My Résumé vs. My Reputation

After more than 35 years as a professional photographer, I’ve accumulated a pretty interesting résumé.

I’ve photographed thousands of weddings and events, professional sports, celebrities, politicians, corporate clients, families, models and just about everything in between. I’ve photographed assignments at the White House and Pentagon, traveled around the world for work, and had my photographs published hundreds of times.

I’m proud of all of that.

But recently I did something I hadn’t really done before.  I sat down and started reading through years of “Reviews” and “Thank You” notes from people I’ve photographed. Okay, technically ChatGPT helped. 😂

And I realized something:

My résumé tells you what I’ve photographed.
My reputation tells you what it’s like to be photographed by me.

People don’t talk about the stuff on my résumé.

Instead, they talked about how comfortable I made them feel. They talked about laughing and having fun. They talked about how I handled the chaos when something went wrong, how I helped when they didn’t know what to do in front of the camera, and how I caught photographs they didn’t even realize I was taking.

And honestly?

That’s the stuff I’m most proud of.

DON’T GET TRAPPED BEHIND THE CAMERA

I actually got my start photographing Santa Claus.

Seriously.

Way back in 1989, I worked for one of the companies that photographed Santa in shopping malls. Five weeks a year photographing excited—and occasionally screaming—children taught me something I’ve carried with me ever since:

Don’t get trapped behind the camera.

Talk to people. Get them comfortable. Make them laugh. THEN take the photograph.

All these years later, I don’t think that’s changed.

Whether I’m photographing a bride on her wedding day, an athlete on a field, a CEO at a corporate event or somebody who’s convinced they’re terrible in front of a camera, the person in front of me, their genuine comfort and their real smile, is going to make a huge difference in their photo.

EXPERIENCE COUNTS — JUST MAYBE NOT THE WAY YOU THINK

Experience means I know lighting. I know posing. I know when to step in and give direction and when to disappear into the background.

But it also means I’ve seen things go wrong. Lots of things. (I served in the U.S. Army—I’m used to things going wrong!) 😂

Wedding timelines run late. Weather changes. Kids decide they’re DONE. Executives disappear five minutes before the group photo. Locations look completely different from what you expected.

Experience means I don’t panic.  I figure it out.

Because my job isn’t simply to show up and push a button. It’s to make the whole photography part of your day easier.

AND YES, I STILL LOVE THIS

That’s probably the strangest part after doing this for more than 35 years.

I still get excited about photography.

I still have a ridiculous folder full of photographs and ideas I want to try. I still walk into places and start looking at the light, reflections, backgrounds and things I can use. And I still love getting the phone call that starts with:  “Hey Brody, have you ever photographed…?”

Because my favorite answer is still: “Nope. But that sounds awesome.” 😂

I’ve had opportunities with a camera that I never dreamed I’d have when I started. I’m proud of my résumé.

But if I had to choose between the résumé and the reputation?

I’ll take the reputation.