Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Spencer Penfield. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Spencer, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

The arts is a tricky category when comes to the term “successful”. Some people in my field of wedding photography see it as traveling and photographing destination weddings in beautiful countries; some see it as working primarily in the luxury wedding market; some see it as making the most unique work that sets them apart from everyone else; some see it as having enough work to not have to work a “real job”. And just like the arts itself, it’s all subjective. Every photographer gets to set up what “success” looks like to them, and that is a very beautiful thing.

In my 8 years of professional experience photographing weddings, I feel like I’ve had a sample-size portion in a plethora of categories that some may see as ultimately “making it”. I’ve had the opportunity to photograph weddings and wedding celebrations all over the country (California, Florida, Texas, Alaska, and New York to name a few) as well as abroad in countries such as the Ireland and the Dominican Republic. Photography has been my main source of income since 2016, so it’s been a long while since I’ve had to report to a boss or clock out at 5 o’clock. Around 2020 I felt like I was finally making the work I was most proud of. All of these accomplishments feel so very good and gratifying, no doubt about that; however the magic feeling of “success” never really washed over me like I thought it was supposed to. There was always this nagging feeling of “what’s next?”

It wasn’t until 2020 when the world came crashing down that really changed my perspective of the “why” behind being a wedding photographer. The pandemic altered a lot of couples’ plans, plans that for some had been in the making for a few years. There was so much confusion and uncertainty in what couples should do, and us wedding photographers (and other vendors) were right in the trenches with them. Customer service was at the utmost importance. Couples needed reassurance that everything was going to be ok. With the handful of weddings that I photographed that year, all of a sudden linen color and and party favors and tropical destinations took a backseat; it all came down to people and a return back to the sacred significance of what a wedding day actually meant. That year really realigned my priorities and shifted not just how I photographed, but what really brings true fulfillment, and therefore success, in this job.

All that to say, when you make art for a living, success can mean a lot of different things. Over the span of my career, success to me looks like giving every wedding my all and striving to make my best work for each couple. It looks like serving my couples the very best I can from start to finish so they can have the very best day possible. It also looks like having intentional time with my wife, friends, and family. Those three things, I’ve found, carry that much more weight.

Spencer, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hey there! I”m Spencer, but you can call me Spence.

I always had an interest in taking photos; through middle school and high school I would always take the family digital point-and-shoot to friends’ houses and get-togethers. I loved the feeling of people being together, and having a way to preserve it. When I went off to college in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I got my first iPhone. This was a game-changer for me; I now had this little device with a camera in my pocket at all times, allowing me to photograph anything that caught my eye with ease. It was also in college that Instagram first came out, which opened up an entire new world of talent I’d never seen before. Being able to follow photographers from all over the world with the same passion and interest as me really inspired me to be more creative with my phone camera in daily life. Mobile photography was huge, and I became obsessed. From then on all through college I still studied with the intent on going into the marketing field, and photography was a fulfilling hobby on the side with no agenda or expectation.

My first film camera was a Canon Rebel 2000 film camera I bought for $50 off a guy on Craigslist during my senior year. I was really drawn to the simplicity and mechanics behind the process of film. With a camera in my hands I was even more drawn to observe people more closely; how they smile when told a joke, where they cast their gaze when thinking about something they love, etc. People’s full humanity became something I could never not want to study. On winter break I designed a website on Squarespace to have a more formal portfolio to showcase. Through it all, it was all just for fun and with zero expectations.

After college I wandered around a bit; working as a digital marketing intern for a whitewater rafting company in Colorado, working as a salesmen at the Apple Store, and even driving Uber. I was asked to photograph a handful of college friends’ weddings, and just continued to create and share work on Instagram. It wasn’t until 2016 when a wedding photo/video company in Grand Rapids reached out to me to be a contracted photographer/editor that the ball really started rolling. I gained so much experience and insight in the wedding world and getting continual hands-on experience, all the while building my own business and clientele. After a year of photographing and editing for them, I was fortunate enough to take the leap into full-time freelancing working for myself.

While I continually aim to go deeper with my work and lean in to telling wedding stories more intimately and honestly, the main pillar that I’ve set with my business is to be the most reliable and calming presence for the couples who hire me- from the first initial email, to the final delivery of their gallery (I have a lot of gratefulness for my customer service jobs growing up for teaching me that). Weddings can be such a whirlwind with so many plates spinning in the air, and so it’s a huge point of mine to ease that stress as much as I can. The one person you spend the most time with on your wedding day outside of your partner is your photographer, and so I aim to posture myself so that a couple’s day is as easy going and stress-free as possible (which altogether makes for the best and most heart-felt photos).

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

The most rewarding aspect working in the wedding world is getting to step into peoples’ lives with whom I probably would have never met. Getting to witness different relationship dynamics and structures, people reconnecting after long periods of time, sometimes having grandparents even being able to make it in the first place- it’s an extreme privilege for me to be invited in and to photograph such monumental relationships in couples’ lives. Photos are one of the only things to live on after a wedding day is finished, and so to be able to have that responsibility to preserve it is so very rewarding.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

If I had to chalk it up to one thing, it would be customer service (both leading up to and on the wedding day). While I am continually diligent in pushing my own creative boundaries and making the very best heart-felt work that I can (which is a huge part of it that shouldn’t be disregarded), I can’t really begin to do that well if I have not dived head-first into creating a relationship with each couple who comes my way. I really aim to show my couples that I’m a human being just like them who wants to make sure that they’re taken care of and at-ease to the best of my ability. Being dependable and empathetic will go a lot further than some people think it does.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.spencerpenfield.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spencerpenfield/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spencerpenfieldphoto/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/spencer-penfield-2659124a/