Meet Andrea Doss | Adventure Elopement Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Andrea Doss and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Andrea, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
I believe this new wave of elopements has become a wonderful force of change in the wedding industry, and it’s such an awesome thing to be a part of. In the past, traditional weddings tended to put a heavy focus on throwing a great party for the couple’s guests and making sure everyone was taken care of, while the couple themselves was placed on the back burner. Today, there’s still a lot of that negative mindset within the wedding industry, so I love that elopements have swooped in and quickly challenged that mentality. Elopements are all about making sure the couple can have the day of their dreams without any obligations or unwelcome pressure from other people, and it’s so awesome to see the freedom couples can experience by pursuing that. Not only does eloping give couples a safe space to connect with each other and create a day focused all around each other, but it also has some really great environmental benefits. Being an elopement photographer provides an opportunity for me to educate couples and their families on Leave No Trace, which is absolutely vital in protecting our world and ensuring these locations remain beautiful for decades to come. In addition, elopements are much more sustainable than big weddings and I think a lot of couples that are now of marrying age understand how important that is. Ultimately, being able to run my elopement photography business gives me the amazing opportunity to serve people well and contribute to a positive shift in the wedding industry, and I couldn’t be more grateful to be a part of that.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I fell in love with photography at age 8 when I took a disposable camera to summer camp, and it’s been an exciting uphill climb ever since I got my first DSLR in high school. It definitely wasn’t easy, but I had such a passion and love for creating art that I simply had to keep going. When I finally figured out at age 19 that working with couples was what I enjoyed most, I pursued a career in wedding photography. It didn’t take very long for me to realize I wanted more than what the traditional wedding industry had to offer, and that was around the same time that adventure elopements were gaining some popularity. Once the craziness of 2020 came about and more couples chose to go small, I saw so many couples begin to understand that they had a different option than what everyone else had always done, and it was such a cool thing to see. I had already felt a really strong pull towards elopements prior to that, so I took a lot of time to research the industry, invest in my education, connect with other creatives, hone in on my craft, and really make sure I knew what I was getting myself into before making such a big change. I photographed my first elopement in August of 2020, and I instantly knew it was what I wanted to do from now on. Standing there in the desert of Nevada at blue hour with the sweetest couple, it felt like my heart was on fire and I just had to do more of it. I announced my pivot to exclusively adventure elopement photography in December of 2021, and the last few months have been a lot of reflecting, putting out resources for couples who are considering an elopement, and growing in anticipation for what’s to come.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
When I’m not at home running the behind the scenes of my business or traveling for my work, I like to hike locally, go out to the nearby restaurants, see movies with my husband, and spend time with family and friends. Dayton has lots of great restaurants all over the area, and a couple of my favorites are Old Scratch Pizza, The Trolley Stop, and for some after dinner ice cream, Graeter’s.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’m so grateful for Adventure Instead and the educational resources they put out for photographers. The Elopement Photographer Course, The Art of Adventure Weddings and Elopements, and The How to Leave No Trace Course for Wedding & Elopement Photographers have all been pivotal in helping me grow in my craft and learn to give my clients the best experience possible. I attribute all of my passion and drive for what I do to God, and I’m so thankful that He’s given me a heart to help couples have an incredible wedding day by serving them to the best of my ability. Lastly, my wonderful husband has been so supportive and I couldn’t do what I do without his constant encouragement.

Website: andreadossphoto.com

Instagram: @andreadossphoto

Facebook: Andrea Doss Photo