Meet Trailblazer Haley Hendrickson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Haley Hendrickson.

Haley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was pretty lucky as a kid to have a dad who’s job was a professional sports photographer. Some of my earliest childhood memories include climbing up on a stool in his office and looking at all of the slides on the light table (that’s film terminology for those of you born after 1995). I LOVED “helping” him choose which images to send to his clients, as well as assisting him on countless photoshoots (I even met Michael Phelps on one!). I studied Photography in college- first with a Photojournalism concentration, then switched to Fine Art Photography. I think the blend of these two avenues of study, as well as having my rockstar-photographer-dad as a personal mentor has given me a leg up in my industry.

I started photographing weddings in 2010 as a second-shooter and then started my own portrait business in 2012. I guess at that time I would call my business more of a “side-hustle”. I wasn’t brave enough yet to jump all the way into making it my full-time gig but it gave me good experience and I built a portfolio. In 2014, I had my first baby and I knew that going back to work, even part time at my “day-job” was not what I wanted. I spent a lot of time asking God what the right decision was for me with regards to work and family. It was a few months after our son was born that my husband and I felt like God was leading me to take the plunge, make my business an official LLC and book jobs as I could around our family’s schedule. That was a terrifying decision at the time because my husband had just started Grad School and of course, we had a new baby- but it was ultimately the BEST decision we made because it gave me so much freedom to pursue an independent career and brought me more joy than all of the random jobs I had worked until that point and I thank God for giving us the courage to do so.

So, I guess I’ve doing this balancing act- part time photographer/full time mama- for about six years now and within this past year, I’ve started to shift my business’ focus again. I like the adventure of trying new things and have been feeling for a while that I need to make a change. I’ve always been drawn to a good story- great movies, better books… whatever makes me FEEL- and so I’m taking on a new challenge: learning filmmaking and hoping to apply that to my work in the near future as well.

Has it been a smooth road?
The struggles have ebbed and flowed throughout the years. Some- circumstantial; Many- mental; All- emotional. I think one of the biggest challenges that every artist faces is fear. Fear of rejection, fear of failure. Fear that others won’t understand or value what you’re doing. Maybe especially as women, we want to prove to ourselves and to the world that we can do it all. Be awesome wives and mothers and business owners and creatives and friends and mentors and bread-winners and… I think the truth is that sometimes we can’t do it all perfectly. I find it hard sometimes to pursue dreams without missing out on family stuff. And my family takes priority, so sometimes dreams get set aside.

Okay, that’s probably the more emotional side of the struggle bus for me. Practically though, I wish I would have majored in Business or Marketing instead of Photography. My dad was the best resource I had for photography, plus my first job as a second-shooter wedding photographer gave me tons of experience. But running a business? That was way out of my wheelhouse and there are things I could’ve done better throughout the years.

I’d say the most important thing I have learned has been this beautiful idea of “community over competition”. Some of my closest friends are also some of my “rivals” in the business but I love that we are able to support each other instead of hoarding our knowledge and skills. We’ve shared new and great locations to shoot at, been second-shooters for each other, borrowed gear when something broke, commiserated over cranky clients and I’m so thankful for the community of creatives I am lucky enough to have around me.

Things I’ve learned along the way…
1. Embrace failure! It helps you grow and learn.
2. Surround yourself with other creatives and don’t hoard your giftings and resources.
3. Don’t undervalue yourself or your work (price yourself accordingly and hold your ground against bully clients).
4. Challenge yourself to do something different. Don’t make the same pictures that you see everybody else making on Instagram. You want your work to STAND OUT!

We’d love to hear more about Haley Hendrickson Photography / LightWriter Films.
A great photographer (a.ka. dad) once said: “light is the greatest influence”! I’ve marked my style by the use of off-camera creative lighting in my portraiture and I think that sets me apart from many in my industry. Using more than just the “available light” (or “natural light”) requires a different set of skills that not all photographers are willing to take on. As a photographer, I am creating an image with my camera and that is where my skills are- doing my best to take the best picture straight from the camera and doing minimal post-production (i.e., I don’t use pre-sets, filters or airbrush the heck out of my photos).

As I shift into filmmaking more in 2020, I hope to take my love of people and storytelling to create mini-documentaries on everyday people doing some pretty awesome things in my community. I’m rebranding myself as a “Visual Storyteller”… which, I hope will encompass both photography and filmmaking well!

Which women have inspired you in your life?
Oh gosh, in life?? The list would be too long. Maybe specifically I will stick with women in my industry. I love love love Lindsay Adler. Her use of light and color with fashion photography is gorgeous! Jessi Wikstrom (@jessiwikstrom) has lovely classical studio portraiture and I also love Dixie Dixon’s (@iamdixiedixon) work. It is quirky and unique and always looking ahead. I’m a closet nerd and so I get inspired by photographers that do wonderful fantasy and theatrical inspired shoots and so, two of my longtime favorites are probably Kindra Nikole (@kindranikole) and Bella Kotak (@bellakotak). Even though their styles are all so different from each other and even my own- their work is really wonderful and inspires me to try new things too.

Locally, my inspiration and wonderful community includes friends and fellow photographers – Reeta Treat (@whimsykid- woman literally gave me my career start, along with her husband and they both have supported me and taught me so much!), Leah Edman (@bookendphoto), Agnieszka Wormus (@abrilliantphoto_agnieszka) and Christine Anderson (@christine_anderson_photography). Not only are they talented photographers and creatives they are all mommas and wives and business owners and just all-around awesome people to know.

With filmmaking being a new endeavor, I’ve been following and heavily influenced by two female filmmakers: Emily Skye (@shewolffilms) and Tam (along with her husband Andrew) as @documinute.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.haleyhendricksonphotography.com/
• Email: haleyhendricksonphotography@gmail.com
• Instagram: @haleyhendricksonphotography / @lightwriterfilms

Image Credit:
Headshot by Dave Black Photography; All other images by Haley Hendrickson Photography

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