Today we’d like to introduce you to Kellie Warren.
Hi Kellie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I started my first business when I was about 12. When I was younger, it was a way to make money to buy my family Christmas presents. After all, Christmas is my favorite holiday, and I love to try and buy the perfect gift for them ever since it was my way of making a living and doing the things that make me happy. When I was in high school, I started working for the Orlando Sentinel, and then later in college, I made my online magazine to get a press pass to take photos for concerts and significant events in the area. I loved it. It didn’t pay anything, so I gravitated towards graphic design to start my professional career after college. Still, I continued practicing my photography skills and doing my own thing on the side here and there.
I never really loved working for someone else, so after a few years of honing my skills, I decided to take a chance on myself and focused on doing photography full-time with my own business. I was shooting various corporate jobs concentrating on more significant events, and my brother approached me about doing his wedding photography in 2007. At first, that seemed like an enormous ask as I didn’t do weddings, but he insisted that I was the best person for the job. I approached his wedding like any other editorial/documentary event, which seemed less daunting. It went well, and the photos turned out great. After just one wedding, I jumped into the wedding photography business with both feet and quickly made connections in the Orlando area. I was on my own doing wedding photography until 2012. I met my partner, Lindsay Widdall, and Live Happy Studio was formed.
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s been a pretty smooth road. We work hard, which has much to do with our success. Two minds are always better than one. Lindsay and I both have skill sets that complement each other. Lindsay brings a lot of logic, organization, and creative ideas to the mix, while I get some outside-of-the-box creative ideas and a passion for design and branding. I love designing a good logo or brand element. Being in business for such a long time brings some challenges, but I wouldn’t necessarily call them struggles. A couple of challenges are the ever-changing SEO game, the growing competition in our area after COVID, and the way things change regarding the marketing approach to the next generation. Each year, new things come out that change the way clients find you. Just staying on top of those is a whole job in itself. But that’s what keeps things interesting. If there weren’t a challenge, it would be boring.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I own Live Happy Studio, a wedding photography and videography company. We specialize in capturing natural documentary and candid-style photography. We have a solid creative ability to shape light in any situation to create a memorable image. We have a natural approach, but we still need to create a beautiful, artful image with external lighting, just like it was straight out of a magazine. What sets us apart from most people is the way we can keep things moving quickly, efficiently, and on time without stress. Fun is always on the menu. We’re both very laid-back people and enjoy having a good time with everyone we work with. We’ve sewn brides in broken dresses, tied ties, served drinks, and even helped clean up a party foul on the dance floor. We love being a part of it and doing everything everyone needs as part of the wedding team. After all, there is only one common goal: to help the couple enjoy their day. We also try different techniques to create exciting images – like different lighting styles or set-ups.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
It’s hard to pick a favorite, but one I can think of now is when we were little, and my grandfather was the chief safety engineer at Walt Disney World. He and my grandmother would always get us in for free with our friends, which made me feel special. He’d always hand us some spending money and say, “Spend it on something you want today; you can’t save it.” He did that up to his last days, even when we were (mostly) adults.
Pricing:
- https://livehappystudio.com/wedding-photography-price/ – these are our photo only packages
- https://livehappystudio.com/wedding-photo-video-combo-packages/ – these are our photo + video combo packages
Contact Info:
- Website: https://livehappystudio.com/
- Instagram: @live_happy_studio
- Facebook: facebook.com/livehappystudio
Image Credits
All are Live Happy Studio
