We recently connected with Danni Olson and have shared our conversation below.

Danni, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about how you got your first non-friend, non-family client. Paint the picture for us so we can feel the same excitement you felt on that day.

Once upon a time, about 5 plus years ago, I worked for a zoo, the Naples Zoo in Naples, Florida to be exact. I started off as a volunteer talking to guests about Giraffe’s and assisting the feeding station that was quite popular at the zoo. As i was volunteering i became friends with one of the zoo’s photographers – they hire a third-party company that takes candids and photos of the guests feeding the giraffes – and she had informed me she would be leaving the company soon and would recommend me. I was eventually hired on and was able to do something wonderful, capture moments for people to keep for a lifetime and work around wildlife! Flash forward a few years and I became a Part Attendant for the zoo, at this point everyone knew I loved photography and after receiving my first camera my passion only blossomed. As I would ride the zoo every day, I would keep my camera hidden in my totes in my tricycle I had to ride around the zoo, it became so known that the keepers would personally let me know when their sweet babies were out and about, being playful, a keeper talk was going well, etc. and I continued to master my craft. After collecting tons of photos of the keepers’ pride and joys I then started printing the photos to hand out of the wildlife shots I captured to their respected keepers. The keepers could see I had potential and appreciated this little thing I did and as I started to become more serious about photography, they were the ones to then give me the chance to photograph past the wildlife and nature. I remember my first client specifically, it was one of the show keepers, Kirsti. Kirsti had just gotten engaged, and I had happened to be there at the show when her fiancé proposed, and I was so happy for them I practically begged to take them. We went to a local beach pass with drywood, and ocean views and I got to photograph their love and I realized I truly wanted to do this forever.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After working for the Naples Zoo in Florida, I realized I had an eye and a talent for photography. I specialize in Wildlife and Landscaping with a finesse for humans where I do any and every portrait session, I can get my hands on, and then some! I have done 150 person events, first birthdays, weddings, engagements, headshots for a chef, and fun creative sessions because why not. I lived in Colorado for a time after Hurricane Irma had hit my area in SWFL hard and after slipping a disc moving debris at the zoo and my other half being in remission from a bout with Ewing sarcoma, we moved out west to try something new. Being out west was incredible for me, Colorado opened up so many doors to expanding my passions and growth in wildlife photography and the local mountain views made it easy for me to channel my inner Ansel Adams. I then moved back to Florida with 3 years of new skillsets, experiences, portfolio work and more to bring to my business and since I have been back, I have been able to grow my business and provide portrait sessions to any in SWFL. So truly I am a jack-of-all-trades photographer, I sell prints of my wildlife and nature work and have a website for potential clients to book me for a session of their choosing! I love dipping my toes into every pool and learning new skills and techniques, and every day I hope to continue to learn more and grow in my craft.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Growing up I didn’t have exactly a lot of photos to look back upon, some here and there and definitely a lot my family could provide, but there were gaps, there were photos that went missing, and as a child there wasn’t much I could do, and I strongly disliked that. In my teens my mom supported my favoring of the arts, always pushed my creativity and proudly helped me grow confidence in myself and my art. I was obsessed, and honestly still am, with National Geographic and had their photos strewn and stapled across my walls, I said that is what I will do one day. I may not be in Nat Geo yet, but in the meantime, I can photograph others, tell their stories, capture their memories, share their business. Being a photographer is not about how much I can make on a session, it’s about how many photos can I take of your purest moments and give you to keep for a lifetime. I have lost a lot of people in my life, and the one thing I was able to have of them were photos, that I had taken, and if I hadn’t when would have their last good moments really truly been captured? Seeing the look on faces when I capture a sweet moment, a genuine laugh and smile, an important achievement, a piece of them they hadn’t seen that way before, helping them market themselves or show off something they love, capturing a loved one before they leave us without realizing it was so close to their time to go, pets too; being able to capture those moments is what I live for and it has been so rewarding when I deliver galleries.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I used to think that as a photographer all of my time and effort was to be spent on advertising, do not get me wrong, it helps, but the biggest assist I have had has been Word of Mouth. I have been able to gain clients thanks to multiple tags on a Facebook post, a share on this or a message to this person on that. I love what I do so I am willing to work with new small business owners to help market their new business or donate my time for things such as pets crossing the rainbow bridge soon and etc. Offering myself for those kinds of sessions and services and having others share my business as a recommendation has been so incredibly helpful than the time and effort I was exhausting on other outlets.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dannidoesphotos.com
• Instagram: dannidoesphotos
• Facebook: dannidoesphotos
• Twitter: dannidoesphotos
• Other: Pinterest Inspiration Boards for different types of photo sessions- check me out! @Dannidoesphotos