This Pride Month, we chatted with two LGBTQ+ PPA members to discuss business, life, and the power of living and working authentically. 
With a global membership of over 35,000 members, PPA proudly celebrates the diversity of our creative community. We believe every photographer deserves to feel welcome, supported, and empowered to build a thriving business. Please enjoy these stories of resilience and creativity in the photographic community. 

Amanda Summerlin (they/them)

Amanda Summerlin is a photographer and artist with a passion for people, their stories, and the act of serving their community with compassion and joy. Over the course of 15 years photographing weddings, Amanda has captured more than 300 celebrations, over 100 of them for LGBTQ+ couples. Surprisingly, this was never a deliberate plan of theirs. A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Amanda earned a BA in painting, specializing in encaustic (hot wax) painting, a highly technical and challenging medium that dates back to the ancient Greeks. 

Their career pivoted from fine art painting to photography after they began photographing portraits of friends’ children and were asked to photograph a friend’s wedding. With about a year to prepare, Amanda immediately set to work, apprenticing with a local photographer. That’s how they found their way into a niche of photography they half-jokingly refer to as the “Olympics of Photography.” 

For anyone familiar with the demanding pace and emotional intensity of wedding photography— it’s a genre that either clicks, or it doesn’t. Amanda lists their ADHD as a superpower. It allows them to stay dialed in and hyper-focused on the rhythm and flow of the wedding day. 

For over a decade, Amanda has invested time and energy into optimizing search engine optimization to reach LGBTQ+ couples across the country. Their career has included jet-setting across the U.S., checking off 46 states in total. 

Amanda’s business naturally evolved to include destination weddings, especially since experienced LGBTQ+ wedding photographers were hard to come by before the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. Over the years, Amanda has also been hired by straight couples specifically so their queer guests would feel safe and seen. When meeting with wedding clients, Amanda breaks the ice with a single question, "What's your favorite thing about each other?" Their honest answer sets the tone for the session and creates a moment of connection. It's moments like these Amanda delights in, as well as meeting people that fall outside of the mainstream. Like a true documentarian, Amanda enjoys the process of capturing their love story without judgment, just pure observation. 

On a typical shoot, Amanda brings four cameras, including two vintage film cameras that capture the kind of unpredictable beauty only film can offer. From the start, Amanda sets the tone for a successful session by communicating clearly with clients and securing consent before sharing any images online. For wedding photographers that serve the LGBTQ+ community, this kind of transparency is essential—not only to document one of the most meaningful days in a couple’s life, but to ensure their safety. Amanda makes it a priority to honor pronouns and, when needed, even uses pseudonyms to protect clients’ identities.

Growing up in South Georgia as a closeted kid with a later unsupportive family, Amanda understands the weight of keeping secrets. From lived experience, they believe one of the biggest obstacles we all face is the fear of being our authentic selves. In a world prone to black and white thinking — and binaries — many are afraid to exist outside the zone of “acceptable” conformity.

“It’s a disservice and tragedy to live your life and not be your authentic self.” Amanda says. 

Their latest personal project, “1989 - The Distance Between Us” explores the emotional and physical distance created after leaving their hometown. Through portraits and interviews, Amanda reconnects with former classmates to examine why some chose to stay while others left. Through the project, Amanda has reflected on questions of personal responsibility — what it means to tell these stories, and what they're seeking to achieve. Once complete, Amanda plans to exhibit the work first in their hometown, and later in Atlanta, Georgia.

Amanda lives with their wife and practices photography out of Atlanta, Georgia. You can view more of Amanda’s incredible work here. 

Dylan Todd (He/Him) 

Dylan Todd is turning the page to a new chapter of his photography studio, set to unfold in Orlando, Florida — just an hour away from St. Petersburg, where he got his start. His journey as a photographer has included many phases of growth, leading him to where he is now: at the crossroads of leaning into abundance and packing up his highly successful studio to move to a new location.

Dylan earned his associate degree in photographic technology from Daytona State before continuing his studies at the University of Central Florida. After college, he worked several odd jobs before opening his own fine art photography studio. He found his way to real estate photography at the suggestion of a friend and began the challenging work of a solopreneur, trying to create a sustainable business model that would support his future. 

By 2021, Dylan had finally hit the six-figure mark for his studio, but he was burning the candle at both ends. That year, he photographed 300 houses, 30 weddings, and continued offering professional headshots while working on assignment for a local, award-winning LGBTQ+ newspaper. Not long after this intense period of productivity, “everything hit its apex.” Dylan’s mother, his fiercest supporter and an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer and passed away soon after. At a time when many couples seeking to adopt faced discrimination, she began pursuing her goal of becoming a social worker to help place children in loving LGBTQ+ families. Though she didn’t reach that goal in her lifetime, her intentions still inspired many. 

Her passing forced Dylan to reevaluate everything. While real estate photography had been profitable, he felt that it no longer aligned with a deeper sense of purpose. He committed to becoming a better businessman—collaborating with other photographers, seeking advice from well-regarded educators, and building a “goal structure” into his business.

He realized that raising his prices meant he needed to offer a high-value experience. This included adding a layer of luxury to his services. By identifying his client’s “pain points,” Dylan removed stress from the experience. He now meets clients at their homes for pre-session consultations, helping them select outfits and determine what type of wall art would best suit their space. He also works with a hair and makeup artist who acts as his assistant, allowing clients to rest easy, knowing they’ll look their best on the day of their session.

Today, Dylan aims for longer, 2—3-hour sessions with a business model he lovingly compares to a mullet: “It’s business in the front and party in the back.” By pairing family portraits with personal branding sessions, he delivers more value and increases his sales. 

Later this week, St. Pete will celebrate the 23rd anniversary of St. Pete Pride, an event Dylan has photographed for Watermark Out News — the same newspaper through which he met his husband, who worked there for over 20 years. While some people may believe that simply being out and present isn’t impactful enough, Dylan sees it differently. He holds on to the belief that our authentic self-expression creates a safe space for others. He quotes a famous Marsha P. Johnson line, "You never completely have your rights, one person, until you all have your rights."

Growing up, seeing gay people represented in the media helped Dylan feel less alone. His life experiences have led him to believe that if we want to empower people as a group, we must first believe in the power of our own voice.

You can view more of Dylan's incredible work here.

From PPA to you, we’d like to wish you a happy pride. If you’re interested in sharing your story for a future article, please contact PPA’s Communication Specialist, Alena Fletcher at [email protected] to be considered.