Daily Inspiration: Meet Brianna Benitez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brianna Benitez.  

Hi Brianna, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always enjoyed taking photos. As a little girl, I used to take photos of flowers, nature, people, the city, and more. A few years later, I joined a photography class in high school and learned more about editing photos and using different angles. Before covid, my brother realized how much I love photography and decided to get me a DSLR camera as a birthday gift. During covid, I took advantage of learning how to edit and add more effects. I learned by looking up YouTube videos, google, TikTok, and other influencers. Towards the end of the school year, I received an award for my digital photography class. My teacher loved my work and always knew how much I enjoyed taking pictures and taking my time in submitting the best ones. After high school, I decided to make photography into a business. I grew my Instagram page and Facebook and made my professional email for an audience to contact me. The first thing I would take is my camera bag to the places I would go. I took advantage of the places I traveled to and got more practice. I experimented by going to local places and gave my friends a photoshoot. With the help of my friends and other people, I knew, I was able to get more recognition. Although it took me a while for people to notice me, I tried my best to put myself out there. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I had trouble finding people who were willing to get their photos taken. One of the challenges that I faced was investing in camera lenses. With my schedule being tight, it took me a few days to find the lenses that would help me transform my photos to become better. After all, I ended up buying three different types of lenses for certain occasions. I would take landscape photos, portraits, abstracts, and macro for months. As my editing skills kept progressing, I also began reaching out to close friends and family members. During 2022 apart from fitting in my photography time, I was also in school and working full time which made my schedule complicated. There was a point in my life where I had lost focus on my work but got motivated by my significant other and my friends whom I had not seen in a long time. Receiving that motivation made me realize that I should continue to do what my passion is. To this day, I continue to research and work more on the way I can make my skills better. 

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Many have asked me how long it takes me to edit some photos. It all depends on which shots I like best and what fixing it needs. For example, the saturation, lighting, color, contrast, highlights, etc. For one picture it approximately takes 7-12 minutes depending on how abstract the photo is. I use Adobe Lightroom to edit my pictures. Like every other photographer, I like to take my time and take a closer look to the details. In different situations, I like to ask at least one person for an opinion to see if I am fully satisfied with it. From time to time, I review previous shots and save some shots to post at a different timeline so I don’t run out of photos too quickly. For example, if I don’t get enough time to take photos of other certain things, I post an upload a few pictures separately so I don’t lose my audience completely. It is important to be constantly active. Recently, I decided to begin making reels on Instagram and Facebook to post since that is another way to grow my audience. As I am continuing to progress, I am still learning more about editing. 

Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
It was difficult to find motivation due to certain people being negative towards me. Since photography has always been a passion for me, I told myself that I refuse to let anything stop me from doing what I love the most. I thought about the people that looked up to me and how much I love my passion. They saw the amount of effort I put in by taking my time with every shot I collected. I would listen to stories on Youtube and other social media platforms about how photographers started, which I found inspiring. In a way, it helped me to grow and made me look up to my own skills. A lot of my family members cherished my photographs. 

Pricing:

• 25 per hr

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benitezphotography31/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Benitezphotography31/100077346951738/

Image Credits
Brianna Benitez