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

Hi Alyssa, thanks for joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

When I graduated high school in 2018, I never thought in a million years I would have my OWN business. I knew nothing about it, had no money to do anything, and simply didn’t think I would have the talent to be successful. Little did I know, my love for photography blossomed literally out of no where and took off to become the best thing to ever happen to me!

I did a TON of modeling growing up since I was in middle school. I was always in front of the camera (literally multiple times a week and almost every single weekend). I was always curious with cameras/editing since photography allows you to do anything your heart desires, and so I begged for a camera for my birthday the year of 2017 and I actually was gifted it!! I started out doing it as a hobby of course because I was starting from ground zero. I didn’t know how to work it so I photographed several dancers and families that I knew from my home studio Rokita Dance Center. With the major support those families gave me along with my number one cheerleader, my wonderful mother, I decided to take on the risk of actually starting my own photography business……and by a huge surprise it actually has become something very successful for me. I call this a huge risk for me since I was very ill equipped with everything needed to start a business. I took a chance and just ran with it. My family helped me so much, but in a lot of ways I had to learn the logistics of this all by myself. In the end, I have realized I have the most amazing job EVER. The children I am blessed to be around make my heart so full and happy. I have met so many families that make me feel like I have known them forever. The shoots I get to do allow me to be creative. Every day is something new and innovative which is such an amazing aspect of this type of job. Lastly, my “job” doesn’t feel like a job 99% of the time. I am soooooo lucky.

Alyssa, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have been modeling in front of so many cameras since I was in middle school. I was a model for many photography conferences including Shutterfest and Clickcon. Along with that I have a long list of photographers I was blessed to model for their brand on multiple occasions for many different things. I grew up a dancer myself since the age of 9! I have been surrounded by the arts my whole life, and I always loved being involved in it. Seeing all the creative works of other people really led me to want to try it for myself. Thats the whole reason I begged for a camera for my birthday is because I wanted to try and experiment with it to see what I could do! Growing up a dancer, I really wanted to get into the dance photography industry. First off, photographing dancers is the most fun thing EVER! Just imagine the endless pose opportunities you get to have. It fit in with my life so well. But, in addition to dance photography being my main thing I do, I also so portraits, seniors, families, couples, toddlers, small weddings, events and more. I am someone who does not feel like I have to limit myself to just one field here. Why not expand and do many things?

I feel like with the dance photography I do, I am so knowledgeable about the craft that it makes sense for me to do what i’m doing. Not only did I grow up a dancer, but I literally modeled myself. I know so much about posing, angles, body types, lighting, you name it I have probably heard something about it! I modeled for so many photography classes, I soaked in so much knowledge over the years that has helped me get to where I am today. Most photographers do not have that sort of knowledge under their belt. I have loved being in front of the camera for all the opportunities I had, and now I get to spread the knowledge I gained to my dancers and clients to help them look and feel the most confident no matter what the situation is.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

The dance world itself is bigger than most people realize. It is one of those things where it’s small, but at the same time it isn’t. Growing up in the STL area and dancing here, there are so many fellow dancers and artists that I have gotten to meet though the years. I was taught very well at a young age on how to be respectful in dance class and that always took me far since I took classes from so many different people all the time. I also was apart of so many dance programs growing up that also helped me grow and expand my network as well (some of those included Tigerstyle Crew, Kinfigure, TOP Starz, Rokita Dance Center Comp Team, etc….) Being apart of so many things helped me tremendously. When I started my business, I already had many dance families following me on social media that I had the reputation already there. I built the trust and respect a long time ago so it was a fairly easy process for me at this time. I have been blessed to know some of the most amazing dance families on my journey and they showed me the utmost support the whole time no matter what I did. As I grew my business, I always did my best to make sure everyone was happy with what they received from me. I feel that with. my personality, I am very understanding and try to pay attention to as much detail as possible even when I am under a lot of stress. On my most tired days, I will do whatever it takes to make sure my dancer/client has a great shoot. I strive for everyone to feel comfortable with me, and I strive for everyone to have a great experience so that they know I truly care about them. This isn’t just a “job” for me, it has turned into such a huge part of my life. My clients know how much pride I take in what I do, and that is what has helped me keep my reputation the way it is for this long.

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

Many of my clients that have been with me from the very beginning know how much my mother, Sandy, was involved in everything I did in my life. Well that was no different with my business. She helped me SOOO much whether it be taking charge of my social media, helping make posts, answer messages, make outfits, you name it she would try to help with it. I cant remember what year it was, but sometime around when I graduated high school se was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. My mom was my everything, and I was beyond devastated. During this time, she was seemingly fine on the outside but then everything in the inside of her body was struggling. She helped me for as long as she could till it finally got to a point where she was struggling to even do her daily tasks to simply get herself ready. At this time, I had to make a huge pivot in everything I did because I no longer could count on her help at all. On top of that, I was helping take care of my mother while also trying to run my business which was difficult with the amount of work I was doing at this time. My business was growing rapidly. I was trying to simply stay afloat and not drown in everything being thrown at me. My motivation for staying afloat of it all was knowing how proud my mother was (and always will be) of me. She was my forever cheerleader. She did pass away on oct 25th of 2021 but my business will forever be marked by her greatness. The kids LOVED my mother, and so did all the dance moms that got to meet her. She would become friends with all the parents at my photoshoots. I will never find a better assistant, but I am so grateful she got to be there for the start of it all. I still run everything by myself which is very hard, but I try my best. Thats all can do.

Contact Info:

• Website: russophotography58.mypixieset.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/russophotography__/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/russophotography18

Image Credits
Russo Photography