Life & Work with Amber Dawkins of Olathe

Today we’d like to introduce you to Amber Dawkins.

Hi Amber, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My story started on the other side of the camera. I was modeling, and I wasn’t satisfied with my headshots after a photo shoot to update my modeling comp cards, so my mom bought our first camera, and we started experimenting with taking our own photos. I quickly realized I liked taking the pictures much more than being in them, and our mother-daughter photography business was born! I continued to teach middle school while I did family and senior portraits on the weekends, but by 2016, my photography business had grown to the point that it required my full attention. I resigned from the Olathe School District to take my photography business full-time. Today, the focus of our business is on branding and commercial photography. I help local small businesses by creating photos for their websites, social media posts, magazine ads, and billboards.

We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My business grew naturally, but in the beginning, my biggest obstacle was my confidence. I’m self-taught and a perfectionist, so I was initially highly critical of my photos. As I gained more experience, learned new techniques, and upgraded my equipment, that slowly faded, and I felt more proud of my work. Now, my struggle centers around second-guessing my pricing. I’m always walking that tightrope, evaluating cost structures to ensure I’m valuing my work and the industry in general but also keeping my process affordable and customizable for smaller businesses with tighter budgets.

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in branding photography for small businesses. My goal in a branding session is to show the entire client experience from start to finish. With social media so prominent in today’s marketing, it’s easier than ever to show potential customers exactly what they can expect from your services. This means photographing who you are (headshots and team photos), where you are located (retail spaces and showrooms), and what you do (photos of your services in action with real or staged clients). With the addition of videography and drone services, I’m proud to be a one-stop shop for businesses to get all their visual content.

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
With the introduction of AI into the industry, branding photographers need to keep the unique identities of their small business clients at the forefront of their photoshoots. Potential customers want to see real content in marketing, and one way to do that is to customize shoots to show the personality and character of the brand in photos. These elements might be more difficult for AI to replicate.

Pricing:

• After a session fee, photos are purchased a la carte

Contact Info:

• Website: www.amberdawkinsphotography.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/amberdawkinsphotography
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/amberdawkinsphotography
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amberdawkinsphotography/

Image Credits
All photos taken by me, Amber Dawkins Photography except my headshot, which was taken by Teal Door Photography