Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Simon.
Hi Kayla, 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 backstory with our readers?
I like to say my photography journey started on Christmas morning when I was eight years old, unwrapping my first ever digital camera. My parents had gifted me a little blue Kodak and I never wanted to put it down, photographing mainly my American Girl dolls and the flowers in my backyard.
I didn’t start photographing real people until high school! I was lucky enough to have a childhood best friend whose stepmom worked for New York Models, and I loved shadowing the photographers who worked with their new faces. Seeing the creativity between artist and muse helped me fall in love with fashion photography, the starting point of my passion for portraits.
Inspired by the work I had seen from professional photographers, I began taking photos of my friends in creative poses whenever I could and posting these photoshoots to the Instagram account I had started for my photography. I remember in those early days, I spent hours teaching myself about shutter, aperture, and ISO and watching YouTube videos of other photographers talking about posing, shooting, and editing. I was completely self-taught, learning through trial and experimentation. What kept me going was seeing how excited my friends were when they saw how I captured them—I loved helping them see how beautiful they were through my eyes and my lens.
Photography was just a hobby, something I did for fun with my friends, until I got my first message from someone I didn’t know who wanted to book a photoshoot; that was when I realized, I could continue to do this thing that I had grown to love so much and maybe even make some money while doing it. I officially registered my business as Kayla Simon Photos and continued posting on Instagram, planning creative photoshoots to build my portfolio, and, eventually, booking even more paid photoshoots all over my home state of Connecticut and greater New England.
In college, I poured all the time I wasn’t working on schoolwork into photography, whether it was learning more about marketing or planning photoshoots with agency models in Boston. By the time I was a senior, I had a whole new set of gear, a portfolio I was proud of, and was shocked to find myself fully booked out for graduation photoshoots in the spring. After college, I spent a year in Boston, continuing to photograph graduating seniors, personal brands, fashion models, engaged couples, and more.
When I was ready for a change, I packed up and relocated my life and my photography business to Nashville! Being in a city filled with creatives has been so refreshing for my creative process, and I can’t believe how many amazing people I’ve connected with in the year since I moved here. Now, I travel between Nashville and New England for photoshoots, creating editorial-style portraits and helping people see themselves as art through photography.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Like any entrepreneurial endeavor, of course there have been challenges. I started while I was in high school—my mom had to drive me to my first ever photoshoots (stranger danger)! Balancing a full-time business while being a full-time student wasn’t easy—I had plenty of days staying up well past midnight making sure I got all my photos edited and got my homework done. While there’s no homework anymore, there’s still definitely plenty of days where I give up on sleep in order to accomplish everything on my to-do list. Having big dreams and goals sometimes does mean sacrificing in other areas.
Relocating from Connecticut to Boston to Nashville also came with its own challenges as I navigated new cities and marketed my business to new audiences who had never even heard of me. But with those challenges came opportunities to shoot in new locations, meet new people, and try new things. There’s almost always a silver lining!
Ultimately, no part of photography has actually <i style=””>felt</i><b> </b>like a struggle because I truly love what I’m doing. I always knew I would overcome any obstacle because of how passionate I am about the work. I have days where it’s hard to balance all the obligations of running a business with living the rest of my life, but every time I have a photoshoot and get to make magic with another person using my camera, it’s so easy to remember why it’s all worth it.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m a passionate storyteller and photographer based in Nashville, Tennessee. I specialize in creative, editorial-style portraits that celebrate you, including fashion photography, graduation photos, senior portraits, branding photos, and more!
While I love documenting the big moments, I’m also a firm believer that you don’t need to have a special occasion to have beautiful photos taken of yourself; the beauty of your daily life and existence deserves documentation.
Another thing I believe? Being “photogenic” is a myth. Most people who think they aren’t photogenic just haven’t worked with the right photographer yet! I love helping my clients learn how to feel comfortable being in front of the camera. Nothing beats the feeling of sending over a gallery and hearing that I helped someone feel beautiful, confident, and empowered during their photoshoot.
As an English major, I’m a storyteller at heart, and this is a huge element of my editorial photography style; I want every image I capture to present a story. Whether it’s the story of who you are, how you made it through college, or how you fell in love, I’m going to tell it using my camera and the editorial eye I’ve honed through my fashion photography background.
The ability to storytell is one of the many reasons I especially love fashion photography and creative portraiture; through styling, makeup, composition, posing, and expression, a photo really is worth a thousand words.
I’m proud to say that I’ve photographed hundreds of incredible people over my 5+ years in business, collecting over 80 five-star reviews and working with renowned brands and agencies in states all over the U.S. As a queer photographer, I especially love working with members of the LGBTQ+ community and helping everyone feel seen through photography.
Everyone deserves photos of themself that they really love!
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I’ve heard is that if you want something, you have to go for it! And going for it means putting in the hard work. For me, that meant nights where I stayed up until 2am editing then got up the next morning for a sunrise photoshoot, or drove to four different states in one week. It meant working for free just to build my portfolio and spending hours crafting DMs to anyone I could think of who I might be able to learn from. But that hard work pays off!
As a bonus, the second most important lesson I’ve learned is that photography is as much about working with people as it is about the photos themselves. When that introverted high schooler with social anxiety started her photography business, I don’t think she could have imagined how much I would learn to love meeting with and talking to strangers. Yes, creating beautiful photos is a super important part of the job, but what’s even more important is how you make someone feel at their photoshoot. When I work with someone, I want them to remember feeling confident and truly seen during their photoshoot experience. Creating a space where someone feels comfortable enough to show up as their full self is only going to make the final photos even better.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kaylasimonphotos.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylasimonphotos/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaylasimonphotos/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayla-simon-uconn
