We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Amber Henry. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Amber below.

Hi Amber, thanks for joining 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?

You know that dream you have sometimes, where you are back in High School and you have to go to class and avoid bullies and make new friends and are an awkward teen all over again? I have that same reoccurring nightmare – only it’s that my business has failed and I have to go out and get a “real job” under a corporate manager. I’ve decided the reason I keep facing that fear is because I am so utterly in love with my life and what I do. I am a creative and I get to make money creating. That is the goal, isn’t it? To take what we love and do it as often as we can for the rest of our lives? It was for me. My career is spent creating the most beautiful images of people, showing them in a literal light in which they have never seen themselves, capturing their life-achieving moments, and watching as their family grows into future generations. I get paid to make my visions come to life! To sit and think and create something that never existed before. As a speaker and mentor, I also get to travel the world sharing my craft with others and encouraging them to follow their creative dreams. And even though it is much more demanding than a regular full-time job, with more hours more headaches, and far more riding on its success. It’s like anything you love dearly, you always fear it leaving you.

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?

Hello! I am Amber Henry, and I’m an international award-winning wedding and portrait photographer based in Michigan USA. I have been a professional photographer for over 20 years, taking huge pride in offering highly unique and timelessly romantic photography. My work can be described as vibrantly creative, contemporary romantic, and uniquely stylized.

I spent most of my young adult life as a single mother sons, struggling to pay my bills and support us. You could say that I started from the absolute bottom and grew my studio from the ground up. I spent my time always educating myself through classes both online and in-person, attending lectures and hands-on courses in both photography and business. I spent years seeking out education in every form I could find, knowing the years of perseverance would one day pay off.

I started out working for a chain portrait studio- Olan Mills. After four years of running multiple studio locations, I knew it was time to go on my own. I had always had a desire to photograph weddings – something about the fairy-tale aspect of it was so attractive. A gorgeous woman in love in a big flowy gown, a huge church full of loved ones, men in tuxedos and champagne, and colored dance floors. Now, of course, if you have photographed weddings, you know there is not a lot of fairy-tale-ness behind the scenes. It’s many hours of work and stress, bad locations, and horrible weather conditions. You really have to love what you do to stay the course as a wedding photographer! I have found that the most successful wedding photographers in the world are those who are true storytellers, who love the human experience and want to be a part of it, even if just from the outside looking in.

I also have a beautiful studio where I get to create with portrait clients whom I also travel on location for. I photograph a lot of High School seniors, engagement sessions, family portraits, and creative work. I would say now that I love it just as much as I do weddings because I get to create with people from all walks of life, not only those who are getting married. It has expanded my horizons and pushed me creatively. I often will go create in my studio images just for myself to make my inner-artist happy.

Throughout my career, I have earned a large variety of awards from international organizations including WPPI, WPE, PPA, Portrait Masters, and Fearless Photographers as well as being published worldwide. I am a proud ambassador for so many outstanding companies such as Geekoto, Magmod, Cheetah Stands, Aftershoot, Fundy, Pro Prints and Flash Masters. I have a strong desire to pass on what I have learned, so I offer one-on-one mentorship programs and run an online group exclusive to women photographers called Females Who Flash. Being an educator I have lectured and taught/am teaching at some of the world’s best conferences including WPPI, PPA, SYNC, and Shutterfest.

I have made sure to become proficient in both natural light and strobe, which allows me to make any location at any time of day look extraordinary. I encourage photographers to learn the three main components of our craft – become obsessed with light, study how to pose the human body and learn how to run a successful business. I strongly believe that our industry will only survive if we continue to help one another by teaching the skills of both the art of photography and the business aspects

Every day I am eternally grateful to do what I love and make it my life’s legacy. I believe all body types and all walks of life should be photographed and captured most beautiful way, and that each human being is a unique soul deserving of love, with a story to tell. Above all else, my core value is rooted in the belief that absolutely anyone can change their stars.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

So, because I followed so many photographers years ago when I started my journey, I only saw the ‘pretty side’ of photography. The ones I followed were photographing in the most beautiful locations around the world, with clients who were fashionable and looked like models. Because of this, I felt ashamed of where I was working. For many years I wouldn’t show any behind-the-scenes of my work because the locations weren’t beautiful or the clients weren’t the ideal status. The upside is I learned to create beautiful images in any circumstance. I would photograph in church basements in barns, and in very small, dark venues and always be able to make them look incredible. The downside is I never showed where I actually was and when I became an educator I realized I had no resources to show my students!

I had very little behind the scenes captures to prove where I had been when I created my now award-winning images. It wasn’t until I saw other up-and-coming educators proudly showing their transformations that I realized it was OK. There is nothing wrong with being a professional photographer and shooting in a Knights of Columbus hall or a crowded attic at the bride’s parents’ house. The only shame is if you don’t do their story justice and use all of your creative talents to capture a beautiful story for your clients.

Once I started showing my behind-the-scenes, my career as an educator took off. I think that more people resonated with me because they realized that my weekends are pretty much just like theirs and that encourages him. Now my favorite thing to do in my socials like TikTok and Instagram is show where I am and what I created there.

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

I can say one thing with absolute certainty – How you treat people becomes your calling card.

Now that sounds like a simple sentence but it covers a wide variety of situations.

Showing up on time displays respect.
Turning over the product promptly displays understanding.
Listening to a client’s needs displays compassion.
Taking care of your appearance and dressing appropriately displays honor.
Being able to reschedule or restructure a request displays empathy.
Doing your best work in bad situations displays honor.

Having these virtues in your life and your business will take you farther than you ever realize. People like to work with people they like, and word of mouth from those who have hired you will spread much further and faster than any website or social media post you can make. Treat every person you work with, from janitor to bride, with humanity and they will reciprocate it. You will succeed!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.AmberHenryPhotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amberhenryphotography/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmberHenryPhotography
• Other: TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@amber_henry_photography?lang=en