Meet Andre Tillman of ShotByDre Studios in Midtown

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’ve always been creative but I guess my creativity started really to kick in when I was in high school. I was 15 on MySpace connecting with people and current friends in the states for the first time. I was growing up in Okinawa Japan for six years until I graduated in 2007 from Kadena High School. It was also the first time I was exploring Photoshop and became popular because I was designing and coding my own page. Only the cool kids did that haha. I was a full-fledged graphic designer after a couple of years. I became the Design Layout Editor of the school paper and eventually kept the title when I walked the halls of Norfolk State University in Norfolk, Virginia.

By that time, I knew I wanted to study Journalism. What people really don’t know is that Journalism isn’t just subject to writing articles, reporting, etc. Although I still did those things to contribute to the paper, I took an interest in covering the visual aspect of it all and became passionate about it. I graduated with a concentration in Public Relations. After graduation, my title upgraded to Creative Director at Music Theory Studios after interning for a semester. As the four years progressed, I was harboring my skills in Graphic Design, Web Design, Photography, and some video editing. When I realized it was time to move on after falling out of love with Virginia, I decided to take a leap. I felt like it was the right time to add some chapters to the book. Out there some of us say ‘Oh, you decided to get out the trap?!’ JUMP!

I decided to go somewhere that I actually wanted to be. From previous years, I’ve always been attracted to Atlanta but never took a chance to breathe it in. Three years later, here I am…wielding my Canon 70D, still the creative that I’ve been…but better.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Smooth? Ha! Let’s talk about how I had to relearn how to drive a stick shift to make my way down here. I thought it was gonna be a bit easier than it was but somewhere along the way, ambition met reality. I first moved here with the intent of just working. In order to do the work I do, I have to have funds to fuel the dream. I can say in my first 30 day trial of living here, Never in my life have I experienced so many No’s. Rejection was had never been so real…rejection from jobs, and rejection from myself. The toughest rejection I had was when I wanted to work as a content designer for this company.

I passed all the initial interviews. I excelled the phone interview and killed the in-person interview. I was personable in telling my story and the CEO really liked me. He filled me with so much hope that I just knew I got the job! I told my parents and everything. Listen, when I got the email, I thought twice about deleting it…and I rarely delete emails. “I’m afraid that we’re going to pass on you. This was not easy because I really liked your abilities and your energy. Ultimately though, I don’t think we’re going to be enough for you. I think you are destined for bigger things NOW.” I held on to those words because maybe he was right; respectively it could’ve been something that they tell everybody they deny. So, back to the drawing board.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about ShotByDre Studios – what should we know?
ShotByDre is the persona/brand name I took on when I bought my first camera in 2011. I dabble in a bit of everything but specialize in editorial/lifestyle photography. I like to incorporate some graphic design in my photography, and I tell a story through the aesthetic. I really like to do some conceptual editorials, for more relatable messages based on music or a certain feeling.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I don’t believe I’d be at this point without support–support from God, my friends, and my family. I’ve had many supporters, starting with my parents. After letting them know I wanted to move, they were pretty much behind me. Dad made sure, me and my brothers knew ‘We want yall to just do your thing, ultimately.” Mom doubled down and just wanted to make sure “The kids are alright.” She always told me to never undersell myself. Whenever I would start doubting myself or spinning into a negative state, my twin brother, Anthony, would always whip me back into shape. Being part of similar trades, he was the only one who really understood what I was going through.

When I was working at Music Theory Studios, I was fortunate to have Jazzarae Jones mentor me as a boss, but later as one of my favorite people; a confidante. She made sure I knew when to push past my comfort zone in order to succeed. She taught me how to be patient…like stupid patient haha. I like to think we pretty much grew up together in a sense. Jazzarae was really the first one to see my potential.

Since I’ve been in Atlanta, I’ve been fortunate to intern under celebrity photographer, Derek Blanks at Derek Blanks Productions.  Before, I had no idea of how studio photography worked! In a course of two years and some change, I’ve gained my confidence for studio photography and even have been inspired to revisit video production. This also led to being published for the first time by Kontrol Homme magazine.