We were lucky to catch up with Doug McCulloch recently and have shared our conversation below.

Doug, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I was a special education teacher for the public schools in Washington because growing up the thing that was valued most in my family was stability and consistency. I’ve always had a camera and been passionate about the outdoors. In high school, I was talked out of pursuing a career in the arts in favor of something more stable. I was told that I needed to go to college and figure out what to study. However, college was the main goal because it would give me access to stable jobs. After going through college and achieving my “dream” of becoming a teacher, I couldn’t help but feel like there was something missing in my life and that this role as a teacher did not fit me. I taught at multiple schools in multiple districts trying to find a better fit in school, but after 3.5 years, I came to the realization that there wasn’t going a school or a place in the education system that fit for me because I was not the kind of person that jobs like that are made for. After playing with many different ideas, (e.g. firefighter, welder) my wife helped me realize that I never really gave the arts the shot that they deserved in my life. After eloping myself, I discovered that an elopement photographer was a real job that seemed like a perfect fit for me. So, my wife and I looked at our savings account and decided it was worth taking the risk and taking the leap: quitting my teaching job and starting my elopement photography business. Since taking the leap into the unknown, it has been some of the hardest I’ve ever done but it’s also been the most rewarding work I’ve ever done. I love getting to participate in so many special days for so many different couples.

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.

My name is Doug McCulloch, I am a former special education teacher turned elopement photographer in Washington. I got into the elopement photography industry after eloping with my wife in 2022 and left my job in teaching to pursue my own business in 2023. I specialize in adventure elopements/intimate weddings as well as adventure engagements. I help my clients create a unique wedding day that represents them as a couple. My years of working as a teacher have given me the skills to put anyone at ease in the front of the camera. I am most proud of my ability to quickly figure out what makes a person special and how to show that on their wedding. I want future clients to know that their wedding is about them and no one else’s opinions matters. I am here to be your Fairy-Doug Mother by asking questions and providing ideas you may never have considered for your wedding day.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

I had only been in business for about 6 months and made the decision to try a bridal show as a marketing opportunity. I had only done 5 photoshoots with friends and family prior to this show, so my portfolio was extremely limited. I knew going in there was a skill to succeeding at bridal shows. I paid for an online class and did everything the online class said to do. Even with that framework, I knew that my success at the bridal show would be largely contingent on the couples attending the show. Because I am a primarily outdoorsy, elopement and intimate wedding photographer, the couples that attend these bridal shows are not necessarily my demographic on paper. I also spoke with other elopement photographers who advised me against doing a bridal show. Despite all of these setbacks, I followed the framework set out by the course I had taken with some personality modifications and came away from the bridal show having booked a small wedding, an elopement, and several engagement session. My realistic goal going in was to book 1 engagement session. Needless to say, it was a great success!

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I think that many people in traditional or non-creative jobs view creative entrepreneurial jobs as hobbies. As I have built my business, I have found that almost everyone in my life with a traditional job has assumed that all I do is Instagram or social media, and that there is no way to make a living as a full-time photographer. I have also encountered many people who are under the impression that when given the right camera, anyone can take pictures and therefore being a photographer is not a legitimate career. The part of my job that I spend the most time on is not the photography. Instead, it is in building client relationships, creating experiences, staying up date on search engine visibility, networking, marketing, researching new techniques, and looking broadly for new artistic inspiration. And yes, anyone with a nice camera and the knowledge of how it works can take a picture that is clear, and of the subject they are photographing. What makes a photographer’s photos stand out as something special is the vision that the photographer brings. What makes each photographer unique is the way they see the world and their understanding of how they see the world allows them to share it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sea2summitphotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seatosummitphoto/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/seatosummitphotos