We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Danielle Nicole a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Danielle, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
Sometimes, even when I am standing in the middle of a crowded room, I feel out of place. Not because I’m “socially awkward”, but because rooms nowadays are filled with hollow conversations and lifeless individuals. Sure, they may seem happy on the outside, but I’ve learned to read between the lines and deep down they are just momentarily filling themselves with things to ignore that haunting empty feeling. It took quite a while to feel comfortable knowing those who think outside the box often find themselves lost when standing inside the box. Society tells us to “stay inside the box” or “don’t draw outside the lines”. And yet, the world’s most influential world changers always thought outside the box. How? They accepted their difference and used it as their superpower to change the world. Knowing that, I’ve allowed that realization to make me bolder when I am standing in a crowded room that feels uncomfortable with me standing out. I live and think differently so that I can LIVE and THINK differently and that makes me not only accept it, but boldly share my wins and losses so that others who may feel stuck in a box desperately waiting to bloom into the person they truly are meant to be. Now, I can honestly say I enjoy being different from everyone else. Why would I want to live the same life as everyone else anyways? I’d rather live a life worth remembering.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Moments by Danielle Nicole officially launched in 2016, but my passion for photography and videography has been growing since childhood. I spent countless hours experimenting with my mother’s camera and being gifted those disposable film kodak cameras by my grandma. My love for capturing memories truly ignited when I received a Barbie video camcorder as a Christmas gift. I recorded everyday moments of my family, fascinated by the idea of preserving memories. When I turned eight, I saved up my birthday money to buy my first digital camera—a $80 pink Polaroid from Walmart—and from that moment, I was hooked. I filled countless SD cards with photos of my friends, family, and candid snapshots of life. My early passion eventually led me to start taking senior photos for friends in 2016, and later, during college, I became the photographer for both my university’s football team and its newspaper. Despite a professor’s skepticism about my love for light and airy photography, I stayed committed to my style, and in 2017, I was asked to capture my first solo wedding, which sparked a deeper love for documenting the beauty and emotion of these sacred celebrations.
Since then, I’ve had the privilege of capturing over 80 weddings, along with hundreds of family, newborn, milestone, and senior sessions. I offer both photography and videography because I believe they add so much value and meaning to one another—while photography provides timeless, artistic visuals that can be passed down through generations, videography brings those moments to life with the sounds, emotions, and energy of the day. In 2021, I dove head first into focusing on weddings and shot 10 back to back weekends of weddings in Iowa, Minnesota, and South Dakota. In 2022, I captured 25 wedding days. After becoming a mom and intentionally creating a more refined, luxury experience, now I limit my bookings to 10-15 weddings per year to ensure every couple receives my full attention and expertise. My focus is on creating a seamless, stress-free experience for my clients, where every moment—from our initial meeting to the final delivery of images, video, and full service heirlooms—is tailored to their unique love story.
In 2022, I took a major step in growing my business by expanding with an associate and second shooter team. I also introduced an internship program in 2023 after being approached by a college student interested in learning more about my business. It’s felt incredibly rewarding to mentor young women and give them the opportunity to experience life as a wedding vendor, especially since I know how difficult it can be to find that support early on. After having a baby, I felt pulled to experience motherhood to it’s fullest and take the leap to stay home with my son. I worked extremely hard to build a business to replace my full-time customer service sales job and took the leap in October 2023. After almost a year of being full-time with my dream job, I can honestly save giving my business over to God and letting Him lead me has resulted in a flourishing business that has tripled my full-time job’s salary and I officially hit 6 figures!!
Looking ahead to 2024, I’m transitioning my brand to offer a full-service experience, where I guide clients through every step of the process—from pre-session planning to delivering custom wall art, albums, and heirloom products. My goal is to move their cherished memories off their devices and into their homes, where they can be admired for generations. This next chapter excites me, as it allows me to continue creating meaningful connections with clients while offering them a more personal and complete experience so they and future generations have something to cherish.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Looking back, I believe three key factors were pivotal in my journey: mentorship, education, and relentless perseverance. Finding the right mentor and investing in education helped scale my business faster than I ever could have managed on my own. In 2021, I took a huge leap by investing almost half of my business income into learning from the best. I spent long days driving 8+ hours in the same day as shooting 10 hour luxury weddings with top photographers, immersing myself in hands-on experience and soaking up their knowledge. It was exhausting and risky, but it paid off tremendously. My advice to those starting out is to seek out mentorship and invest in education early on. It might seem daunting, but those investments will return to you tenfold.
Another major factor was being willing to push myself even when the circumstances were challenging or know when to ask for help. In 2022, I shot 25 weddings all through my son’s pregnancy and first four months of life—once even shooting at 40 weeks pregnant and two weeks postpartum. While I wouldn’t recommend anyone take on such a demanding schedule in those conditions and vowed I would never repeat it myself, it speaks to the level of determination and passion I had to succeed. The smartest thing I did was create an associate team who could support me and my clients when and if I needed it during my pregnancy and post-partum period. For those early in their journey, my advice is to stay focused, invest in yourself, and build a community of supportive clients and peers who will help pull you through the challenging times. It’s not an easy road, but with grit and the right guidance, you can thrive.
Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?
I believe there’s a balance between honing your strengths and pushing yourself to improve areas of weakness. Our God-given talents are what make us stand out and form the foundation of our businesses, but there’s also immense value in stepping outside of our comfort zones to develop skills that don’t come naturally. Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, I was surrounded by the mindset that “the sky’s the limit,” and as a Christian, I believe our unique gifts are meant to be expanded upon to make a meaningful impact. These strengths are essential to building a solid foundation in business. However, the journey doesn’t stop there.
At the same time, pressing into areas of weakness can drastically elevate your success in unexpected ways. For instance, I once enrolled in a website coding class in high school—I found website coping overwhelming and ended up dropping the course. Okay, actually I truthfully hated it. Fast forward ten years, and I now run a branding and custom website design business, “Danielle Nicole Designs, Co.” This new skill has surprised me! After associate designing alongside another amazing like-minded designer and receiving valuable critiques, I not only developed my own style but also grew to love the process of refinement. This shift didn’t just open new doors for me professionally—it also had a direct impact on my photography business. Learning SEO and website design helped me get ranked on the first page of Google, allowing me to reach my dream clients. Now, I build websites for other photographers, creating a community and sharing what I’ve learned. This example shows that stepping into unfamiliar territory can not only improve your business but can also lead to new passions and opportunities you never expected. Balancing your strengths while embracing the challenge of growth is what leads to long-term success and fulfillment, in my opinion.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.momentsbydaniellenicole.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentsbydaniellenicole
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/momentsbydaniellenicole
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/momentsbydaniellenicole
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/momentsbydaniellenicole
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