Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Christine Johnson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Christine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

Antler Run Photography was born from an unexpected journey that began in the wilderness and led straight to the altar. For years, I was devoted to wildlife photography, spending countless hours in nature capturing the raw beauty of animals in their natural habitat. My passion was the wild, untamed moments that most people never get to witness. But as friends and family began requesting portrait sessions, my lens slowly started turning toward people. The pivotal moment came when a former coworker asked me to photograph her wedding. “I only shoot wildlife,” I protested, but she looked at me with complete confidence and said in her charming Russian accent, “Your moose are beautiful!” That day, as I captured her celebration, something magical happened. I discovered that weddings aren’t so different from wildlife photography after all: they’re full of beautiful chaos, raw emotion, and fleeting moments that deserve to be preserved. The love stories unfolding, families coming together, the spontaneous laughter and tears, it was like photographing the most magnificent creatures in their most natural state of joy. From that moment, I knew I’d found my calling, and Antler Run Photography became the bridge between my love for capturing wild beauty and celebrating the wild beauty of human connection.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My perspective on the importance of photography runs deeper than just capturing beautiful moments. Having lost so many loved ones throughout my life, I understand intimately the beauty and necessity of having something physical like photographs to hold onto. When memories begin to fade, when voices become harder to recall, photographs become treasured anchors to the people and moments we cherish most. This personal understanding drives my commitment to creating images that will serve as lasting legacies for families.
At Antler Run Photography, I bring this unique combination of wildlife photographer’s perspective, healthcare empathy, and deep appreciation for life’s fleeting nature to wedding photography. I specialize in capturing authentic, unscripted moments that tell your complete love story. My approach is rooted in patience and observation—skills honed through years of wildlife photography—combined with the interpersonal sensitivity developed through healthcare work, allowing me to connect with couples and their families while anticipating and capturing those genuine, fleeting expressions and interactions that make each celebration unique.
What sets me apart is my ability to find beauty in both the grand, orchestrated moments and the quiet, intimate details that others might miss, while understanding the profound responsibility of preserving these memories. I solve the problem many couples face of having stiff, posed wedding photos by focusing on natural storytelling, drawing on my healthcare background to make people feel comfortable and understood. My clients receive images that feel authentic and alive, filled with the same energy and emotion they experienced on their day, knowing these photographs will become treasured family heirlooms.
I’m most proud of how I’ve been able to merge my passions and experiences—my love for capturing wild beauty, my dedication to caring for people, and my profound understanding of memory’s importance. Every wedding I photograph is approached with the same reverence I once reserved for wildlife and the same care I brought to healthcare: as something precious, unrepeatable, and deserving of being preserved in its most authentic form.
What I want potential clients to know is that when you choose Antler Run Photography, you’re getting someone who sees your wedding day as the beautiful wilderness adventure it truly is—unpredictable, emotional, and absolutely magnificent. But more than that, you’re working with someone who understands that these aren’t just photos; they’re the physical manifestations of your most precious memories, created by someone who knows firsthand how invaluable these tangible pieces of love become throughout life’s journey.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Yes, my photography side hustle became my full-time career. I started doing wedding photography while working as a dental assistant, trying to juggle everything – shooting weddings, editing, marketing – all while maintaining my hours at the dental office.
The turning point came during a conversation with my husband Mike. I was telling him how the doctor said I could only do two weddings per month after fulfilling my required hours with him. Mike stopped me and said something that shocked me: “You should just quit.” When I looked surprised, he said it again – “Quit. You will never be able to scale your business if you are working for someone else.”
So I did. Having Mike’s income as backup certainly made the decision easier, along with knowing I could always temp as a dental assistant if needed. But the key milestone was recognizing that my day job had become a ceiling rather than a safety net – limiting me to just two weddings monthly when I could have been doing so much more.
After making the leap, I also began associate shooting for several companies, which provided steady income while building my network and skills. This created multiple revenue streams and gave me the flexibility to grow my own wedding business without the pressure of it being my only source of income.
The biggest lesson was that sometimes you have to give up security to create real growth. That constraint of only two weddings per month was actually holding back my entire business potential.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

My resilience was truly tested last year. After experiencing two years of insane growth in my photography business, 2024 hit like a wall – everything just slowed way down. It would have been easy to panic or assume the worst, but instead I decided to dig in my heels and use this slower period as an opportunity to strengthen my foundation.
I threw myself into education, taking every free marketing course I could get my hands on. I invested in upgrading my equipment, knowing that when things picked back up, I’d be better positioned to deliver exceptional results. Most importantly, I focused on nurturing relationships within the industry – reaching out to other vendors, strengthening connections with venues, and building those collaborative partnerships that are so crucial in the wedding industry.
The growth since then has been slow, but it’s been lasting growth built on solid fundamentals rather than just riding a wave. What I learned is that resilience isn’t just about weathering the storm – it’s about using those challenging periods to invest in yourself and your business in ways you might not have time for during the busy seasons.
That downturn could have derailed everything, but instead it forced me to become more strategic, more skilled, and more connected. Now when business picks up, I’m not just back where I was – I’m operating from a much stronger position than before.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.antlerrunphotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/antlerrunphotography
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/CMJPhoto83

Image Credits

Christine Johnson, Antler Run Photography