Today we’d like to introduce you to Amy Bartlam.
Hi Amy, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My relationship with photography started when I was pretty young. My Dad has always been a keen amateur photographer, he converted a box room in our family home into a darkroom and I used to watch him develop photos in there. When I was in high school Dad taught me how to use his camera and the rest is history! I went on to do a BA in Visual Communication (majoring in Photography) and after stints working with wedding, fashion and portrait photographers I went out on my own as an interior photographer (interior design being another love of mine!)
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Making the leap to work as a photographer full-time and not for someone else or supported by a bar gig, was hard. You need new work and clients all the time as a photographer and there’s never a guarantee people are going to book you. The financial risk of that definitely held me back for a while, but it meant that when I finally took the plunge and did it, I was really ready! Knowing my worth was difficult in the beginning too, I think that’s a battle for a lot of people who largely work alone. But I have a group of friends who are photographers and they’ve been the most incredible support network, we come to each other for advice and cheer each other on! These days the biggest struggle is managing all the admin and back-end work. Shoots and editing take up most of my time so it can be tricky to fit in paperwork too.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I specialize in photographing the work of interior designers and architects. What sets me apart is that I am hugely passionate about interior design as well as photography, it means I’m always excited about what I’m shooting (sometimes more so than my clients, who in fairness may have been working on a project for several years by the time I see it!) I’d like to think I’m known for creating clean compositions and a true-to-life style of photography that not only showcases my clients’ design work but also captures the feel of the space.
I also have an online print shop which is something I’m really proud of. It’s a relatively recent venture but something I’ve always wanted to do. I take tons of photographs on my travels around the US and beyond and for the longest time they’ve just sat gathering dust on hard drives. Now I have somewhere to share them! It’s so rewarding mailing out prints of places I love to people who feel the same.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I’m currently making a real effort to read first thing in the morning instead of picking up my phone! It’s a much more gentle start to the day. Recent favorites are Drifts by Kate Zambreno and Nomadland by Jessica Bruder. Podcasts keep me going through long drives to and from shoots and intense edit sessions, true crime ones like Up and Vanished and interview style like The Adam Buxton Podcast are top of my list but I also just started The Diary of a CEO – I’m super late to the party on that one but it’s fascinating and full of great little take-aways for business and life in general!
Pricing:
- Prints start at $65.
Contact Info:
- Website: amybartlam.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/amybartlam
- Other: amybartlam.com/store
Image Credits
Amy Bartlam, Light + Dwell, Lindsey Brooke Design, Prescott Design, Kate Lester Interiors, Laura U Design Collective, Studio Surface
