I first heard about wedding and portrait photographer, and wedding videographer, Andre Brown through my buddy Ant Pruitt’s show “Hands on Photography”, when Andre was on for a Photographers’ Go-To Tip. I knew I wanted to get him on the show, and once I realized he was an Ambassador for StellaPro – an amazing line of lighting – I worked my contacts there to help get him on Behind the Shot.
Here’s the thing, Andre’s work is different, it’s unique in a number of ways. The post “Finding My Success by Exploring Light“, for Sal Cincotta’s Behind the Shutter, is a great read, and really helps to understand Andre as a creative. His overall approach, as he has described it, is “…a high-fashion, editorial photography style. Showcasing my clients, and my culture with style and opulence. Creating drama with light and the absence of light”. What struck me was how he described that he had been “replicating what I saw on the popular wedding blogs. High Key light, light and airy, kind of whimsical”, but that his realization that the presence of black culture on some major sites, and in mainstream publications, was fairly non-existent outside of predominantly black publications like Essence and Ebony. As I read that it was like I was seeing the process of finding yourself – creatively – explained, step by step. We all start by re-creating, or emulating, what we see, or like, or think will work, but at some point (at least for the best out there) we have to find why we are doing this at all, what makes us pick up the camera. Seriously, go read that post.
Andre is so talented that he has won awards that I know many have tried and never won. For example, the image we are talking about on this show won the 2019 WPPI Silver Distinction Award, and the
2019 WPPI Wedding Division, Bridal Party Award for Second Place. If you’ve never seen a WPPI competition, it’s tough, damn tough. Oh yeah, that was his first competition! Since then he’s racked up more than I can list.
As an educator, Andre is a sought after speaker, and workshop leader. He has been published in outlets including Essence Magazine, Huffington Post, The Knot, Munaluchi Bride, Black Bride, The B Collective Magazine, and Huffington Post, and his work has also appeared on ABC News, and Good Morning America.
A few things in Andre’s bio intrigue me, and one in particular makes me think we might be good friends. Andre got his Bachelor of Science in Recording Arts, and at 19 he was the manager of Grammy-nominated songwriter and producer Ric Rude. Whoa. His work through that relationship with Ric Rude included, most notably, “Cater 2 U” by Destiny’s Child and hits for other artists including Busta Rhymes, Mary J. Blige, Bow Wow, Omarion, Redman and Method Man, to name a few. I am so curious about this part of his history. The part that made me think we may already be friends is the fact that in his spare time he binge- watches episodes of Law and Order. I record re-runs of the original show regularly. Almost 500 episodes over 20 years means I still come across shows I haven’t seen.
Join award winning photographer, and Ambassador for StellaPro, Andre Brown and me as we dive into his high-fashion, editorial approach to wedding photography, on this Behind the Shot.
Connect with Andre
Website: AndreBrown.com
Instagram: @andrebrownphoto
Facebook: @andrebrownphoto
TikTok: @andrebrownphoto
YouTube: @andrebrownphoto
Andre’s Workshops
Bokeh Academy: BokehAcademy.co
Andre’s Photography Marketing and Sales Solution
SnapFlow: snapflow.co
Andre’s Photographer Picks
Joshua Dwain: joshuadwain.com | @joshua_dwain
Karl Taylor: karltaylor.com | @karltaylorphotography
Steve’s Whiskey Pick
Jack Daniel’s Triple Mash: jackdaniels.com
