Meet Amy Lewandowski

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amy Lewandowski a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Amy, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

I grew up mostly as an only child, with parents who encouraged me to give my all at any pursuit I tried. I always worked hard in school to get straight A’s, and to be an accomplished athlete, playing a variety of sports. But I always really loved creative arts, and never felt like I was as good as I wanted to be.

I tried to learn piano – my first teacher told me I’d never be great at it because I had short fingers. I wanted to paint and be an artist like my cousin – but my hand never seemed to draw what my brain dreamt up. I’d always loved photography, but I assumed like the rest of my ventures, I’d never be really any good at it. (This was seemingly confirmed when I finally took a photography class in high school and only managed a B+ in the class at the end of the semester.)

So for a long time I only ever took photos “for fun” or for my friends, never accepting any compliments or believing that I was talented in any way, because surely it was just my friends being kind to me. Until about 10 years ago, when I had an acquaintance tell me I should be doing photography professionally. And I finally believed someone was being sincere – she wasn’t a close friend, so she had no reason to just “be kind” about my photography.

It was her words of encouragement that led me to start Amy In Time Photography, where I help capture moments in time for my clients. Over time, working with different families and at different events, I really started to be able to see that maybe I was actually good at this whole thing, that maybe I did have an “eye” for photography. I even was picked up by a photo ops company to work at various pop-culture conventions all over the U.S.

I also still do “for fun” photography – landscapes and interesting perspectives (particularly of chandeliers), because art should be creative and fun. That’s also helped me with my confidence in my work, because sharing those “fun” photos has led to a lot of great conversations and new clients along the way.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am a portrait and event photographer in Houston TX. I really love getting to know my clients, and I try to make every portrait session a fun and positive experience. Capturing those candid moments between people is something I adore, so portrait sessions never feel forced or overly posed. Many of my clients have made family photos an annual tradition, and I love being able to see the same kids each year as they grow.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

With photography, you have to really understand your equipment in order to produce great shots – so anyone wanting to get into photography should really take the time to learn the technical details of your equipment.

Along with that, the other skill that you really need to focus on is composition of photos. It takes time and practice, but learning to make each photo tell a story is invaluable.

And, of course, be confident in yourself and your talents. Having the confidence to pursue your dreams, your art – it can be difficult to find, but believe in yourself.

Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?

I believe we are always learning, and always have room to improve. Over the last year, I’ve jumped out of my DSLR comfort zone and have started working more with mirrorless cameras. It’s a different feel in hand, and it’s a new set of technical details to learn (as always with new equipment), but I’ve been trying to embrace change and keep up with advancements in the field.

The mirrorless cameras are lighter, and can be a little more versatile when you’re working outdoors, so it’s been a bit of a fun challenge to adjust my style to suit the new equipment.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/amyintime
• Instagram: @amy_in_time