Brittney Kincannons Story

Why is Photography important to me? Why did I get started? These are just some of the questions that I’ve been flooded with within 2014. When I took a moment to really think about the answers to those questions and compile the words to form my story, I cried. I hesitated on posting it in fear of judgment, and overall I didn’t want people to feel sorry for me after telling my close friends why they began to understand me and my business on a whole new level. So my goal in telling you this isn’t so that you’ll feel bad or sorry, but that you’ll feel a little more motivated to capture pictures with the ones you love, whether it’s with your iPhone or by investing in a professional.

So here’s the honest, gut-wrenching truth to why-I-do-what-I-do.

When I was about eight, I was your typical tomboy. I tattled on my brothers, loved playing capture the flag in the street with the neighbor kids and my brothers, fought with my brothers most of the time, and of course, loved goofing off with them, especially my brother Justin. I was a total daddy’s girl and ALWAYS prayed for a little sister. What child doesn’t pray for another sibling at one point in their life, right? Haha. And guess what? I got one!

A few years later, my life changed forever. I remember the day so clearly. It was the beginning of May, and I was about 8 years old. I was on the phone with my dad, and I knew he had something important to tell me. In fact, I had heard bits and pieces of what the conversation was going to entail around the neighborhood. It seemed like the neighbors, and their kids knew the news sooner than I did. As I sat there on a grey sofa, I heard my mother say, “I’m not going to tell them; you need to tell them.” That’s how I knew it was just as bad as I imagined. My mother always had my dad tell me the hard stuff. I sat on the couch, waiting for my dad to tell me what was going on. I can still remember the sinking feeling the moment the words escaped from his mouth that my only sister had died. Can you imagine being a child, praying for a little sister, you get one, and then all of a sudden, in an instant, she’s gone? That’s what had happened. It was hard for me to even comprehend at the time. Years following my sisters’ death, I searched for a photo of her. I hunted through boxes and albums, but I couldn’t find a single one. That was when I realized I needed to make this right. I needed to make sure that I always had a picture of myself and the people I loved if another tragedy ever happened. In middle school, my dad bought me my first film camera. In my second year of high school, he bought me a brand new slim digital camera that was small enough to fit in my pocket. It was amazing! It gave me the ability to see and have pictures instantly. Throughout high school, my passion for photography grew. I loved documenting my family and friends. I took pictures every day, updating photos often to have recent photos of those most important to me. In high school, I took my first photography class. I knew what I wanted to be…a family photographer! That was until my peers began saying things like, “Photographers don’t make money unless you’re in the wedding industry.” “That’s a nice dream, but that’s not reality. You need to choose something that you can make a living with.” So, I stopped following my passion. 

Two years later, I went to college intending to become a counselor and to be the first in my family line to graduate from college. During the last semester, I received a phone call from my dad. I knew it was another bad phone call because it started with, “Hey Britt. Where are you? Are you sitting down?” I remember telling my dad to tell me what was going on because the worst was running through my mind. That’s when he told me that my Uncle Jim had committed suicide. My heart dropped, and the tears rolled down my face as I began to hear the words that left me realizing. I had just lost one of my favorite people. I was texting him just two days prior. I was in shock. It was one of the most depressing times in my entire life. Still to this day, it brings me tears, even now as I write this. My uncle wasn’t a fan of pictures; he would do anything to avoid having his picture taken. Good thing I was his favorite niece, though, because somehow I had managed to get pictures of him and me together. Maybe it was because he let me take them, or maybe it was because I was so persistent, but my goodness… It was one of the best things I had ever done. Looking back on the pictures I had of my uncle, and I was like having a blanket of comfort to wrap up in. Although he was gone, it brought me just a little bit of peace. My uncle wasn’t Christian by any means… and I think that makes it a lot harder when you lose someone because it’s not like you’re saying, “I’ll see you later.” The next 5 months were a blur. I honestly don’t know how I could keep up my grades and be eligible for graduation, but a few days before graduation, it really hit me. Was this diploma in Social Behavior and Self Development really the path I wanted to take? Or, did I want to make a difference and photograph families so they’d have pictures for when the day death knocks on the door and wants to take a loved one away? Did I want to help counsel others, or did I want to help others create hard-evidence and tangible items where they could find comfort in a picture during a time of grief? That night I remember keeping my decision to myself because I didn’t want any doubters as I had in high school. I prayed to God about my decision before bed, and I woke up the next morning, eager to launch a business. I had no idea how to launch a business and definitely no idea how to be a photographer. I didn’t even know of any family photographers at the time, but that didn’t stop me. I told the two people that I knew would be supportive, my dad and husband. As I told them, the idea of being a family photographer wasn’t even a suggestion. It was a fact. I just said, “Hey guys, I’m a Family Photographer.” I owned my title in hopes that people would start viewing me as a family photographer, and it worked! With it being a few days before my big graduation day, they were caught off guard (as anyone would be), but they were eager to help me achieve my goal. At this point, I had never owned more than a $200 camera, I’d never met a family photographer, and I had never taken a family portrait.

Now in 2020, as a self-taught, professional family photographer, I get so excited before each session. I feel so blessed to have the ability to capture these moments and bring comfort to those who can look back on pictures of the people they love the most like I was able to do with my Uncle Jim. I get to make a difference through the art of photography and provide something that’s so much more than just a picture. It’s a blanket of comfort during tough times, a piece of artwork to decorate a home, and an heirloom to be passed down for generations. – Brittney Kincannon