Today we’d like to introduce you to Daylon Moore.
Hi Daylon, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve had a high interest in creative arts for as long as I can remember. Ever since I was a kid watching my dad do woodworking in our garage. The idea of creating something awesome from nothing was extremely enticing. I became interested in music as a child and began learning various musical instruments. This led me to play with various bands for a number of years. My time doing this was some of the most fun I’ve ever had. We spent time playing the DFW music scene for a while, and I even had the opportunities to open for larger acts like Fuel and Scott Stapp. It was during this time that I found my love for documenting everything with a camera. We would carry it around with us everywhere and make cheesy YouTube videos. All these years later, I’m super thankful that we documented it all because it’s priceless to have all of those memories.
It was also during this time that I met Lauren (my wife and the other half of our videography business) At the time, she attended school and lived in Denton, TX. We spent the first 2 years commuting back and forth to see one another. Over time, I decided to step out of the music scene and attend college to pursue a career in teaching. Lauren and I married in 2008 and began our family shortly after. Over the next few years, we would have our sons Daxton, Dylan, and Dash. (We have a large family tradition of D names) As our kids have grown, we’ve continued documenting and recording everything we could. I love making little cinematic highlight of our trips and vacations. I know the kids will love these as they get older and older.
A few years into my teaching career, my friend and school secretary asked if would film her upcoming wedding. I agreed but also had zero clue what that would be like. I didn’t know wedding films existed like they do today. I think I still had view that most people have and saw them as cheesy documentary videos. I have a tendency to over-prepare and research before taking something on, so as I looked online to research wedding filmmaking, I found the most creative people putting together the most astonishing films. I had no idea wedding films could look like that! I volunteered my wife to assist me at this wedding. She is a career RN at our local hospital. We showed up and filmed that day and absolutely fell in love with documenting weddings! There was nothing like it. Seeing people on one of the happiest days of their lives and documenting is all was a thrill. Then taking those memories and gifting it back to them as a sort of “time in a bottle” seemed like one of the coolest ways to serve someone.
After that first wedding, we decided to seek out more opportunities to film more weddings. We got more and more bookings and pretty quickly decided we wanted to make this something real. Together we created Blue Shadow Films. Since then, we’ve had the opportunity to film in some amazing places all around the DFW area. We’ve even been fortunate enough to venture out into places like Arizona, Nevada, and even Iceland. We’ve met incredible couples and have created lots of new friendships in the vendors we work with.
It didn’t take long to know I wanted to do this full-time. It was very fulfilling work that did come with its own challenges, but I decided to leave the teaching field to pursue it. Currently, I run all of the operations of Blue Shadow Films in Northeast Texas. Lauren continues to work full-time in the nursing field but shoots every wedding with me. We’ve been extremely fortunate enough to see continuous growth over the last few years and cannot wait to see where this road takes us moving forward!
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The entire heart of this business has been Lauren and I working together to serve others. It definitely takes us both. The initial challenge to our story was just the distance between us when starting off. It took a lot of work and planning, but we were determined to be with each other. Lots of late-night drives and short-term visits, but it was worth it in the end.
Our main business challenge was making the jump to full-time in this field. Leaving a steady career as a teacher with benefits while raising a family was a scary move. It’s taken a lot of adjusting and planning, but the move has been very fruitful. In a field that can be financially unpredictable, we’ve had to learn ways to prepare and be flexible.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We operate Blue Shadow Films. A handcrafted wedding film business in Northeast Texas. Along with the DFW area, we travel all over to document wedding days for couples. We create cinematic films showcasing the experiences of people and their loved ones on one of the happiest days of their lives!
Any big plans?
We plan to continue serving couples just like we have been. We’re in the process of trying to branch out and film in more places worldwide to document people eloping in some of the most beautiful places on Earth. I am also planning to get into the education space where I can mentor others and show them how to grow their businesses and improve the quality of their work.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blueshadowfilms.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/blueshadowfilms
- Facebook: Facebook.com/blueshadowfilms
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNjmaUBCj-1qaAVfxzpzZaA
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@blueshadowfilms
Image Credits
Cristi Hoyt Photography
Michaela Potterbaum
Moon Dwellers
