Life & Work with Alyssa Jane Baldemor & Calvin Soriano

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Jane Baldemor & Calvin Soriano.

Hi Alyssa Jane & Calvin, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Alyssa Jane: When I was little, I remember my grandpa would always want to take photos everywhere we went, mind you we immigrated from the Philippines, so Los Angeles, let alone California, was very new and exciting to my family. My grandpa would always have either a camcorder or a camera on him every time we had family parties and gatherings. So I had started tinkering with the idea of using a camera when I was really young, something I did for fun mainly. I never really took it seriously; just as a way to capture the little details in places I have been to.

Up until college, where I had met Calvin, my other half in AC Photography. Back in 2021, we were asked by a close friend of ours to help a family member with capturing their wedding ceremony and reception. I was a bit hesitant because I never really had done professional photography beforehand, it was more of a side hobby, something I did when I had free time. Calvin had pushed me to try something new and exciting, which lead to where we are now. When we received such a positive response to our photos, we knew this hobby of ours could turn into something bigger.

Calvin: Photography was introduced to me around the time I was in middle school; like many other families, mine was big on capturing memories at parties or traveling. To my knowledge, this was a way for my family to look back on past memories that exposed our special bond and individual lifestyles. At first, I believed photography was gratuitous and overdone, but as I grew older, I understood that some photographs were created for the purpose of telling a story. A frozen moment in time manipulated in colors, eyes drawn to a singular moment, being drawn to the art. I wanted to try it out and see what I can do, so I bought my first camera in 2016, the Canon 80D. I took pictures of anything and everything made videos, and posted on my personal social media outlets. I also took a couple of photography and color theory classes in college as an extracurricular activity but never thought to make anything out of it.

Until my sister gave me an opportunity and encouraged me to take it seriously and maybe make it official and start something. At the time, she was working on a start-up business involving jewelry and offered me to be a photographer to do a photoshoot with friends who were willing to model for us; that was only the beginning. I would take any photo gig that came to me; most of them were all referrals. This gave me some confidence in building my own portfolio. I was happy and excited to take photos regardless of being paid or not, as long as I can practice at different times of the day and explore different areas of Los Angeles / Orange County.

I was casually taking on gigs that came to me throughout the years until I met Alyssa. She’s given me a new light to photography. I’ve shown her the ways I take photos and naturally, she picked up on it quickly with her experience behind a camera. She had also helped in designing our online portfolio and putting together the foundation for AC Photography. We’ve taken on many photo gigs throughout the last couple of years and are excited in taking on many more this coming year!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
This year alone allowed for such a positive trajectory in clients that we weren’t expecting when we first started back in 2021. We were able to double the amount of clients from the years before, which is such a great milestone for us. In terms of struggles, one main one for us was finding a way to morph a brand with two creators and their individual styles. We wanted to figure out how to portray AC Photography as a whole, but just couldn’t come to a conclusion for a really long time before we started. Eventually, we agreed that we both wanted to capture a story through specific composition styles, color grading, and integrating scenery all together. In addition, we also really loved to capture raw emotions from those in front of the lens.

In the end, we’ve found our groove as AC photography and finding what works and what doesn’t. It also helps that we both provide individual perspectives on how to go about each and every photoshoot. With the help of social media and the innovation that stems from other creators that we see, we often get inspired with how to integrate our unique take on the different styles of photography. Almost all of the time, we don’t run into problems. We both have fun with our clients, and it never seems like work to us.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
In the sense of what sets us apart from others, we don’t really like to think about that. There’s no competition. This was just something we both really loved to do and what we knew we could grow together. Our goal when we first started was to ultimately continue in building our portfolio as freelance photographers and see how much our work adapts to how our lives change. Currently, we are constantly being surrounded by many people who are starting a new, exciting chapter in their lives. Let us create an image for you. Imagine being able to capture the love of two people, the excitement for a new member to join the family, the bond between friendships, the confidence in one’s self when trying to step out of their comfort zone, the purest form of affection between loved ones, and the sense of accomplishment from those who took the time to finish school and who are excited for their future, etc. The list can go on. This is why we love doing what we do. This excitement for a new change, whether it be graduating from a university or getting engaged to the love of your life, was what we really loved to see from our friends and family. So why not try to capture it for others as well?

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Our clients were primarily referrals via word-of-mouth marketing from friends and family. You just need to put yourself out there and find people with the same interests who have built such a successful path for themselves. We also joined Facebook groups to help in questions we couldn’t find answers to. There is nothing wrong in asking for help; ultimately you will never know what you can gain from another perspective. One thing that is challenging when it comes to networking with others in the same field is taking that first step in introducing yourself. Once you get over that hill, every other hill along the path will be another boost to your goal. As cliche as it sounds, you never know how well you’ll succeed if you’re too afraid to try, so try.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://acphotocollective.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acphotocollective/