We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alyssa Ryan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alyssa, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, let’s start with trends – what are some of the largest or more impactful trends you are seeing in the industry?

The wedding industry is always changing and I love that. It keeps me on my toes and keeps my eyes fresh on how to photograph new things/trends. I feel like we are starting to see more color and more personalization at weddings or elopements.

I think it’s great to include such personalized details because this day is all about celebrating the love and commitment to one another and what better way to showcase that by keeping it completely unique to what you love??

You like ice cream cake instead of a regular cake? Cut into that instead! You want to wear a pink dress or suit instead? Go for it!

At one wedding I helped photograph, the Bride’s veil had the words “Truly, Madly, Deeply” embroidered on the train of it. It was beautiful and I hadn’t seen that before. Made me think of all sorts of fun possibilities! Since then, I’ve seen that detail all over social media.

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?

I’m a born and raised Southern California girl and am now based out of Chandler, Arizona. I have been married for almost 10 years and have a sweet family of my own. I have a love for flowers, the color pink and my two cats, Fishy and Tuna.

I graduated with a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Art) in Photography and I love being able to use my art degree doing something I LOVE. I feel like I am able to blend well with my clients because I can always find something to relate to when we start talking and getting to know each other. My goal is to become friends because when you feel like that, you feel more comfortable and the photos will show that!

What I love about photography and especially wedding photography is how I’m able to connect with myself and others. I believe that your soul knows when it’s onto something good. Brings a new meaning to the term “soulmate” doesn’t it? That’s why I’m so passionate about creating art with you and your loved ones in mind. These are the memories being preserved through photography whether it’s a simple family session or a luxurious wedding. Every detail and every moment is important and I won’t miss it! I live for it.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

I am on my way to making my once side hustle my full time business. I was working full time with Shutterfly for nearly 8 years then in 2023 I was surprisingly laid off. It was very bittersweet. But it forced me to make a change with what I was doing and gave me the extra push I needed to start taking my creative business more seriously.

If you told 12 year old me with my first camera in hand that I would never really put that camera down, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. But I am so glad I’m here now doing what I truly love and always learning on how I can do more to further myself.

I started like everyone else, just taking pictures for fun and playing with a new “toy”. Taking pictures of flowers, pretty sunsets, my pets, and occasionally my siblings. Portraiture was NOT where I thought I would end up, it is intimidating photographing people. I stayed away from that. Then I kept photographing throughout high school and actually shot a wedding with a friend at 16 years old. That sparked something I never thought would happen! I decided to pursue this in college and got more comfortable with people as my subject. I slowly started with more weddings with friends of mine and became hooked on the idea of being a wedding photographer and here I am today!

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I am still figuring this one out!

But honestly, not being afraid to try new things has helped me grow my clientele a lot! You meet new people, learn new things and get to tell people about what you do. Go take a new gym class, give a genuine compliment to someone at the coffee shop, you never know what that could turn into.

Contact Info:

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