Meet Gary Byrne | Wedding Photographer

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

Hi Gary, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I have worked my entire professional career in the Tech Support field, while photography was just little more like a side hustle. For many years I struggled with the idea of taking a risk and turning photography into my full time job. The rising cost of living here in California has made passionate creatives like myself hesitant to take that leap of faith of turning a hobby into a career.
It’s a risk worth taking because now I get to do what I love and the joy that brings me is something money can’t buy.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I specialize in wedding and portrait photography. You’ll find that I tend to have a tighter, more intimate framing with my photos, I believe this helps in capturing the emotion of the moment in every photo.

I found this profession through selling camera equipment at my retail job. I was learning the fundamentals of photography in order to better understand the product I was selling and it unlocked an inspiration in myself I hadn’t known before. Over time I began buying my own equipment and experimenting with different types of photography. When my friends and family started telling me how much they liked my work I realized I could do so much more.

The market for professional photography in a destination city like San Diego is highly competitive. When you market your work on social media it becomes a constant game of comparing your work against the hundreds of others trying to capture the same audience. This can cause you to undervalue your own work and I believe that to be the hardest hurdle for any creative including myself. It has taken me a long time to learn that you don’t need to compare your work to anyone’s other than your own. That is how you get better everyday!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
San Diego is a recognized vacation destination with no shortage of things to do and see. As a native I know I take for granted a lot of the things we have available to us. If I was showing the ropes to someone who has never been here before, I would want to make sure that they get to live out the cliche Californian experience.

We’d start with Pacific Beach, one of the more popular beaches we have here. We wouldn’t even have to leave once the sun sets considering that Garnet Avenue comes alive at night with a lot of different bar and restaurant options that are even open late.

I would also want to show them an alternative ocean view by bringing them to La Jolla cove. Granted you can still take a swim here, but lets be honest, people come here for the stunning views and photo opportunities. If they want a picture to commemorate their visit to San Diego, I think this is the best place get them.
No to mention that Duke’s Restaurant here offers excellent food.

We also offer one of the world’s best zoos! If they were only in town for a short time, it would be important to me that they got to see the San Diego Zoo! This is one of those things that I know I take for granted by not going whenever I can. I know that many people all around the world aspire to see it one day!

If they are travelling internationally I think it’s worth the drive up to Disneyland of course! There may be many Disney parks dotted around the world, but a quick drive up the interstate one morning and you can spend a day in the happiest place on earth!

The most important thing to me that I make sure to show any and all of my friends…
In-N-Out. No one can come to California and not go to In-N-Out!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like dedicate this to shoutout my wife!
She has been patient with me and helped me build up the confidence in my own work to make this career possible. We have been together going on 12 years now and every moment has been surrounded by support for my work, even when it was only a passion project!

Website: www.byrne.photography/home

Instagram: @byrne.photography.ca

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61575924014154

Image Credits
Gary Byrne