Today we’d like to introduce you to Angie Harwood.
Hi Angie, 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 was really inspired by my grandfather who was a hobby photographer. He took beautiful black and white candid portraits and landscapes. He converted a closet in his home into a dark room and would process images in the evenings after he got home from work as an attorney in Budapest Hungary. I started taking photography classes in college and just really fell in love with it. I love the little details, composition, human emotions and capturing moments that you can feel. When I started doing portraits and family sessions, I was actually absolutely terrible at first. I never had problems with posing or connecting with my clients but the technical parts of photography did not come so easily to me. I worked and worked on it for years. I read books, watched tutorials on line, scrolled other photographers pages and articles about photography for any tips or tricks that would help me because the techinical part just never clicked. After several years of trying to perfect my craft, I finally had an Aha! moment and everything started to make sense. From that moment on my confidence and business grew leaps and bounds. For years I had envisioned what I wanted my work to look like and now the final product I was producing was finally matching with the images in my head. I advertised on facebook, flyers at local colleges and offered lots of cheap and free sessions just to get people interested. Eventually I gained a loyal clientelle who were my biggest advertisors through word of mouth. The best compliment a photographer can get is a repeat client! I have clients that I have been working with for 10+ years. I ‘ve had the priviledge of watching their families grow, kids get married and have their own children etc. I became a free lance photographer for a company and thats how I broke into the wedding industry. during My first year with them,I was named their photographer of the year. As my kids have gotten older I’ve been able to scale back a bit so that I could be more present in their lives/sports/hobbies. That is what I love about being a photographer, I am my own boss and can make my own schedule. I get to decide when I am available, how much I work and what kind of projects I take on. It has been a huge blessing in my life!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No it was never a smooth road. From the very beginning I didn’t understand the techincal side of photography AT ALL. I also didn’t have the budget to afford a nice camera or nice editing software and computer. I didn’t have money for advertising. I also worked full time alongside this dream of being a photographer so I could never focus full time on just the businesss I wanted to create. For the first 6 years I was constantly swimming upstream against the current.
I’m proud to say that it is the one aspect of my life that I really just never gave up. Failure wasn’t an option. I knew that I could be a great photographer if I just kept pushing, learning and growing so that I could realize my full potiential. I wanted to be able to create beautiful art and help support my family along the way.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I absolutely love natural light. I love that light is constantly changing and shifting and that has a huge impact on what your images will look like. I love shooting into back light and I love the golden hour. I absolutely love being able to capture connections between people. Feelings, emotions, happiness and joy. I try to give my clients an equal amount of posed and non posed photographs so they can have the candids that draw emotion and also the smiles that look so good on prints in your living room and on your Christmas card!
I also love capturing the beauty of a human being. When I show a client a photo of themselves during a session and they say “Wow I had no idea I could look like that!” Then I know I’ve done my job. Sometimes we can be our own worst critics and fail to see the the beauty in ourselves. when I can make someone see themselves the way I see them through my lens, that is the ultimate win.
The cherry on top of it all is just getting to know my clients and work with them. Everyone has a story, everyone has been through something hard, everyone is deserving of compassion and love.
I try to make sure my sessions are fun, light hearted and stress free. Men are never as excited about photo sessions as women are so I can tell you with a certainty that there is nothing more satisfying than hearing a male in the group say “that was actually fun!”
I think what sets me apart is that all of the above and also that I could literally take pictures all day long every day. I LOVE what I do. I usually tell my clients that they have to let me know when they have had enough otherwise I will just keep shooting!
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Growing up, I was an outgoing and adventurous kid. I loved spending time with friends, whether we were ice skating, biking, hiking, playing tennis, or catching a movie at the drive-in. I played hockey from a young age all the way through high school, and I was always up for trying something new. Life wasn’t extravagant—we didn’t have a lot—but my parents made the most of what we had, and I truly had a great childhood.
Pricing:
- Immediate Family $425 Extended Family $475-$600 (Pricing depends upon group size)
- Senior Portraits $300/person
- Wedding Packages BRONZE- $1250 (wedding day coverage only) up to 2 hours of Coverage of wedding ceremony or temple exit. 2 hours of reception coverage. Full Gallery download of each session. The wedding day gallery typically has about 300-350 images. From there you can order prints, canvases and photo memorabilia.
- Wedding Packages SILVER- $1650 The engagement session (One location) 2 hours of wedding ceremony coverage or temple exit. 2 hours of reception coverage Full Gallery download of each session. Each session will come with it’s own online gallery containing 70-80 beautifully edited images! The wedding day gallery typically has about 300-325 images. From there you can order prints, canvases and photo memorabilia.
- Wedding Packages GOLD-$2050 The engagement session The bridal OR formal session (One location) 2 hours of ceremony coverage or temple exit 2 hours of reception coverage Full Gallery download of each session. Each session will come with it’s own online gallery containing 70-80 beautifully edited images! The wedding day gallery typically has about 300-325 images. From there you can order prints, canvases and photo memorabilia.*Travel fees may apply depending on location.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.angieharwoodphotography.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angieharwoodphotography/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Angieharwoodphotography
