In this episode of The Mike Cassidy Photography Podcast we meet long time boudoir photographer Dana Laymon of Dana Laymon Photography.
In her own words...
From as early as I can remember, I had a camera in my hands. My first one was a simple point and shoot 35mm from Disney World with a Mickey Mouse face on it. From that day on, I was hooked! I would always take my camera to school with me, photograph every moment with my friends, and constantly ask my sister to model for me. As I got older I went off to business school and afterwards got a job in corporate America. But I just couldn’t shake the desire for photography and to be my own boss. I took some photography classes at Parsons School of Design during the summers and then got an internship with a wedding videographer my senior year in college. It was my first time seeing someone make a living doing something so creative and fun.
Since I got married right out of school and wanted to be secure financially, I took a job in corporate America. But after 6 years working for “the man”, I took a leap of faith, quit my job, and I haven’t looked back since! I started out shooting weddings but always knew boudoir was my first love. I’ve been shooting boudoir for over 10 years now and I absolutely love it! I have a studio at my home and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I love getting go create such an amazing experience for my clients and help them leave feeling more positive about themselves.
I just had a daughter in April of 2019 so I’m learning how to balance work and motherhood. It’s a challenge but I’m slowly learning! If nothing else, I appreciate the female body more and all that it can do!
Her message:
I love encouraging people to just take the leap and do that they love to do. What’s the worst that could happen? You make a mistake, learn from it, and get up again and move forward. I have had multiple jobs while doing photography and wished I had had the courage to only do boudoir like I always wanted from the beginning. But pivoting from being in the wedding industry helped tremendously so it was the path I was meant to take!
I work mostly with brides but also love working with moms who need a bit of encouragement in their life and to feel beautiful again. I have a very romantic and soft style while I know others around me are more risque. I think being different from your competition is good and helps you stand out! I also don’t like to post a lot of my photos. I’m super conservative in a conservative part of the country so it makes my job very interesting! I like to take it as a challenge ;) In order to build trust I just have to post more about me and details about what it’s like working me with!
Topics discussed in this episode:
Links/Products In This Episode:
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/
Where To Find Dana Laymon:
On the Web: http://danalaymonphotography.com/
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/danalaymon/
