Conversations with Hailey Allen

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hailey Allen.

Hi Hailey, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Looking back. In my childhood, it seems like addiction was at the center of everything. My parents were only teenagers when I came into this world. We didn’t have much. At one point, my mom was raising us on her own and she was only making $425 a month. We lived off of government assistance and the help of others. That’s kind of where the story of my business starts.

When I was in the 3rd grade, we were given Christmas presents from the local police department. That’s how I got my first camera. For years, I thought it was when I was in 5th grade but I recently found my diary from that Christmas. There’s an entry that lists all of the gifts I’d received. I’ve managed to keep a camera in my hand since then.

In middle school, I would get to take a digital camera around and take photos for the end-of-the-year slide show. And when I was a freshman in high school, I took the Introduction To Journalism class. That class led to me making the Journalism Staff the next year at Lenoir City High School. Our school’s Journalism staff did both the school paper and the yearbook. I thoroughly enjoyed both but found myself happiest when working in photography and graphic design. Mr. Yoakley, our advisor, is responsible for my photography education. He taught me things like how to shoot in manual and proper composition. I think having that foundation is such a huge part of my success as a photographer.

In 2017, I was working a Monday through Friday office job in the water and wastewater industry. Even though I am wildly grateful for that experience, as a creative, I felt like I was dying. I had been gifted a new DSLR that past Christmas and decided to start working towards becoming a part-time photographer. By 2018, I felt like I couldn’t sit at a desk any longer and that I needed to do something that I loved. I left my job and started doing photography primarily and working at a furniture and decor store on the side. In 2019, my business became my priority and a full-time job. Even though I also work at an amazing brewery in town a couple of days a week now, my business is my main gig. But the work I’m doing at the brewery, along with an incredible community of people there that support me and believe in me, is a huge part of how I got to where I a right now, which is rebranding my business.

Being a photographer has been my dream since a kid. I get messages all of the time from people I grew up with reminding me that I did what I said I was going to do as a child. But being just a photographer isn’t enough for me anymore. It hasn’t been for a while. That’s the reason I’m currently rebranding from Hailey B Creative: Wedding and Elopement Photographer to Hailey B Creative: A Professional Creative. I spend some days capturing wild elopements in the mountains of Colorado. I spend some days painting giant murals. I spend some days handcrafting crowns to sell at my next music festival. And I spend some days helping local businesses come up with new ideas. I’m living the life that I manifested for myself last year and I think this new direction for my business is only going to support that dream.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Though it is true that my life is very fun and I get to live out my childhood dream, there’s so much that people don’t see. For starters, figuring out how to price my work wasn’t easy. Photography equipment is expensive. I’m normally shooting with a Nikon D750 and a Sigma Art 35mm 1.4, but I just upgraded to a Nikon Z6 II. Though that means nothing to some people, that’s over $5,000 in equipment and it’s just the start. There are so many monthly fees that stack up for things like editing software, having a website, gallery delivery services, and more.

And then you have to put a price on your talent, skills, and time. That’s what’s the hardest for me. I’m constantly trying to honor the work I’ve put in along with my creativity, but also keep my work affordable. I grew up without luxuries, like family photos, because we couldn’t afford them. I never want someone to feel like they can’t afford to have the beautiful seasons of their life documented. I work really hard to keep options open for people on a budget because it’s something that I understand. But I also am very aware of the fact that I’ve spent so much time mastering my craft. I think this will always be a bit of a struggle, but that’s part of being an artist.

The big obstacle I’m facing right now is transitioning out of a business comfort zone and into a new direction. My business is doing great right now. My weekends are booked out for months and I can honestly keep work without even posting on social media regularly. But I have more to offer this world and I would be letting myself down if I let this current dream die. I feel like my business multiplied greatly when my Instagram feed got so consistent.

Having a solid brand seemed to bring in more business and I feel like the few times I’ve attempted to drop my other creative outlets onto my Instagram feed, I haven’t gotten as much interaction. Sometimes that feels discouraging, but I think I’ve decided to just work harder with feed planning and branding. I’m hoping to transition more into a feed that’s full of all of my cool creative adventures and incorporate more of myself, kind of like a personal blog about all of the cool stuff I stay doing.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
At the end of the day, I believe that photography will always be what I do the most of. It’s a huge part of me and it’s the one art that I don’t criticize harshly. I can look at a painting and find a million things to fix, but I can stare at one of my photographs and just feel so confident and proud. It’s been an absolute dream to travel around the country photographing destination elopements. I didn’t get to travel as a child, but I’ve seen most of this country now thanks to this passion.

Though up until now, I’ve branded myself as a wedding and elopement photographer, I’ve been doing so much more than that the entire time. I work with local businesses for branding and content. I love editorial fashion shoots. My schedule is always full of sweet family sessions and graduating students. I like the variety. It keeps me from getting burnt out. But it’s also magical getting to be a part of so many people’s lives and making a difference. I love getting to be included in the most magical milestones of people’s lives.

Last year, the owners of a local wedding venue booked me to photograph their son’s wedding. That was a huge accomplishment for me because I know they work with different photographers every weekend and they chose me. I think it’s one of the most beautiful wedding galleries I’ve ever delivered. It even ended up on the cover of Distinctively Southern Wedding magazine along with a couple of spreads of coverage inside.

My photography is special because it makes you feel something. My work tends to make you feel happy because I love having fun with my clients and that shows. I use mostly prompts rather than poses to get authentic smiles and organic movement. But I really thrive when my clients let me get creative with their shoots. I love a good field, don’t get me wrong. But I’ve had too much fun capturing photos of clients hanging out in front of a cardboard recycling bin, pushing each other around in shopping carts, and dancing silly outside of tire shops with cool graffiti. I see photo locations and opportunities that a lot of other people don’t. That’s what makes my work so unique.

I don’t want to do the same stuff that everyone else in town is doing. I want to push creative limits. That’s why this new direction is so important to me. I feel like I’m so blessed to have such a creative brain and go-getter attitude. I don’t want to waste it. I’d love to create a life that allows me to have happiness in abundance and I think it’s okay to pursue that. I don’t need much, but I’d like to create a life that allows me to have the stability I needed as a child.

I think the universe rewards me for working so hard for what I have and being beyond grateful for it all at the same time. I’d love to spend the entirety of my time on this earth making art and creating. However, I can sit here at 26 and say that I’m the luckiest girl in the world to just be living out my childhood dream.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
I feel like Glennon Doyle’s Love Warrior and Untamed both provided me with so much healing and inspiration when I was getting started. I recommend those books to almost every woman I meet and I honestly think men could benefit from them, as well. Glennon helped me exist wholly as myself through those two books and it’s a beautiful thing.

As far as podcasts, I always say that my favorite ever was Dolly Parton’s America. That’s the podcast I was listening to when I found out that Dolly and I have very similar birth charts. I always knew she was an East Tennessee, Capricorn powerhouse like myself. But when I was listening to that podcast, the words that came out of her mouth felt like they were coming from my brain. So I did some googling and it turns out, we’re astronomically very similar and that’s probably my biggest life accomplishment. I’m kidding, but it did give me a huge boost of self-belief. I actually have her beautiful face tattooed on my arm.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: haileybcreative.com
• Instagram: @haileybcreative
• Facebook: facebook.com/haileybcreative