Hi! 

I am Yulia Gladysheva,

a former documentary photographer turned Visual Messaging Coach for entrepreneurs. I specialize in teaching entrepreneurs how to take their own images on the go with their phones to support their marketing goals.

Let me take you on a quick journey about how firing myself as a photographer was one of the best decisions I ever made.

You know, there comes a time in every entrepreneur’s journey when they realize something unexpected. For me, that moment came when I realized I needed to fire myself. Yep, you read that right. Fired. Let go. But let me rewind a little.

I used to be the photographer — capturing dreamy wedding moments and those emotional, touching family pictures. The tears of joy from clients? Oh, I lived for those! But then, something hit me… People weren’t printing those precious moments. They were keeping them tucked away in digital folders, and it felt like I was working for a rabbit hole — with nothing to show for it, no lasting blueprint. That’s when I got curious about branding photography. It was trendy at the time, so I dove in headfirst.

Working with entrepreneurs felt exciting! I was helping them create images that supported their businesses. But unlike family photography, where I captured real, spontaneous moments, these branding shoots were all staged to fit a business narrative. It was a whole new ballgame. But then, something started to bug me.

Sure, the pictures were beautiful (I mean, I took them, of course they were), but I noticed something strange. After all the makeup, outfits, and picture-perfect settings, my entrepreneur clients were only using a handful of images. Can you believe it? Here I was, pouring my heart into every shot, and they were only using maximum ten. The rest? Gathering virtual dust.

That’s when it hit me.

These pictures — as gorgeous as they were — didn’t feel real. They were staged. Perfect, yes, but they lacked the grit, the story, the authenticity entrepreneurs needed to truly connect with their audience. I knew something had to change. Most photographers were only thinking about the art of it all, but I realized there was a deeper layer: marketing and sales psychology.

I dove into learning everything I could about how photography could work as a strategic tool. And while I was figuring it all out, I kept sharing my point of view with my friends entrepreneurs thinking it might be helpful for their next photoshoots. At some point, people started asking, “Can you actually teach us how to do it?” I’d laugh and say, “Are you kidding? I’m not a teacher! And what would I do with all this free time? Take more pictures of my cat?”

Still, I kept at it, trying to fix branding photography. Then, lockdown happened. (Cue dramatic music.) With photoshoots off the table, I found myself pacing around, wondering how on earth I was going to keep things moving. That’s when it hit me. What if I asked my client to take her own photos? I know, I know — crazy, right? But desperate times call for desperate measures. So, I suggested it to my client, half-expecting her to laugh me out of the room (well, the Zoom room). Instead, she gave it a shot. With her phone in her son’s hand and my guidance, she started snapping away. And you know what? The pictures were amazing. They were real, authentic, and didn’t look like they’d been pulled from some stock image site.

That’s when everything clicked: Entrepreneurs needed to take their own photos. No photoshoot could fully capture the experiences they needed to share with their audience.

So, I had a heart-to-heart with myself and said, “Yulia, you’re fired.” (Don’t worry, I wasn’t too hard on me.) And that was it — I traded in my fancy camera for something even more powerful: a phone. Yep, the thing in your pocket. Now, I teach entrepreneurs how to capture their own images, anytime, anywhere. No more staged photoshoots. No preps. No images gathering virtual dust. Just real moments, captured in real time.

Getting fired was one of the best things that ever happened to me. But it wasn’t just about stepping away from the camera — it was about stepping into a completely new way of thinking. The real challenge was figuring out how to turn that one small experiment during the lockdown into a method that not only transforms how entrepreneurs create their own visuals but also drives their marketing success.

And I made it.
Check out my DIY Course or Mentorship Program to see how you can create your own compelling visuals.

Want to see real results?

Take a look at the before-and-after photos of my clients and their testimonials.

Looking forward to seeing your visual transformation,
Yulia