organizations: SCORE (business mentorship for entrepreneurs).
- Location inspirations: Florida, especially Key West, with its eclectic mix of Conch, Bohemian, and Victorian architecture.
🔮 What’s Next for Rachel
- Taking summer off to walk her dog and photograph architecture in Key West, a deeply personal, passion-driven reset.
- No big commercial projects on the horizon, just exploration, creativity, and reconnecting with what she loves most: wandering with a camera in hand.
