Meet Daniel Cunningham | Commercial photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Daniel Cunningham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Daniel, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
I have a wife and two children. Work life balance is important to me. I have found a few ways that help me keep time for not only myself but with my family. Before Children I was always focused on work. I would let little things upset me or be fearful people did not like my work, if i did not immediately hear back from them. I also felt like I had to do every single step or process of my business. Once my daughter was born I needed to change things in order to get my work done and not be stressed about it. I would not answer emails on the weekend knowing it could wait till Monday. I started to outsource tasks that took away my time. Retouching being a big one. I save anywhere from 10-20 hours per job by using professional retouchers. It gives me time to ride my bike at 2:30 in the afternoon and work on more high value tasks. It help me maintain my energy level and gives me more bandwidth. I used to hate marketing mainly because I did not think I had the time to learn. In the past few years I have been making more time to learn better ways to accomplish my goals.

It the past the balance felt like I was spinning plates. At some point it got to me…I had way too many plates and you guessed it…. I broke a few. Now I look at it like as pillars or columns. Work,Family, Mental Health, Physical Health, and General Well Being etc. Each one is holding me up. I need them to all be strong for me to succeed. It boils down to being more organized and efficient, partnered with a stronger mindset.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
One thing that sets me apart from other photographers is my innate ability to connect with my subject. Often times a subject has hesitance towards being photographed. It is a foreign and sometimes uncomfortable situation for them. Whenever I have a large amount of Corporate Headshots I like to build in enough time per subject so that I can get to know them, learn their interests and try and find a common thread that we both share. This allows me to get genuine and true expressions that the subject will be excited and proud to show the world.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If a friend came from out of town I would most likely take them to all the places in Charlotte that make Charlotte truly great. We would visit local eateries like lupie’s Café. Which has been open for 30+ years. Charlotte is home to quite a few breweries so we would most likely get on the light rail and check a few out. There is also great outdoor activities. We could visit the white water rafting center, go hiking at Crowders Mountain and ride bikes on the Greenway. We also have some nice art and Science museums. In the evening we would venture into Noda which is the art district. It’s full of great restaurants and shops all within a few blocks of each other.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Lincoln Barbour was a big help in making my business better. He taught be so much and helped to change my mindset.

Website: www.DanielClarkCunningham.com

Instagram: DanielClarkcunninghamphoto

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-clark-cunningham-9aa3559/

Twitter: DCCPhotographer

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danielclarkcunninghamphoto