Meet Ambassador: Braedon Flynn
Recently named Top 25 Wedding Photographer in the U.S. by Harpers Bazaar Magazine
You can’t fake a passion for what you love and value most. Hiding such a passion isn’t possible either — it shines through you in all that you do. The rarity, for most, is not only finding your passion, but being able to live it out on a daily basis.
Braedon Flynn is a destination wedding photographer, husband, father, and all-around good guy. He’s been an avid supporter and an Ambassador for Cloud Spot since nearly the beginning! We were overjoyed to see he received some very big (and well-deserved) recognition from Harpers Bazaar. Braedon was named one of the top wedding photographers in the nation!
After hearing the news of him receiving yet another huge honor (he has many), we saw this a great chance to help the rest of our Cloud Spot community get to know the man behind the lens and pick his brain about all things life and photography.
- Braedon, congratulations from the Cloud Spot team on being named one of the Top 25 Wedding Photographers in the US by Harpers Bazaar Magazine! What sense of achievement does this make you feel in your professional career?
It’s a big one for me because I also shoot fashion/lifestyle photography and to get recognized by Harpers, which is such an iconic fashion magazine is a major compliment. And from a business side of things, I feel like my target client is a reader of Harpers Bazaar so that is a helpful magazine to get recognized by.
2. We’ll get back to photography in a moment — but first, how’s life?
Life is great but definitely feel the constant tension and struggle between the balance of holding myself to too high of expectations for success while also just as high of expectations on being a good husband and father. I have 3 young kids and without my wife’s support, I wouldn’t be able to do what I do. But with that, it’s still tough on her with the amount I travel.
I’ve also just launched a new company I started Called Film Supply Club — getting film and other photo supplies (more coming) to photographers at close to wholesale pricing. I’m hopeful I’m able to save a lot of money for fellow photographers. (here’s a link to a video I made explaining the site if you care to post it — https://youtu.be/xSwGwt6VrnQ )
3. There’s a lot of people out there who want to know more about you. What are some things about you that people may not know?
Hmmm. I’m a father of 3 kids, grew up in Southern California as a surfer/snowboarder/skateboarder and got my start in photography shooting concerts I was already attending. I went to school for business at USC and with that background I’ve launched a couple other sites based around education and inspiration for creatives, freelancers, small business owners and photographers.
I also co-founded a creative community/speaker series called Connecting Things — based in Orange County but we now have branches in Louisville, Colorado Springs, and new chapters are opening in Bend, OR and another in Texas.
4. Where do you draw your inspiration from to continue producing art?
I make sure I’m not only shooting gigs I’m hired for but also shooting things or setting up shoots that resonate with me. And I generally view editorial jobs, which generally don’t pay much or anything at all, as a way for me to shoot something differently or get out of my typical spaces. The other sites and podcasts I run have been amazing for rejuvenating creativity for me because I’m choosing people to interview and learn from that I respect — and then I get to learn how they do what they do.
5. Looking back on your path to this point, is there anything that you learned that you feel others could benefit from?
“The biggest lesson I’ve been learning lately is to not just focus on the destination but actually enjoy the journey. “
Or if you are destination, or achievement focused, make sure to celebrate when you actually get there. I wasn’t doing that at all and for me, never getting to that destination because I didn’t really set a tangible destination point, or define what success is. Having an attitude of gratefulness and appreciation makes a major difference too. We’re incredibly lucky people pay us quite a bit of money to take pictures for them….and we get to do that as our living. That is ridiculous and awesome. I’ve been needing to remind myself of that fact often.
6. Braedon, what can we expect next for you? Are there any personal projects that you’ll be pursuing?
Big things hopefully. I’m shooting a lot of events in the entertainment world, and love that. I plan to continue shooting weddings but on a more selective basis and really hoping Film Supply Club takes off. With Film Supply Club, I’m also going to be focusing a lot on The Photo Report, interviewing other photographers — and that will be in podcast format as well.
7. Any final words for photographers out there?
Make sure you’re shooting what you love to shoot and booking clients you resonate with. If you’re just shooting to make money, it’s not going to last. And if you’re not currently getting the type of clients you want, invest your time into setting up your own shoots with subjects and subject matter that you want to be working with. The things you put out on your blog, Instagram and website are the types of things you’re going to attract. So make sure to curate those things in an intentional way.
(All images © Braedon Flynn Photography)
