Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Knowles.
Andrew, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Having borrowed my dad’s camera as a young boy, I turned to photography as a means of expressing my creativity, which ultimately transformed into a lifelong passion.
I made the decision to create my full-time photography business in Dallas 4 years ago, and am absolutely blown away how much is has grown and evolved. I started out as a “location only” photographer, and am now so thrilled to have had my own Dallas studio for going on two years now. I still love to shoot on location too, but having a studio to call home is a dream come true.
I feel like one of the “lucky ones”, in the sense that I get to wake up and do what I love every day.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Starting my own photography business has been one of the greatest journeys of self-discovery I have ever been through.
From the creative side of styling, shooting, and editing, to the business side of pricing, branding, and marketing, I end up wearing a lot of different hats.
In the beginning, and still today, I have learned a lot from good old-fashioned trial and error. Over the years, though, I have learned to really let myself reply on and learn from others. Investing in online education and workshops, whether for business or photography, is one of the smartest things I’ve ever done.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about AJK Images – what should we know?
I’ve reinvented what many people think of as a “traditional portrait sitting”, and have created something more like a fully-styled, magazine photo shoot for everyday people.
I don’t care what size, age, or shape you are, I want to take the most beautiful portraits you’ve ever seen of yourself.
I help my clients style 5-6 incredible outfits, my team provides world-class hairstyling and makeup the day of the shoot, and the entire experience is a total pamper session. We shoot in our beautiful Dallas studio, as well as on location around the city.
It can be an empowering experience, I’ve seen it happen again and again. What I love most is that this gives me a chance to reflect back to my client the best version of themselves- sides of themselves they may have lost touch with, or forgotten about, or maybe have never met at all. I love that!
What do you like or dislike about our city?
I love the variety in culture and locations that Dallas has to offer. Whether my clients want rusty chain-link fences and graffiti murals, or flowers and waterfalls, Dallas has it to offer.
If I had to choose something I like least about our city, it would be the traffic- but hey, it could always be worse!
Contact Info:
- Address: 4622 E Grand Ave.
Dallas, TX 75223 - Website: http://www.ajkimages.com/
- Phone: 316-516-9505
- Email: Andrew@AJKimages.com
- Instagram: @andrew_knowles
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/ajkimages
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/ajkimages
- Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/ajk-images-dallas
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