Rising Stars: Meet Nicholas Dodge

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicholas Dodge.

Hi Nicholas, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Photographers will always claim that they might as well have been born with a camera in their hands. To an extent, that’s an obvious exaggeration. But when one of your main professions is photography, sometimes it feels as though that much was true. The first camera I ever used was my best friend’s father’s tape camcorder, which my best friend and I used to film shorts, stop-motion features, and the like. In fact, we accidentally erased a family vacation one time in place of some C-Grade elementary school student horror film. After some yelling and stern talking, I think we’d both agree it was worth it in the end.

It wasn’t until some point in my later years of High School that I found myself with my own camera. It was a crappy $50 canon of some sort, handed down to me by my father who had “upgraded” to a more expensive “crappy” camera at the time. Nonetheless, I was spellbound, captivated by my very own, personal camera for the first time in my life. I captured the streets, roaming wildlife, random people, and so forth. Little did I know that my journey would only just begin here.

After High School, I moved on to a degree in Professional Photography with an emphasis in Studio Photography in college (among a handful of other options, including Journalism, Art, and even Mortuary Science). College lasted between 2010-2014, with the latter part of my final college year leading to the opening of my own independent photography business. I mainly shot for local bands, starting at $25 a set and eventually in the next few years moving up to $50, to $75, and finally a $100 price-per-set. Things were looking up and so I decided to further my education by enlisting in a technical degree for Video and Audio Production. This lasted between 2017-2018 and I had the absolute pleasure of engaging with countless local businesses and non-profits in the process.

However, it wasn’t always sunny days. In fact, I had almost quit my education due to a lack of finances and a way to pay for said education. I recall asking my mother and girlfriend (now wife) for loans every few months or so. I was living pay-check to pay-check, with $100 total in my Checking Account on a lucky month. Yet, somehow I managed to drink more and more, becoming an alcoholic to smother my emotions at the time. Between that and an increasing credit card debt exceeding $10,000, student loans of upwards of $9,000 and barely making it by as is, life wasn’t exactly cushioned.

Surprisingly enough, when COVID-19 hit and the country was in a panic, I found myself in the middle of a brand new career field. I was a horticulturist for the City of Denver between 2018-2020. At the time, around 2019, I had to say goodbye to my photographic dreams and pursue other avenues. In those two years, I was able to save and pay off a majority of my debts and structure a new foundation for myself, one that would bring me into comfortable living. And as time went on, I moved forward with my experience in Horticulture, pathing a brand new career path in my life.

However, at my time of debt I had sold many lenses and my favorite professional camera (the Sony Alpha a7) at the time. Come to the end of 2022 and I desired to go back to my roots, to involve myself in photography and videography once more. So, by the start of 2023, I had rebuilt the entire foundation of my business from a new start.

Nowadays I’m still photographing local bands, as well as international bands and anyone looking for a photo session.

Life was a struggle for a while but has since become a refreshing breath in light of everything now passed.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’ve always been adept in the field of photography. Whether it’s street, city-scapes, portraits, landscapes, wildlife, or (my main focus) live music, my passion, and abilities have always lied deep in the art of photography.

Although my work covers all avenues of photography, I mainly engage in live music/concert photography. It’s a very tricky and sensitive branch of photography that is not easy to master, and that’s honestly half the fun! I’m also currently the lead photographer for two local bands here in Denver, Colorado.

What was your favorite childhood memory?
Playtime with my younger sister of five years. I’d play with Barbie and Ken dolls with her and she’d play with Legos with me.

It was a very equal agreement between us, engaging in both gender-oriented toys, each making us happy in our own ways. In fact, I never minded role-playing as Ken, while my sister never grew bored of building new contraptions with my Lego sets.

Pricing:

• $100 per Concert Set
• $1200 per Wedding
• $100-$250 per Portrait, Portfolio, or Band Promo
• Contacting Me is FREE!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ndodgephotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ndodgephotography/