Today we’d like to introduce you to Randy Brogen.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Randy. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Prior to starting my professional photography career, I served over six years in the U.S. Army in aviation and military intelligence. After leaving the military, I went on to college and majored in computer science which lead to a 30-year career in the private sector, culminating as a Chief Technology Officer for an international firm in downtown Boston where I managed the day to day operations of 57 locations around the globe.
Over the past 10 years, I’ve earned numerous awards and have been published in books, newspapers and magazines like Synch, Boston Common and featured on several local news casts. While I had dabbled in photography previously, I didn’t begin to get serious until 2008 so I could get photographs of my newborn son. Wanting to push myself, I earned my Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) designation in 2009 from the Professional Photographers of America (PPA), becoming one of only 32 CPPs in the entire state of Massachusetts at that time. I continued to train in my spare time for the next couple of years, joining several professional photography organizations and attending numerous conferences and seminars, as well as entering into international image competitions. In 2010 I became a CPP Liaison for PPA, helping other professional photographers achieve their CPP certification. During the 2011 image competition season, I was awarded the highest award bestowed on a photographer from Professional Photographers Association of Massachusetts (PPAM), Court of Honor, in the Illustrative/Conceptual category for my graphic art work.
In 2012, I took the leap and left the corporate world to focus all of my attention on my studio with my wife, Caroline, and that year I was awarded the Kodak Gallery Portrait Award for the highest scoring portrait in image competition. In 2013, I was elected for two terms as President of the Professional Photographers Association of Massachusetts and also served on the Board of Directors for The Professional Photographers Association of New England (PPANE).
I was named Platinum Photographer of the Year by PPA in 2014 for my images submitted to international print competitions. That year I also earned my Photographic Craftsman degree, one of the possible three industry degrees from PPA for teaching others about photography and advancing the industry. During the next two years, Caroline and I continued to push the envelope and the industry by applying our extensive business and technology experience to our photography business. In 2015, Caroline earned her CPP designation becoming one of only 42 CPPs in the entire state and making our studio the first and only in Massachusetts to have two CPPs on staff.
I earned my Master of Photography degree from PPA in January 2017. In addition, I earned my Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Remote Pilot License to operate drones commercially, enabling us to add this option to our services. I most recently completed all requirements for my Master Artist degree from PPA which makes me the third photographer and only male photographer in the state to have all three PPA degrees.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The road has been quite challenging. To start with, holding down a full-time job while building the photography business was extremely demanding, especially with three small children. It takes a great partner to balance everything and I am very fortunate to have my loving wife who has supported me the entire way.
There have been other challenges that most entrepreneurs face, legal structure, taxes, and a developing a working business model that fits your geographical area. We also face the challenge of educating our clients on the differences between our studio and the large companies in the industry who have commoditized their products creating public frustration with low quality and customer service. Our approach is to provide the highest quality products and customer service in new, exciting and creative ways while still being competitive with cost.
We are very fortunate that our technology and business backgrounds, enable us to take ideas from concept to full implantation in a very short period of time … even those requiring technology expertise like programming, e-mail, SEO and other specialties.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Brogen Photography – what should we know?
Our studio has four divisions (Portraits, Sports, Schools and Training). In our Portraits Division, we photograph business portraits, high school seniors, families, First Communion etc. Also with the recent addition of drone services to our studio, we have been able to extend our commercial and real estate service options. Our Sports Division focuses on both professional and amateur league photography. In addition, we specialize in very creative marketing sessions for athletes looking to showcase their skills to both college and professional organizations. Our newest service addition is our School Division where we break the mold on traditional school photography and challenge everyone in that market to raise the bar with our ground breaking approach. Our Training Division offers half-day photography workshops 6-8 times a year, as well as private mentoring sessions. Our workshops are geared toward the layperson with beginner and intermediate skill levels. A portion of the workshop is spent in class and then we round out the day with a mini photo safari. This allows our students to apply what they learned in class in real world situations.
By design, our approach is to specialize in not specializing. I firmly believe you can do many things at a very high level, as long as you put in the work to educate yourself. By not specializing and photographing numerous genres at a very high level, we are able to apply techniques learned in one vertical market to another. For instance, utilizing techniques learned for our creative portrait sessions in our Sports Division allows us to create imagery that no one else can in our portrait and school divisions. We are able to deliver a broad spectrum of service at a high level because we spend a LOT of time training and practicing our craft in every market we service. Also, with our extensive technology background, we are able to accomplish things with our equipment and offer services that other photographers simply can’t. We are known for our fun but professional approach which allows our clients to be themselves regardless of whether it is a “C” level executive, athlete, model, student or family.
We are very proud of our reputation for creating amazing imagery, delivered with the highest level of customer service at a reasonable price.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My family have all been huge supporters in everything that I have ventured to do. My talented and loving wife has been my rock and supported me in every phase of this business. I can honestly say that I could not and cannot do this without her. Our 3 children also love to help out with the business by being lighting assistants or entering orders into our system or even testing out new techniques. It is definitely a family business.
Contact Info:
- Address: 11 Bedford Street
Burlington, MA 01803 - Website: http://www.brogen.com
- Phone: 781-209-5888
- Email: info@brogen.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brogenphotography/
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BrogenPhotography
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrogenPhoto
Image Credit:
Brogen Photography
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