Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelly Cummings.
Hi Kelly, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
As a child, I was often the one running around with my grandfather’s camera or posing in front of it with my siblings and cousins.
Taking photos of both the magical and the mundane was ingrained in me from a very young age, and it would be the motivation to keep up this tradition with my own children that would become the impetus for my photography business.
Nine years ago, my husband bought me my first DSLR so that I could take pictures of our oldest son. I had never owned a non-point and shoot camera, and I immersed myself in courses and field work to learn my way around every feature on that first camera.
When friends saw the photos I had taken of my son, they began to ask me to take photos of their children, and my company grew organically from there.
While I have gone through a few camera upgrades since then, the true drive behind growing my hobby into a full-time business has been and will always be the same – I love telling warm and intimate and fierce love stories. And it is with these intentions that I capture that sweet glance between partners, that soft tug at mama’s skirt or that impromptu embrace that I know my couples and families will cherish forever. My clients deserve to be present in both the moments and the memories.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
While I have always loved taking photos and filming families, what I didn’t realize would be a major part of what I do is running a small business. I know that many think the majority of my time is spent photographing and filming or editing said photos and film clips, but in reality, a huge majority of my time between sessions is spent on bookkeeping and marketing and communicating with and styling my clients.
I haven’t always been able to dedicate this much time to my business, especially when my children were younger or when I was put on hospital bedrest while pregnant with my middle son, but what kept me going always was the absolute joy I felt whenever I finished a session and received positive feedback from my families and couples. It certainly makes all of the challenges of owning a business (even through a pandemic) all that more satisfying and worth pushing through.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I believe in intimacy — in the unabashed affinity for closeness and warmth and affection. And it is this very sentiment that is at the heart of every photo and film I create with my couples and families in the New England area.
Don’t get me wrong, I love telling the full story by also capturing the landscape around my families and couples, but what I love capturing the most is their unique connection to each other.
Whether it’s during a maternity or newborn photoshoot, engagement photoshoot or wedding, my number one goal is to showcase intimacy in its purest form, and for each family or couple I photograph, the point at which this connection is experienced and expressed is different.
For some couples and families, it is when they look into each other’s eyes. For others, it is when they walk hand-in-hand. And for others, it is when they laugh together or cuddle or kiss. Just as each client or couple is different, so too is their expression of affection for one another, and by using gentle prompting and suggestions for interactions rather than strict poses, I am able to bring this out of my clients in order to capture authentic moments that best reflect their unique love for each other.
The biggest compliment I receive is when clients respond to their galleries by expressing that they felt seen and understood and captured in an authentic way, and the fact that more than half of my clients are returning clients speaks volumes about accomplishing my goal of helping families and couples to create memorable moments together every year.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
The pandemic has taught me a lot about both my personal and professional life. I think everyone can agree that the importance of human connection was something taken for granted, especially with those closest to you.
I missed my extended family so much during a lockdown, and I think this separation also felt by others created a longing for family photo sessions, especially extended family sessions. Time is so fleeting and fragile, and this became incredibly evident during the height of the pandemic.
Professionally, I learned to never be complacent. Before the shutdown, I was growing steadily, and I wasn’t investing as much time in bettering my skills and diversifying my marketing. I had to pivot very quickly in order to stay relevant and to improve my skills so that when families and couples felt comfortable being photographed again, they would want to work with an artist like me.
Remember, everyone suddenly had a lot more free time to pursue their interests and hobbies, so there were many who began their own businesses during this time. This motivated me to dig even deeper into education and mentorships to learn from those in the industry whom I’ve looked up to for many years to better my position as an expert in my craft.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kellyannephotographynh.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/kelly_anne_photo
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/kellyannenhphotographer
Image Credits
Headshot of me taken by: SDW Photography (Sarah McEnany)
