We recently connected with Tracie Davis and have shared our conversation below.

Tracie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with what makes profitability in your industry a challenge – what would you say is the biggest challenge?

I think it’s challenging at the moment because there are so many so called “creators” out there and a real lack of understanding of what it takes to create high end professional work. For a lot of small marketing teams their advertising money is going to social media and sometimes falling on very green social media managers who have never produced a real photoshoot before. That additional work is often falling on the photographer and the work gets harder if you don’t have a partner who is pulling their weight. It’s really a team effort to get beautiful work that is also useful for a brand and not enough marketing teams are really strategizing and investing in their social, even though it’s one of their main advertising platforms. There are so many social platforms right now and because of this, many brands are seeing quantity of imagery over quality as their strategy, which is not great for my industry, and I also don’t think it’s how you build a successful brand.

Tracie, 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?

I’ve been involved with photography since high school. I started out doing a lot of documentary work and transitioned into more studio and still life work in college. I went to the Rhode Island School of Design for Photography which was much more than just a technical education. I spent time honing my craft and learning how to think about images and what they could say, beyond what was on the page. I went on to get a Masters Degree in contemporary photography and later worked at museum collections in NYC before getting into the tech eCommerce space. Being at a startup, you get to try so much out and learn from your own mistakes and wins. I got to work on so many different areas of the site and learn how people interacted with imagery at different stages as a customer. That experience has really shaped how I approach work for my clients. I have both the fine art and business brain working side by side when I’m creating an art direction. I want my images to be inspiring and beautiful, but also be beneficial to the goals of the brand. There is a lot of strategy and thought put into them, and I love every second of trying to figure out how we can all get the most out of each image and the time spent producing it.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I just love creating. If I’m able to make and create than I’m happy. I work really hard, but it’s also important that I’m having fun. I want to create imagery that gets you excited and makes you think. Finding those clients who are great partners in those goals is what I look for.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

It makes sense for performance art, large scale artworks. Otherwise, if you can find someone to pay for it, I guess it still holds value.      

Contact Info:

• Website: www.tracie-davis.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/traciedavisphotography/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tracie-davis-photography

Image Credits
Photography by Tracie Davis