We were lucky to catch up with Lisa Sampietro recently and have shared our conversation below.

Lisa, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

I’ve never been happier with my line of work than I am right now. I wanted to be a full time photographer since childhood. I could NOT imagine going back to a “regular” job. It’s actually my biggest business fear.

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.

Hi everyone, my name is Lisa Sampietro and I’m the crazy one behind the lens at Dorky Daisy Photography. My passion for photography started when I received my first point-and-shoot camera at the age of 7 yrs. old and continually grew stronger thanks in part to my dad, Kermit the Frog & the very decorated photographer, Joe McNally.

Although I work with a few different avenues of photography, Pets + People Portraits is what I specialize in. That all started because of my Labrador Retriever, Elwood. When he passed away back in 2007 I was devastated. Even though I have always had a camera in my hand, I had never taken too many photos of him and I together. I realized that I could combine my love of photography and animals together to create my own dream job. What’s better than capturing the joy of our companions enjoying their life with us on our drop dead gorgeous beaches and the multitude of dog friendly parks we have here locally?!
I take pride in knowing that having been a vet tech when I was younger helps me to ease both the animal and their humans during a session. I also love working with local dog behaviorists so that I’m always learning the best practices for everyone to be safe, but yet look like effortless fun.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Wow, that’s a fun question! We get to express ourselves in ways that some don’t which to me is an extremely important part of life. As artists, we get to watch the awe and wonder when people look at a photograph that depicts a time and place that they fondly remember, or when they stare into a painted canvas or mural and see themselves in a kaleidoscope of colors. But I think the MOST rewarding is that there are no rules when it comes to being creative. Whatever we can dream up we, can attempt to create!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I was very much discouraged about going into the arts for many, many years from a few family members when I was younger. Unfortunately I listened to them for quite a long time, but I would always find ways to integrate photography into any situation to curb my craving to be artistic. I was told that I couldn’t earn a living with photography and that there was no future in the arts. Well, one thing I’m not good at is being told I can’t do something.

So at 29, I applied and got accepted into San Francisco Art Institute only to discover I was pregnant with my now teenage son. Yet another roadblock, but definitely not the end of my photography dreams.

It wasn’t until about 10 years ago that I finally got fed up and just went for it. I’m very lucky to have a very big support system behind me now with my husband and son. I picked up my camera and took small side jobs for friends here and there. I didn’t care what I was photographing, I just wanted to capture memories and be creative. Now, not only do I get to do what I love, I get to create my own fantasy world. I get to create fun, colorful, playful setups anywhere I want. I get to capture memories that people will cherish for a lifetime all while playing with their pets!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dorkydaisyphotography.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/dorkydaisyphotography/
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/dorkydaisyphotography/

Image Credits
Lisa Presnail – Headshot