We were lucky to catch up with Dwain King recently and have shared our conversation below.

Dwain, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump right into the heart of things. Outsiders often think businesses or industries have much larger profit margins than they actually do – the reason is that outsiders are often unaware of the biggest challenges to profitability in various industries – what’s the biggest challenge to profitability in your industry?

Well I think in my profession it’s marketing. So many photographers that start out, think they need the latest and greatest gear. Yes, it does help (lol) but I think overall it’s your knowledge and the information you acquire that sharpens your skills and makes you a better photographer. When we start out we spend so much money on the gear and not nearly enough on marketing and marketing education. Im definitely guilty of it, starting out I bought a camera kit online and started shooting, thousands of dollars in gear and practice shoots later Im seeing photogs with “different” skill levels and way cheaper gear booking a lot more clients. What was the difference? Marketing and business education.

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?

What motivated me to start photography was me always being a creative person since I was a child. Growing up I would draw cartoons and comics. My mother saw a talent and immediately invested into me sharpening that skill. As I got older I started getting more creative, I would take old radio boxes and cardboard boxes with scissors and a hot glue gun and make armor pieces and helmets. A brief stint of graffiti in high school and a slay ride into adult hood I found myself being more observant of people in their environment. Wanting to do something creative again I figured instead of drawing why not push a button and create an image. Thus my photography journey was born. I found myself loving to take portraits of people and telling their story with a creative flare and that’s the service I provide. When a client needs photos my goal is to make it 100% authentic of who they are and how they are navigating through life. I think what sets me apart is my approach to the ideas they may have about their photoshoot and how we can create a set of portraits that are uniquely tuned to them or if they just want some cool photos, that’s ok too. Overall I’m extremely proud of how my journey has unfolded thus far and how I’m able to continue my education in this field, explore with new ideas/concepts and to provide my clients with more and more unique value.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The entire photoshoot process, from having the idea to delivering the final product. taking an idea from my mind, fleshing it out into a mood board, pre-vis, shooting, post production and seeing the final results gives me joy. To me taking an idea, a simple thought and creatively manifesting it into the physical realm to me is the most rewarding, The really exciting thing for me as well is being led by my imagination. Its always running and my skill level is always chasing it. My skill set will always be chasing my imagination because I’m always thinking of new ideas and concepts that will push me to evolve and get better.

Have you ever had to pivot?

So the moment I realized that I could take a pretty decent photo (thousands of dollars later lol) I had to pivot and focus more on marketing. I’ve educated myself enough on taking a correctly exposed photo, how to use lighting equipment etc. It’s not only taking good photos its presence, its branding, its consistency, its marketing. With out understanding what all of this means and incorporating this into your business, its going to be very hard to turn a creative side hustle into a full time business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.apryntis.com
• Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/apryntis
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Apryntisphotography