Samantha Hayes shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Samantha , thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What is a normal day like for you right now?
Mornings don’t start with an alarm clock, they start with my son’s foot in my face, and then snuggles when he gets right. From there it’s matcha (or Alani, depending on how strong I need to be), answering emails between sensory activities, editing photos during snack breaks, and remembering I also run a full-time photography business on top of full-time motherhood. Oh, and if it’s Monday that also means chemo. I make sure to kiss my husband on his way out the door so he doesn’t feel left out of our organized chaos. 🤣
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a full-time lifestyle photographer and full-time mom, which basically means my days are a mix of snack breaks, edits, and chasing good light. My brand is rooted in capturing life as it really feels—messy, beautiful, and full of connection. I’m not after perfect poses; I want the in-between moments—the belly laughs, the wild toddler hair, the chaos, and the love that makes each story unique.
Walking through cancer has only made life feel phenomenally more precious. It shifted how I see the world and how I approach my work—I don’t just take photos, I freeze time for people. The tiny moments that might feel ordinary now become extraordinary when you look back. My clients walk away with images that aren’t just pretty pictures, but reminders of how deeply they’re living and loving, right now.
Currently, I am expanding more into birth photography. There is something really majestic about a woman that place, experiencing life come into the world and pausing that memory for someone else. I’m a mother, I know what it is to hold my new baby and what it is to forget what that felt like.
It will always and forever be the greatest honor of my life to be entrusted with the memories of others.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
So, it only feels right to say that before I answer this question… my parents did the best that they could with the information that they had. This is not a slight on them as much as it is a blooming of myself. I’m a neurodivergent person, I have AuDHD which didn’t even have the right label in the early 90s. There are so many things especially with women that go completely misdiagnosed and I honestly didn’t have a correct diagnosis until I was 33. So that aside,
I was raised in environments that called for very rigid very specific perception-driven responses.
And when you’re not only a child, but a little bit wild, colorful and bright and you’re the only person in your life that is that way…you believe you’re the problem. I wasn’t like the other people around me, the people meant to guide me didn’t have answers. I didn’t feel like I could really open up or be myself in any situation because I was always too much or too loud or too opinionated… Too … something 🤷🏽♀️
But now I see that all of those too’s are mostly just my creativity and passion. They hold my ability to learn new skills and tasks incredibly quickly and it’s not always conventional, but it is always incredible.
What’s something you changed your mind about after failing hard?
Before I became a photographer I went to culinary school. I love food, I actually really do love to cook. I wasn’t cut out for the culinary industry because I know now that I am a different kind of creative but at the time I remember feeling so dejected that this thing that I loved so much just wasn’t working out and everyone was really mean and I had developed a smoking habit just so that I could take a moment to myself. It also just isn’t a lifestyle that is conducive to having a family until you get into the higher ranks and I was still at the bottom and all I could think about was maybe having a baby one day and not being able to take care of that baby because I had dinner service 🤣
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely.
I truly don’t have the time and energy to create a public persona and a private persona. THEN keep those personas separated.
I’m just Sam 🤣
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I pray that one day my son looks at my life and at the very least acknowledges that everything I did or do is in authenticity of myself and teaching him to be his authentic self.
I hope that if I don’t live to see it someone tells him that I continued even when I was in a near fatal car accident or when I had cancer or through my generational trauma. I chose to heal and continue.
I would be lying if I told you there are days I can’t get up or that I don’t want to or that seem unfair because I’m only 35 and I feel like my life is really just beginning and also kind of ending.
I hope I can be a bright spot “If Sam could do that, I can do this”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://samihayesphoto.myportfolio.com/work
- Instagram: @samihayesphoto
- Facebook: Samantha Hayes Photography
- Other: TIKTOK @samihayesphoto
Image Credits
The images are all mine.
Samantha Hayes Photography
