Larry Ong’anyi: A motivated civil engineering student who quit out to start his photography company.

Larry Ong’anyi, a famous Kisumu photographer, don’t regret dropping civil engineering to pursue a photography business.

He recounts how he went from dropping out of college to owning a successful photography business.

Fate has a Final Say

My father died just as I was about to sit for my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations. We couldn’t live without him since he was our sole source of money.

When I started studying civil engineering at Kisumu National Polytechnic in September, my mother had taken up my father’s responsibilities.

My schooling was something I was passionate about. In college, I met my future wife, and what started as casual dating rapidly grew into a serious relationship. My girlfriend became pregnant shortly after that.

Unplanned Pregnancy

Six months into the pregnancy, I did some soul searching. I appreciated my mother’s dedication to getting me through college, but I didn’t want to put the weight of raising a grandchild on her shoulders.

I also detested the notion of being a sloppy parent; vowed that I’d never be labelled a ‘deadbeat’ father, so I had to do all in my power to rectify the situation.

No sooner than later, I had made the unexpected choice to drop out of college and start a business to support my young family after completing my examinations.

My decision was simple and clear but informing my mother took a month since I knew she would be disappointed. I was buying time to develop a solid business strategy that would help me explain my predicament to her.

Identification of a Missing but Desired Service

I chose to make a profession out of photography. While in college, I noticed how much students appreciated photoshoots as a fun pastime, and I wanted to take advantage of it. My main problem was that I had no understanding of how to operate a company.

Back then, my favourite hangout spot was a nearby recreation area, where I met a commercial photographer and began a mutually beneficial relationship with him.

I’d recruit customers from my previous college, who were generally friends, and he’d teach me the ropes of the trade.

He taught me the ins and outs of the game, as well as photography and the business module. Our clientele were mostly students with little financial resources at the time.

Destiny Helpers

Soon after, I discovered a more well-organized crew called as Alpha Photography. Their executives praised me for being a doer who stood out among a sea of wannabe photographers. I decided to join them.

I was given modern photographic equipment that was hard to come by on the condition that I promote their brand. It sounded like a generous offer because I had nothing to my name at the time.

Another advantage is that they had a steady stream of customers with greater wallets, which meant more profits for me.

I switched from portraits to event photography, which was more profitable. I began in December, at the peak season for photography, and worked on a variety of projects that paid well and offered me exposure.

Returns on Investment

I was able to acquire my equipment after six months of saving, and after another six months of experience, I decided to create my own business, Salman Arts Photography.

Despite starting at the onset of the Covid-19 outbreak, I was able to acquire extra equipment and create distinctive commercial images that enabled me to surpass established corporations.

Re-investment of Profits

Since I left, I haven’t faced many challenges. With the profits from the business, I was able to support my family and acquire extra equipment to help my brand develop. When I get big jobs, I normally enlist the help of my two best friends to help me get work.

Side-Hustles

My objective is to build many side businesses to supplement my photography business. Since then, I’ve added photo mounts to my range of products. Working with a range of civic groups, law companies, and event planners has rounded out my experience.

Conclusion

If you have an exceptional skill set, good creative ability, composition, and technical talents, photography is a wonderful career choice. A photography career may be difficult, and you may struggle to succeed if you are not passionate about it. It takes a lot of practice and effort to develop good photography abilities.