We recently connected with Amanda Gray and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?

Coming up with the idea for a photography business was not a hard or original idea, millions have photography
businesses. For me, it’s a way back to myself and my passions. Photography has always been the thread that pulls me back to myself. It’s my grounding force and a way to connect with others deeply.

From a very young age I knew I wanted to take pictures. I wanted to freeze time, bottle it up, to save a moment to have forever. I can still recall the first moment I wished to stop time and save it for a later date. I was 5 years old, I was in the living room of our single-wide trailer. My mom and I were watching the Oklahoma sun set out our western facing, metal framed window. Vibrant colors plastered the sky accompanied by pillowing soft white clouds creating leading lines to the setting sun. My mom proclaimed, “what a beautiful painting God created.” There, that’s it. That’s the moment I wished for a camera to capture the beauty we were experiencing to save it for another day, maybe a cloudy day or a dark day. I just wanted to keep it forever. And I do, in my mind. Unfortunately, I don’t have it saved as a picture since we didn’t have a camera at the time. At the time the only camera I had access to was my Grandma’s 110 film camera with the popup flash. A camera I still have today in my office.

From that brilliant sunset on, I was fixated on capturing moments. My grandma often let me borrow her camera to take photos. I remember taking a whole roll of film during the removal of my favorite tree from her yard. I spent hours flipping through photo albums at my Grandma’s house. Those albums connected me to the past – to my mom as a little girl, to my grandpa who passed away 4 years before I was born, to my grandma laughing on a bench with her siblings as a child. The connections and people drew me in and fostered a love of photography. It started with family photo albums and tree removals and grew to National Geographic magazine and Ansel Adams obsessions. Which later grew to pursuing a focus in photography for my Visual Communications major in college, a student photography internship and a photography business. I started my photography business shortly after college as a side gig. I was working full time as a Website Assistant at the time. I continued to take photos here and there as inquiries came in. Eventually, I found myself burnt out from doing too much at once. Photography wasn’t sustainable enough for me at the time to continue to pursue it outside of my full time job and motherhood. So I took a break, a much longer than intended break. I still took photos of my closest friends and family as an act of love, perhaps my own love language.
After many years of putting my hobbies and passions on the back burner either due to time or mental fortitude, I finally picked up my camera for me. I was finding myself again and being present. In that, I was seeing the beauty I wanted to freeze and save again. I started picking up my camera more and more – eventually enough to pursue as a side gig again and re-launched my photography business. It’s a slow but steady process growing the business but this time it’s built with intention, boundaries and joy. And I knew it was worthwhile because I realized that my strength isn’t just taking pictures, it’s seeing people. Really seeing them. That’s something I can build on. That’s something that lasts.

Amanda, 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?

My services are primarily portrait photography. Living in a rural community, it’s important to me to provide a professional service that preserves family memories, milestones and growth over time at an affordable price. I never want money to limit a person or family’s ability to capture their special memories. That’s why I offer several different packages as well as mini sessions. I also work with my clients to create custom packages that fit within their budget. I think what sets me apart is the atmosphere I create during sessions with my clients. I am calm, warm and intentional. I work with each client to get them comfortable in front of the camera. I ask questions to get to know them and their personality so I can make sure that shines through in their photographs.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me the most rewarding part of being a photographer is capturing someone’s true essence in a photo and their reaction to it.

A shy teenager realizing how cool they really are.
A woman seeing herself as beautiful and radiant.
A family freezing a fleeting season before their toddler suddenly isn’t so little anymore.

The reactions from my clients, their happiness and joy, are what keep me doing this. Being trusted to capture someone’s story is an honor and I don’t take that lightly.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I have pivoted several times throughout my career, not huge pivots but definitely different from the path I had planned for myself. In college after my internship I really wanted to be a university photographer but pivoted to web design and management because that’s where the jobs were.

I continued photography as a side gig for years until I was unable to juggle everything. Eventually burnt out settled in and I took a step back from my business.

After battling depression for several years, I started to find and feel like myself again and found myself back behind the camera doing what I love. I still work full time for a remote company as a Director in a Project Management role but I use my photography business as my creative outlet and a way to recharge my soul.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.amandagrayphotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandagrayphoto/
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/amandagrayphotos

Image Credits

Photo credits go to Amanda Gray Photography LLC for all photos shared except for the photo of me with my camera on the beach. That photo was taken by my husband, Ryan Gray.