We recently connected with Andrew White and have shared our conversation below.
Andrew , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you walk us through some of the key steps that allowed you move beyond an idea and actually launch?
Being a food photographer, I get the behind the scenes look at my favorite restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and other establishments that most people have no idea about. I regularly talk to the chefs, service staff, and owners to get an idea of what it is like to work there and how everything came together. I have found that knowing the background and how things came together made me appreciate the spot even more.
From this idea, I created my most recent book titled “Cooking Through Columbus.” This book tells the story of over 65 of the best spots around my city with the intention of telling each story in a way that most people would never have known. The establishments also contribute a recipe for readers to try and make at home. The main intention of this book is to get one reader to try a place they have never been to or to make a delicious recipe they love at home.
Bringing the idea to life was a lot of work and I knew that I would need a team to help make it happen. The first person I brought on was Nile Woodson, a local restaurant owner and close friend of mine. He was in charge of outreach and getting restaurants on board to participate in the project. Once he pitched the idea and they agreed, it was time to go in and do a photoshoot and interview.
After we did a few shoots, we pitched the idea to Tim Trad, a local marketing expert and social media wizard. He loved it and immediately came on board to help with marketing and promotions.
Over the next year we did over 65 shoots and brought the book to life. We signed with a large publisher and have officially launched our campaign and have been selling books. We are looking forward to pushing this project and helping tell the stories of the Columbus food scene and the folks who make it so great!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am a photographer and writer that specializes in story telling through visual narratives. I started working for myself in 2017 after being laid off from my marketing role at a huge global corporation and haven’t taken a “real” job since.
My approach is all about telling the story behind the brand. Great design and products definitely help make my job easier, but the story behind what makes every client who they are is what I really try to show.
What I am most proud of is my ability to create meaningful work that my clients and collaborators are excited about. I like to include them in the process to make it a true collaboration and to ensure I am delivering exactly what they want. Some clients bring me on board because they full y trust my vision and tell me to do what I think is best, and that is also something I am very proud of.
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
When i first started as a photographer, it was solely for fun. I loved going out and taking pictures of random things and people. I never made any money from it, it was just a hobby that took up most of my free time.
I used to work in marketing / advertising and had various agency and corporate jobs. I was working as a Marketing Operations Manager for a huge company and was making great money, but was absolutely miserable. I kept grinding thinking that I would climb the corporate ladder and get that big promotion that will have me set up in a big way. Instead, I was laid off with no notice. Just a thanks for everything and we will see ya later.
So, in the weeks after that, I was figuring out what my next move was going to be and applying for jobs and sending out my resume and all that. One of my friends mentioned to me that someone they knew owned a restaurant and needed some photos of their food. I hesitantly said yes. I met with them and took some photos that they loved. They shared the photos on their social and tagged me and soon after that the work began pouring in.
Once I started saying yes to more of these small opportunities I realized that all of these little jobs were pretty close to what I would make working a full time job. I stopped applying to job listings and began spending that time sending out my portfolio instead.
Seven years later I am still working for myself and making it happen!
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Being genuine and putting clients first really goes a long way when building your reputation. Saying yes to new clients is important, but saying no to opportunities that wouldn’t be a good fit is just as important. Making sure that you deliver quality work at a fair price on time is so crucial when building your network. Being known as the creative who comes through without any issues is what will get your client to refer you to other perspective clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: andrewleewhite.com
- Instagram: @andrewleewhite
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewlwhite/
Image Credits
Personal Photo by Seth Moses Miller – (IG: @sethmosesmiller)