Animal House Photography

When did you know you wanted to be a photographer?

I was taking pictures and friends kept asking me if I was going to start a business, but I kept saying no— I had no interest at first. I’d say a year and a half ago, a friend said “You know, it’s not good to deny your gifts. You’ve been given a gift and you need to at least consider pursuing it.” I was a teacher, but wanted to spend more time with my children, so I quit my job and decided to go full in on photography. 

How were you first introduced to photography?

My sister is a photographer, she has done wedding photography for 15 years, but didn’t think it was ever something I would enjoy, but I started working with some shops and doing pictures for them and I enjoyed doing that as a means to trade my work for products. It didn’t really start out as a pursuit of a photography business, but it turned into that and sparked something there that made me want to do more. 

What was your first camera?

t5 Rebel that I found on marketplace for like $150. Now I have an EOSR and a 6D canon.

What type of images do you strive to shoot?

My big thing is just emotion. I really try to capture just pure some emotion when I take pictures. I’m not a very posed photographer, that’s just not my particular art form. In terms of heavy studio or “everyone sit and look”, that’s not really my thing. I love capturing the little moments,  the things that just catch you off guard and aren’t really planned moments. My main goal is to just capture some sort of emotion with anything that I take pictures of. 

If you could photograph any place, person or thing…. where/who/what would it be?

I think in terms of location, I am always mesmerized by the pictures taken in desert places, with giant sand dunes… artistically, that would be something really fun to shoot. I don’t have a specific person in mind that I would love to shoot, but I would really love to shoot a big family. I love the chaos of a whole bunch of kids, so that is on my list as well!

How are you inspired?

I find a lot of inspiration from different groups. I tend to be drawn towards the storytelling side of photography, so anytime I am able to find a photographer that can take some kind of mundane little thing and turn it into something beautiful. I just latch on to them and try to learn as much as I can from them. 

Also, just my kids. They are always my go to when I have a crazy idea or something I want to try out. 

How has LC enriched your business?

Let’s Collab has been amazing. I think I hopped on there about a year ago and I was thinking this would be a great way to build my portfolio some, and also have some items to offer my clients when doing photoshoots with them. I also feel like from all the different collaborations, it pushed me out of my comfort zone a lot and helped me grow in my work.

If you hadn’t become a photographer, what would you be?

I guess I’d still be teaching, which I loved, but I think there is a season for everything and for me I couldn’t fully give my heart to the demands of a classroom and to my children at home. Teaching is an all consuming type job. I just wanted to have more time with my kids while they are young. If I weren’t doing photography, I would be teaching in some way and working with kids. 

What advice would you give to aspiring photographers?

One thing I would say is just to shoot everything, and often. Pull out your camera as much as you can, finding different ways to take pictures of the same thing. The more you have it out the more you develop a sense of who you are as a photographer. Also find different photographers you respect in the industry, and strive to learn from them. Be humble enough to take advice. Find people who are running a good profitable business and try to learn from them.

Where can we find you?

You can find me at Animalhouse-Photography.com or Facebook.com/animalhousephotography/