Today we’d like to introduce you to Danielle Gabrielli.
Hi Danielle, 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?
The first time I picked up a digital camera I was in middle school, trying to spend more time with my dad taking pictures than hiking. Intricate details in nature absolutely fascinated me. When I was a junior in high school, I ended up with a concussion that led to the last decade of dealing with symptoms of Post-Concussion Syndrome, along with the knowledge of my family history of Alzheimer’s, photography became an outlet for both self-care and a coping mechanism for issues of memory loss.
This has impacted my photography both art-wise and business-wise because I want people to be able to look at their photos and feel those moments and memories, to be able to have those tangible photos to retell their love story for generations to come.
When I went to college, I had more opportunities to take photos of people and eventually made my way into engagement and wedding photography. I’ve always been a people person, and a complete and utter hopeless romantic so the transition into wedding and engagement photography came fairly naturally and has brought me so much joy.
I started building my own company while I was in college, learning from other photographers about the business side of photography, client experience, editing, and more! It’s been a wild ride full of education and soaking up everything I can as I develop my art and business, but I love it!
Today, I work with multiple photographers around DFW shooting weddings and doing various tasks to help them run their businesses as the last two years have been a little chaotic for a lot of photographers and wedding vendors. Most of all, I love working with my clients and focusing my business and client experience on telling people’s love stories. Listening to how a couple met and has grown together, and using their story to guide me in creating wedding photos that tell their story is one of the best parts of being a photographer.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Haha I don’t think owning a small business in a high competition area is ever a smooth road!
Two years ago, I moved from outside of Philadelphia to here in Dallas and started the process of rebuilding my business, rebranding, and working towards networking with other photographers and wedding vendors here in Texas. It’s been a hard road, especially because, as some of my mentors like to call it, I have “5 million jobs.” I work at a veterinary clinic, volunteer at a local zoo, and I used to nanny and work in promotions at a radio station in addition to owning a photography business and working for other photographers.
I doubted myself and my talents for a long time, in the photography industry we call it “imposter syndrome” and so many of us struggle with feeling like we’re not good enough. But I consider myself incredibly lucky because I’ve had some incredible photographers that I work to teach and encourage me that I not only could invest in building my business and brand but that I absolutely should because my photography product and client experience is awesome for couples!
I’ve grown and learned so much about how to prioritize myself and my business and that it’s not only okay for me to pursue my passion of being a storyteller through photography but that it brings me so much joy to provide that for my couples.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a wedding and engagement photographer, who also part-times as an office manager at a small veterinary clinic and works promote animal conservation at a local zoo. My two biggest passions in life are love and life.
I specialize in wedding and engagement photography because I love working with couples and supporting them through the wedding planning process. Having just got married myself this September 2021, it has given me the opportunity to really experience what my couples experience during wedding planning and has shaped my workflow process. I work to provide as many opportunities for supporting my clients outside of just photography as I can, offering my experience with other vendors, creating timelines, providing resources and just being available to chat!
I work with animals part-time because they’ve always fascinated me and I love promoting taking care of animals and the environment. And I’ve learned that life should be about doing the things that you love!
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
There are quite a few people who don’t know that part of my love for photography is the memory permanence because of a history with Post-Concussion Syndrome and a family history of Alzheimer’s.
I had the blessing of growing up with all of my grandparents and three of my great-grandparents. My MeeMa was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s when I was fairly young and I watched my Grandmom begin struggling with memory loss shortly before I left to move to Texas.
Personally, my junior year of high school, I took a marching band color guard rifle to right above my temple and ended up with a concussion. A few months before that I had likely gotten a concussion while volunteering with demolition and construction on an inner-city school building. Because this was right before knowledge and concern about concussions happened, I ended up not seeing a specialist until almost a month after the color guard rifle concussion. This October it will be 10 years since then and I still struggle with a chronic headache disorder and memory loss.
Photography became part of my way to remember. The visual clues to not only reflect but to be able to tell the story for me after I might not be able to remember the words to tell it.
This is a main driving force in my photography and why I love it so much.
Pricing:
- $1800 Base Wedding Photography
- $800 Elopement Photography
- $350 Engagement Photography
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@dannileaphoto.com
- Website: www.dannileaphoto.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/dannileaphotography
- Facebook: facebook.com/dannileaphotography
Image Credits
Square 8 Studio
