We recently connected with Briana Autran and have shared our conversation below.

Briana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

I am happy as a business owner. I get to work my own hours and enjoy slow mornings, which feels especially meaningful given how stressful mornings always felt growing up – everyone rushing out the door for work and school by a certain time. Once I got older and realized there were other options, I knew I wanted to work for myself.

I’ve always been creative, making things and selling them. I sold handmade jewelry on Etsy for years in college, which actually helped me pay for my degree out of pocket, and later sold pieces at local boutiques in my hometown. After years of jewelry, I got into vintage clothing and fell in love with the idea of sustainable fashion. I opened an online vintage store that ended up being pretty popular – it employed both me and my best friend Lauren for years. While running that store, I started photographing the pieces myself and setting up fashion shoots with models to tell a story with the clothing and create lookbooks. That’s when I really fell in love with photography, and I slowly shifted into wedding photography as my full-time career. I haven’t looked back since.

That said, I do sometimes wonder what it would be like to have a 9-5 and come home to just be “off.” I have a hard time fully unplugging. I text with my clients often and try to be a support system for them throughout their wedding planning process. I genuinely love the relationships I build this way, but it can leave me feeling like I’m always in work mode, even when I’m technically off the clock.

But then I come back to the fact that I get to be home most days, and just sit outside and look at my garden, meet friends for walks in the afternoon, cook all my meals in my own kitchen, and be with my partner, who also works from home. That’s honestly the best gift this career has given me – the space to nourish that part of myself that loves cooking, connection, and taking breaks away from my computer to sit outside. I really do believe I have the very best life.

Briana, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I got into this industry through my online vintage store, which really took my love for photography and storytelling to the next level. I was in my early twenties and had no fear at the time; if I wanted to do something, I just did it. I juggled owning the vintage store and wedding photography together for years, and honestly, once I left the store and fully committed myself to wedding photography, that’s when things got serious. I put about five years of really hard work into building it up. During those years, I worked extremely long hours and took whatever work came my way to gain experience and learn to work with different types of people. What I really learned in that season was how to be a business owner and how to make people happy.

Now that I’m out of those long, obsessive hours, I have much more intentional boundaries with my work. I only take about 15-20 weddings a year, along with some family and engagement sessions. Taking on less allows me to truly sink in with my clients and spend time editing in a meaningful way. I never rush through that process. I never want my clients to feel like they’re going through a factory line when they hire me.

My work is documentary-style and connection-focused. On a wedding day I look for the quiet, meaningful moments as much as the big ones, guiding gently while allowing the day to unfold naturally. What sets me apart is how laid back my approach is – I’m not interested in stiff, forced poses. I want to capture who you actually are, your real personality, and the genuine energy between you and your partner, so that when you look back at your photos, you see yourselves, not a performance.

I think the problem I solve for my clients is the fear of feeling stiff, awkward, or overly posed in front of a camera. So many couples tell me they’re “not photogenic” or feel nervous about being photographed, and my entire approach is built around making that fear disappear. I want my couples to feel like they’re just living their day, not performing for it.

What I’m most proud of is the relationships I’ve built with my clients over the years. My clients leave me the best reviews on Google. I actually will tear up reading how much thought they put into writing a review for me. Many of them refer me to their friends or come back years later for family photos. Making people happy with my work brings a lot of value and meaning to my life.

What I want potential clients to know about me is that I care deeply about the experience, not just the final images or creating “content.” Working with me means having someone in your corner throughout the entire process, not just on the wedding day itself. The experience of being photographed should feel good in the moment, not just look good afterward – that’s what makes the final images carry real meaning when you look back on them.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I think what’s helped build my reputation most is simply doing good, honest work and creating a genuinely good experience for people from start to finish. I’m kind, thoughtful, and consistent.

I’m not perfect, and I’ve made my share of mistakes along the way. I think people really appreciate that I can be honest and open about it when that happens, rather than pretending everything is always seamless. That kind of transparency builds trust, and I think it’s part of why so many of my clients have referred friends and family or come back to work with me again for other milestones in their lives.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The best source of new clients for me has been word of mouth and the relationships I’ve built with other wedding vendors over the years. Venue owners, planners, florists, and other photographers have become some of my biggest advocates; when they trust my work and the experience I create for clients, they refer their clients to me.

I think this happens because the wedding industry is really built on trust and relationships. Vendors talk to each other, and they want to recommend people they know will show up, do great work, and make their own jobs easier on the wedding day. I’ve put a lot of intention into building genuine relationships with the people I work alongside, not just transactional ones, and that’s paid off in a really organic way.

Past clients have also been huge advocates for me. When someone has a great experience, they naturally talk about it – whether that’s leaving a review, tagging me in photos, or telling a friend who’s getting engaged. That kind of organic referral has always felt more meaningful to me than any paid advertising could.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brianaautran.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/brianaautran
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrianaAutranPhotography
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briana-autran/
• Yelp: https://www.facebook.com/BrianaAutranPhotography

Image Credits

By: Briana Autran
brianaautran.com