Today we’d like to introduce you to Dylan Frank.
Hi Dylan, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
I’ve always been a huge fan of seizing the moment or capturing a memory through the lense of your Mobile Phone or a Polaroid or any way to take an event or activity and have a way to document it and have a way to look back at a positive moment in your life. When I was in 6th grade, I always enjoyed Instagram and YouTube due to the ability to upload videos or photos to tell a story or create reaction. I had always enjoyed being able to tell these stories and digest someone else story. From 6th grade onward to 10th grade, I had only made videos on YouTube of like memes or other silly inside jokes with friends, never really taking photos on my phone unless it was of a moment with a family or even a fun night out with friends, I was hungry for telling a story…
In 10th grade, I learned more about The Excel Tecc program, which offers multiple career-focused classes that you can learn more about a certain career path you’re interested in, such as learning about culinary, creating animations, how to run & operate a business, and in my case photography and videography. Following an interview and showing off my “edits” I have made of friends, and beating out over a hundred applicants, I was accepted into the two-year program. My mom was the most excited following my acceptance that she passed down one of her 12-year-old Canon Camera + 1 lense. She gave me a kickstart by passing down her old camera to me, and while it was 12 years old, it could take a picture, and that’s all that mattered to me. The thing with COVID that became a strong influence into the determination behind it was how COVID separated everybody away from others, and as a super social figure, it was hard to go to classes on Zoom & be able to hang around only a few people with masks & distance. As I learned from that program how to use and operate a DSLR camera professionally, I used that to my advantage to find an excuse to go out and see my friends… I would offer to do photoshoots for my friends. One of my good friends at the time has had a rough past with stuff in school & feeling welcome in school with insane amounts of bullying he faced for voicing personal opinions. On weekends, we would look for a place locally to go explore, go take some pictures, edit them, and over time have a small portfolio built & becoming a great model and friend of mine. They would pose for Air-soft, explore a vast variety of different neighborhoods, and even exploring local farms and taking shots with the sheep. From there, more and more of my friends enjoyed seeing the photos I was taking of them and eventually took notice to how much fun they looked. It felt almost like a paparazzi-style vibe every time I did shoots w/ friends in my hometown of Chagrin Falls.
From there, I wanted to grow and become almost an influencer with telling other people’s stories by taking photos and being able to grow my network. Continued from November thru April by working with local organizations such as The Chagrin Valley Chamber of Commerce, Chick-fil-A Solon’s Social Media Marketing Team, and eventually taking on two internships with Shape Cleveland & The Solon Chamber of Commerce.
Through Shape Cleveland, I have been able to directly focus on learning more about the process & ability to create & work on professional videos for many other organizations such as Cleveland Clinic, Wingspan, and CMSD. Through the Solon Chamber, I was focused on photography by going to networking events & capturing the enjoyment and excitement of being able to talk to real business owners & workers who can teach me more about running and owning a business. I also was able to network my way to more opportunities with those businesses by being able to take headshots for these business owners. Eventually, I created my own entity, Dylan Frank Media, just an my own entity providing Photo & Video solutions to businesses looking for solutions in Marketing their products. It has since been an absolute success with more and more connections growing every day.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Along the road of having Dylan Frank Media, I had faced a lot of challenges. I had many of my so-called “friends” doubt my capabilities to grow & take professional pictures. I was told by others that I shouldn’t be so overly confident. I faced many social challenges & even the restraints of working 30+ hours at my job in fast food. I really overcame these issues by going one step at a time. If I was going in the right direction, more opportunities opened up, and when I went the wrong direction, I just stepped back & went another direction.
I also had to learn how to be my own person rather than letting outside individuals & voices tell me how to do what I wanted to do. I had to take constructive feedback strong & honestly face negativity of people head-on with an open mind. I used to be against the world, and I feel I am now working with the world.
We’ve been impressed with Dylan Frank Media, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Dylan Frank Media is a student-run Media Solution Organization focused at this moment on providing high-quality photo and video solutions to a company/individual’s issues. It is run by the only employee, me, but do offer smaller “gig work” for those who follow along or are interested in opportunity. For example, one of my friends who also is strong in photography and videography has recently gotten a position to work part-time with Healing with the Horses as a Social Media Coordinator, not only growing his strengths in both photo & video but also understanding trends and social media through working professionally as a student. What sets this organization apart of others is the resources granted such as flexibility, connections to other students eager to work & contribute, and the ability to grow as a professional in High School. We tell the stories of organizations with ease & enjoyment. I am so proud of how this brand has grown, even as its presence online has been extremely limited (even though drives in business in today’s day & age come from a majority online) I’m unsure if it’s my personality or the fact I know how to use a camera that keeps my clients happy & coming back, but something is working well and I wanna keep it like that. If you’re a viewer and you’re looking for something as simple as some family portraits & headshots to a full-on video production shoot, let’s make it happen.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Yes, I felt that COVID has made this 1 on 1 conversations more special and important by reminding us of the importance of human connection. It was really hard to get clients by emailing or texting them, but through creating that experience through being extroverted and asking questions, and being curious gets you engaged and excited clients.
Pricing:
- Headshots are $50 flat, no add ons at all for additional edits or touch-ups
Contact Info:
- Email: dylan@dylanwfrank.com
- Website: dylanwfrank.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dylanwfrank/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DylanWFrank
