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

Alright, Devin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

If I could go back in time I definitely wish I would of started my business earlier. Before launching From Above Aerial, I was an electrician for about 4 years and a Patrolman for St.Paris Police department. I’ve always had a passion for anything with a camera whether it be out in nature taking photos, putting together small videos of life events and such. I never imagined my work would be loved by so many, and even though I was late in chasing my dream, I’m still very thankful I decided to go after it.

Devin, 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?

There’s many sides to what I do really. Freelancing is where it started and if I get time I still go out and do. It all started when I bought a toy drone and fell in love with seeing our world from the sky. Eventually, I went and bought a nice one and decided to share all the photos in local forums and people really loved them. It was a bit different for me, most people start on the ground and branch out to different things and for me I started solely taking photos from the sky.
Freelancing is really how my name got out there. I ran around and snapped photos for 3 straight years of everything. To me, Freelancing is seeing our world differently and really tuning in to your surroundings. Sometimes I’d wait all day for the sunset, stay up all night watching the stars, or take off into the woods with my camera just seeing what’s out there. I fell in love with capturing life and just so happen alot of people loved my vision. Looking back, it’s almost a blur, things happened so quickly I still consider myself a “newer” photographer. Shortly after starting I earned some amazing titles such as Daytons Best Photographer of 2020, Dayton Magazine’s Best of 2020, International Fine Arts Nominee of 2020, and Ohio Preservation Contest Winner. Sometimes I look back and think..”wow I actually did all this”.

Our wedding videography launched in 2019. Honestly, it started really slow. I think I advertised for a year before I booked anything. Which, I’m thankful for really because it allowed me to develop as an artist. Looking back, I wasn’t quite ready yet. Weddings take alot, it’s adaptability and taking all your creativity and being able to make neat content on the fly. You have to be ready for all types of scenarios and situations.
Fast forward to today its a different story. I’ve booked almost 100 weddings in two years and earned several accolades such as Readers Choice Best in 2020 & 2022 and One of Cincinnati’s Best in 2021 (peerspace). It’s a process but I’m thankful for all of it.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Word of mouth for sure. I personally believe nothing is more powerful than old clients referring future clients. Infact, for me I’d say a good 70% of my clients were either referred from previous clients or perhaps was at a wedding and seen my work. With all the advertising avenues today, to me word of mouth is still the most powerful.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The year 2020 for me pivotal. After earning alot of pretty neat titles things started to take off. Looking back, in a weird way the pandemic actually fueled the growth of my social media. I believe people were stuck at home quite a bit and needed inspiration. Seeing my freelancing gave that and it really took things to the next level for me as for growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.aboveaerialohio.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/aboveaerialohio?igshid=ZDc4ODBmNjlmNQ==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aboveaerialohio?mibextid=ZbWKwL
• Youtube: @fromaboveaerialllc1303

Image Credits
Brittany Carol Photography