Today we’d like to introduce you to Hunter Rutledge.
Hunter, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Around four years ago when I was in the 8th grade, I picked up a camera for the first time to take pictures for my sister’s senior prom. Ever since then I was fascinated with everything photography. I took a camera everywhere with me from that point on, whether it was a DSLR or a Phone camera.
When I was a freshman, I didn’t really acknowledge my budding talents until I met my Yearbook advisor who saw a lot of potential in me that I had no idea was there. During my sophomore year, I joined the Frisco High School yearbook staff and saw exponential growth in the quality of my images just by learning beginner techniques.
That same year I was able to gather a few awards, and I was even published in the Jostens fall photography poster. As the year progressed, many parents had taken note of my images and began to ask me if I would sell them. Coincidentally at that time, my dad demanded that I start working to pay for some of my expenses.
With both of those events as a driving force, I launched my small but growing, business called JHR Photo & Design. Since the start of my business, nearly a year ago, I’ve been able to break out of the walls of my high school and into the creative community; attending as many meetups as I can and networking with as many models and photographers as I can.
Along the way, I have garnered some more awards and even found a photo of mine ending up in the New York Times. It goes to show that age is truly just a number and that with the right amount of talent and experience you can reach for the stars and end up realizing your dreams.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Launching any business off the ground is never an easy task. When I started mine, I had no idea what I was doing. My prices were constantly changing, my bookings were minimal, and my reach on social-media was limited. Being in high school has also brought up many challenges as it consumes most of my time when I’m not doing photography related things, and it limits my schedule to afternoons and weekends.
Setting my prices and schedule became easily manageable after I sought the help of other photographers who had experience with starting up their own business. The social media part came several months later after I immersed in the Dallas creative community. By collaborating with several models, I have been able to drastically widen my follower base boosting my clientele number in the process.
Please tell us about JHR Photo & Design.
JHR Photo & Design is exactly what the name entails. I do photography and graphic design work. What sets me apart from many others is not only my ability to do two jobs at once but my ability to take different styles of pictures. My work covers many genres including architecture, portraiture, fashion, sports-action, photojournalism, and real-estate photography. I am mainly known, however, for my portrait, sports-action, and real-estate photos.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite childhood memory is going on road-trips with my family. Every trip would offer a new place in the world for me to see and explore. If I ever saw something that blew my mind, my jaw would drop, and my eyes would get really big in awe.
That look of wonder and amazement I would get when I was younger is something I keep in the back of my head when I’m taking pictures. I want people to see my photos and react the same way that I did when I was younger.
Pricing:
- Portraits – $80/hr with a minimum of 50 edited images
- Sporting Events – $50 scheduling fee with the option of purchasing individual images
Contact Info:
- Website: hunterrutledge.smugmug.com
- Phone: 4699806781
- Email: jhrphotodesign@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/im_hunterrut/?hl=en
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