We were lucky to catch up with Kelsey Allen recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kelsey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard

Often times when you think of family portraits, you think of the posed and smiling at the camera. I like to call these the Holiday Greeting Card shots, because a lot of the time that’s what they are. While I do capture a few images like this during every photo session, the majority of my sessions are unposed. I prefer to focus on the connections within a family, the interactions each person has with one another and the candid in-between moments. I want the children to tickle their parents, run around, and dance together. I love it when kids are able to be themselves, because that is when their true personalities come through and really, that is what families will value in years to come. I want my clients to look back on their images in the future and remember how their daughter held their hand, or how their son had a goofy smile when he was missing his front tooth.

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 was born and raised in West Virginia, went to WVU for my bachelors then after graduating I traveled in an RV for a few years. I eventually moved to Ohio about nine years ago, and I’ve been here ever since. I’ve always been creative; I loved to draw, take pictures and play music when I was younger. It wasn’t until after I had kids that I realized how much I truly love photography and that’s when I found out what I was meant to do. Now I focus on every aspect of family photography, from documenting blossoming pregnancies to helping tell the stories of toddlers growing up with their families. I make sure each photoshoot is a fun and stress-free experience, enabling me to get the best out of each moment.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I bought my first DSLR when my son was born in 2017. My intention was to be able to capture quality photos of him that I would have forever. During my time home with him, I realized that it was something I could provide for others while helping to support my family. I went back to working full time and continued to do photography on the weekends whenever I could find people willing to work with me. I learned so much during this time and the majority of it was through trial and error. I spent countless hours scouring online to learn everything about my camera, lighting, and editing. I was very persistent, and after a year I decided to leave my full time job and stay home. At that point I was just getting my name out there as a photographer, but I was well on my way to building a solid client base. Social media was a key component in that, because that was how I got my clients. Over the next few years, I kept learning whenever I was able to. I built a website, worked on branding, created an Instagram for my business, and was consistent with my presence online. I researched the business side of things and spent a lot of time speaking to other photographers, and I upgraded my equipment.
I invested in education from a few mentors who I looked up to, and that was a big milestone for me. Once I was able to focus on what I wanted to learn and where I wanted to grow, and to be learning those things from someone I admired, I finally felt like a professional photographer.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Social media has been a huge part of my business from the very beginning. When I first started, I didn’t know many people in my area because I had only lived here a few years. I utilized social media to advertise on facebook groups and that is solely where I got every single client the first year after I picked up my camera. I created a business page, and was able to slowly fill it with photos of my family and the few sessions I had. Persistence is key with a social media presence these days. You need to be posting consistently, ideally once a day. If you don’t post for a few days (or longer) then once you do make a post, it wont be seen by as many people. It’s unfortunate, but the algorithm works against small businesses like me when it comes to social media. That’s also why it is important to have a website that you can refer potential clients to, something that is perfectly curated by you and on brand for your business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.kelseyallenphotography.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/kelsey.allen.photography
• Facebook: facebook.com/kelseyallenphotography