Today we’d like to introduce you to Gretchen Johnson.
Hi Gretchen, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My story starts in 2004, when I took my first film photography class at a local college. I was hooked immediately. I started doing family portraits for all of my friends, then printing everything myself in the darkroom. My friends would buy the film and the paper, and I would do the rest. It was as grassroots as it gets.
For a while, I resisted digital photography completely. I honestly did not think it could match the quality of film. Then I stumbled across a bundle deal on eBay: one Canon 20D DSLR and four kit lenses. I also picked up Adobe CS2 on CD for around $400, which felt like a huge leap at the time. Just like that, I traded the darkroom for my laptop, and in 2006 I officially started my business.
That was twenty years ago. What began with film and a darkroom in a college lab has grown into a full portrait and wedding studio serving families across Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. Today I photograph family portraits, high school seniors, and weddings.
The tools have changed enormously since those early darkroom days, but the reason I pick up a camera has never changed at all. I want to hand someone something real. A print on a wall, an album on a coffee table, a photograph that outlasts every phone and hard drive it was ever stored on. That feeling of putting something tangible in someone’s hands has driven every session since the very first one.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The first ten years were exhausting in a way that is hard to describe fully. I remember looking in the mirror and seeing the bags under my eyes and just laughing because there was nothing else to do about it. Late nights were the norm. Editing after the kids went to bed, planning sessions while running a household, trying to be fully present in both worlds at once.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in weddings, engagements, surprise proposals, family portraits, high school seniors, and professional headshots, serving families across Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. But what people tend to mention first when they refer me to a friend is not a specific session or a location. It is my energy. I am outgoing by nature, and I bring that into every single session. People who swear they are terrible in front of a camera walk away surprised by how comfortable they felt.
The work I am most proud of goes beyond the business. For four years I volunteered with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, providing complimentary remembrance portraits to families experiencing the loss of a baby. For ten years I also served as the lead photographer for a charity prom at Nemours Children’s Hospital, giving kids fighting cancer and blood disorders a real prom night experience with portraits worth printing and keeping forever. On top of that, I have had the privilege of shooting three album covers for recording artists.
What sets me apart has never changed since day one. I believe photographs should be printed. Not left on a phone, not forgotten in a cloud folder, not lost when a hard drive crashes. Printed. Framed. Bound in an album. Passed down. Every session I have ever photographed has been planned with that end result in mind, and that core value is something I have never once walked away from.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I will be upfront: I am not a books and podcasts person. What keeps me running efficiently is having the right tools in place and actually using them.
On the business side, Dubsado manages my entire client workflow, from inquiry to final delivery. It keeps everything organized so nothing falls through the cracks and my clients always have a smooth experience from the first email to the last. On the photography side, I edit in Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop and use Aftershoot to assist with image culling. That combination saves me significant time without ever sacrificing quality.
Honestly, the best resource I have found in twenty years is simply doing the work. Showing up, learning from every session, and staying curious. No podcast required.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gretchenjohnsonphoto.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gretchenjohnsonphoto/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GretchenJohnsonPhotography
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/gretchen-johnson-photography-avondale
- Other: https://www.gretchenjohnsonweddings.com
Image Credits
Personal photo of me taken by Ferrara Photo Studio
