Today we’d like to introduce you to Brianne Short.
Brianne, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Beginning at an early age, my mother taught me to save my money and spend it wisely. My very first “expensive” purchase was a tiny, neon green, digital point and shoot. That silly, little thing is what started it all for me. From that point on, I spent my days wandering around my house, backyard and neighborhood looking for cool things to photograph. There were many photo adventures with friends as well.
I always had an insatiable desire to document life, my surroundings, and anything that I found beautiful. I would come home at the end of the day with thousands of photos to scroll through. This may sound tedious, but having all those memories was so warming and meaningful to me. My photos gave me the ability to relive moments and actually feel each and every emotion all over again. I had fallen in love with photography; I just hadn’t realized it yet.
Fast-forward about 6 years to orientation day at college when I realized that photography was something I could make a career out of. I was already enrolled in commercial illustration. As I was putting together my first semester’s curriculum, I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something felt off. My heart was pounding out of my chest! “What about photo?” I thought. I raised my hand and proceeded to change my major before classes had even started. There were plenty of laughs from those seated nearby, but I knew what I wanted to do.
I composed many projects while earning my photography degree and as time went on I began to notice a theme to my work. I always had to have people in my frame. If it were a landscape, I thought, “this shot would be so much better if a person was right there.” Such thoughts later fueled my projects on body language, movement, human interaction, sex, and love. My studies continually pushed me to research and pay close attention to people which, in turn, led to my fascination with couples. The interaction between two people in love is unlike anything else.
So I began finding couples to join me on my “adventure” – to pose for me, but mostly be patient with me, as I practiced my shooting technique and style. I fell in love with all of it and, upon graduation, even booked my very first wedding! My early couples were patient, very kind and placed their full trust in my creativity. This still remains the biggest blessing of my career. Soon, through word of mouth, my dream of being a wedding photographer became reality! I got to photograph real people with real love stories and genuine emotions. I haven’t looked back since!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
A smooth road? No. A road that I was determined to take? Yes. Starting your own business is not the easiest thing to do – I am constantly dealing with time management issues, networking, taxes, data back-up, equipment purchases and maintenance, working with social media and a host of other demands and challenges.
The biggest challenge I have faced so far has been starting the process of generating cliental and telling the world about my business. Starting a business from scratch in a world where no one knew my name was scary. At first, I felt that I would not be able to compete with all the great talent out there. However, I quickly discovered that competing and comparing was not the answer – learning, supporting, and networking was the right approach!
Though I do experience the daily struggle of managing enough time for my personal needs (I call this my “forever struggle”), I know, for me, my business is the love of my life. Many people think this job is awesome because we get to “work in our pj’s” (which I do!). What they don’t realize is how much time really goes into owning and running a photography business. Let’s just say, countless, sleepless nights and consuming way too many cups of coffee have played a big role in where I am today.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Bri Short Photography story. Tell us more about the business.
I specialize in wedding and engagement photography, both of which I believe should be raw, real and unique to each individual couple. My belief from the beginning has always been to be 100% myself and to focus on creating a real and honest environment for couples from all walks of life. I have an open door “come as you are, be who you are” policy and believe that being present, actively available, upfront and honest with my couples really works wonders! My hope is that couples will feel beautiful, happy and comfortable, but, most of all, feel and see their love for one another.
I am most proud of the fact that I am here today doing exactly what I love to do. I cannot get enough of the continual growth and perseverance that comes with learning new things and never settling for “good enough”. I love a challenge. I love the new. I love my colors and I definitely have a soft spot for unexpected and quirky locations. It’s what I am most proud of that I feel sets me apart. I tell myself every day “Bri, you either make this something amazing or you choose a different path!” I just can’t see myself pursuing anything but art!
The excitement I get from incorporating water any chance I can during a session is probably what I am best known for. I am such a water baby! I always tell my couples that if they trust me, they will most likely be coming out of their session wet, tired, and a little bit dirty but also more in love than ever! Quite often people say to me “How do you get your couples to do such things?” All I can say is that I have some pretty stinking awesome couples!
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
This is a great question seeing as my family and I have a running joke at home that I am “walking bad luck.” Things don’t usually fall from the sky for me. But I like to look at luck in a different way.
My parents are first to come to mind. I have heard horror stories about parents not accepting or allowing their children to pursue their dreams like, say, a degree in art. This was not the case for me. I consider myself to be extremely lucky to not only have the amount of love and support that I do from my parents but to have been encouraged from day one to do what I know I was put on this earth to do. I guess I would have to say I am pretty lucky!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.brishort.com
- Email: brishortphoto@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/brishortphotography
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/brishortphotography
- Other: www.pinterest.com/brishortphotography/engagement-sessions
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