We recently connected with Deirdre Allinson and have shared our conversation below.

Deirdre, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

Photography has been a passion of mine since I started having children. I wanted to capture all of my kids’ ages and stages and taking photos was the best way to preserve our memories. I traveled a lot with my kids and travel photography became a meaningful way to remember details of the people we met and places we visited. After I started taking photos, I wanted to learn more so I enrolled in classes and workshops to master the technical aspects of photography. There are so many ways to become a better photographer, whether it be understanding the settings on your camera, to incorporating light, to posing, to post-processing, there’s a never ending learning curve. We all have opportunities every day to improve and make our images tell a story. Even if it’s the photos we take on our phone!

I lived in Asia for a couple of years and was constantly amazed by the beauty all around me. As an expat, I looked at things with new eyes, compared to the locals in my photography classes. What they had seen all their lives and took for granted was novel and exciting for me. Taking a workshop with a National Geographic photographer was a breakthrough moment for me. I realized that my style was to focus on details, patterns and simple moments in time. Our group had shooting assignments and we would share our images each day. Each student interpreted the assignments differently, resulting in completely different photos. I remember going to an Indian temple and while the class was photographing the the priests and worshipers, I was photographing the offerings and ghee lamps. When I shared my pictures, the other students asked if I had gone to the same temple they did! Being encouraged to focus on details helped cement my style.

Another pivotal learning opportunity was being selected to participate in a reality television show in Singapore with a famous photographer. Each episode featured 2 photographers and we were given a date for filming, but no other details. We got our location the night before our shoot. It was a little nerve wracking because there was no way to prepare. I showed up at the time and place and lucked out. Our assignment was to photograph a rehearsal of the Singapore Ballet. It was fun to see the dancers working hard but it was challenging to take pictures in a difficult environment. The dance studio was small and not very well lit. We had to maneuver around and find unusual angles and patches of light to create good images. We got to photograph a live band that evening and then a full dress rehearsal of the ballet the next morning. It was a fantastic experience because the host of the show would help us work out any technical issues and push us to be more creative. Although we had the same task, the other photographer and I took completely different photos. This experience gave me the confidence I needed to start my own business. Travel photography will always push me to be more creative and resulted in my having a one woman show in New York. That’s something I will always be proud of.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Here in Austin I specialize in family photography with an emphasis on high school seniors and corporate head shots. I also do a lot of sports and event photography. I’m constantly pushing myself to learn and experiment to continue getting better at my craft. The next step on my creative journey is in incorporating more dramatic lighting. It’s fun to take an ordinarily boring place, like a dark stairwell in a downtown parking garage or an alley on South Congress, and make it look edgy and cool by introducing lighting elements. It’s terrific having clients who trust my creative vision to make their photos stand out.

I love working with people and want to take photos that best represent them. The vast majority of people don’t enjoy having their photo taken and are critical of how they look. So I pose and light my clients to make them look their best. It’s important to play around with different outfits, angles, lighting and looks to capture their personality. The best compliment for me is to hear people say, “Wow! I look really good!”. And “That was a lot more fun than I expected!”. Some of my clients have been with me for over a decade. It’s great to watch kids grow up and see how much they change over the years. Every year, we take new photos that are a bit different to show off their personality or current interests.
That’s the fun part about working with high school seniors as well. Will they want photos representing their favorite sport, their awards, their collection of shoes or something completely different? One of the best parts of photography is when I show my clients their photos on the back of my camera. It’s wonderful to see them light up when they see how good they look! It gives them a huge boost of self-confidence that they take with them forever. And their photos get better and better once they see themselves the way I see them.
Recently I’ve been taking head shots for a company downtown and my last client said “ALL of the photos came out so great! It was so much fun working with you and you made me feel so comfortable in a space that I usually do not. I really appreciate you taking the time to do my new pics. I’m so happy with them!” This is what makes me love my job. It’s great to do something for someone that makes them feel good about themselves. With so much scrutiny on social media, people are a lot more self-aware. My job allows me to provide a needed service but I get to make it fun. The more I get to know my clients along the way, the better the photos become, because the photos reflect more of their personality. And my clients love the results.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I’ve been taking sports action photos for almost two decades now. I’ve photographed swimming, soccer, basketball, lacrosse, football, and track and field. I started by documenting my own kids’ games and have continued shooting their teams as they’ve grown up. I was also the league photographer for FC Westlake for many years. Sports photography is really exciting. You never know what’s going to happen next or where the next great shot will be. You can’t take your eyes off the action for a second or you may miss the best play of the game. I’ve designed albums and sports posters which are so different from traditional photos. And athletes treasure them.
My youngest son started playing soccer at the age of 3 and is still playing in college. I love taking photos of his college games and doing his team’s Media Day. Media Day is a blast because the players get so excited to have their photos taken and come up with inventive and fresh poses. It’s great to work with athletes who are vested in making great images.

I’ve started incorporating creative lighting in my sports photos. That’s the next step of my creative journey. I want to work with more athletes and use colors and emotion while capturing their passion and enthusiasm for their sport. I don’t ever want to stop pushing myself to learn and experiment with new techniques to add interesting elements to my photos.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

The pandemic hit most businesses pretty hard and my business came to a grinding halt. Everyone was working from home and there were no sporting events or parties to photograph. No one wanted to have their photos taken. I also had shoulder surgery at about that time. As it turns out, it was a great opportunity to rest, recover and spend time with my family. Fortunately clients are coming back and I’ve started working with some new corporate clients taking head shots. Traditional corporate head shots don’t always lend themselves to creativity, especially if there are strict guidelines, but I’m enjoying drawing out my clients’ personalities to make their photos as dynamic and vibrant as possible.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.picturesbydeirdre.com
• Instagram: @picturesbydeirdre
• Linkedin: Deirdre Allinson
• Other: www.deeallinson.com – FIne Art

Image Credits
Pictures By Deirdre