Rising Stars: Meet Cheyenne Crawford of Buckhead

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cheyenne Crawford.

Hi Cheyenne, 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 backstory with our readers?
I grew up in a small town in middle GA, where we raised livestock on our humble family farm, and I spent my free time reading, exploring the forests, and riding horses any chance I got. I think that’s where I first developed a deep craving for beauty and great storytelling. Throughout childhood, my education was of highest priority. Striving for academic excellence has always fueled my high standards of performance and my competitive nature. I’m a small town girl at heart, who’s always had big dreams to see the world and make something beautiful with my life.
I moved to Atlanta in 2015, where I attended Georgia Tech. Growing up I’d believed my path was through academics: to become a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. Never did I believe I’d become a creative for a living, despite my early love for photography. I have vivid memories of my grandmother telling me that to pursue a living in photography was to become a “starving artist,” and I believed her, until the world shut down in 2020.
Disillusioned by the path set before me by academia, I picked up my camera during lockdown for the first time in years. In high school, I’d always managed to hustle up extra cash taking senior portraits and family photos, and in college I’d taken to street photography as a hobby.
I never expected the opportunity to make my living as a photographer, but when I discovered real estate photography through a family connection, I knew right away that I found a calling worth pursuing. It was my “ikigai” – the perfect intersection of my strengths and passions, and I could get paid for it?! I was hooked immediately. My analytical brain loves the methodology and structure, my artistic brain loves the creativity that could be discovered in restraint, the people-person in me loves the clientele: Realtors and their clients.
Over the past 6 years, I’ve spent nearly every day capturing homes. It’s been an epic adventure meeting new people and exploring the diverse communities that make Atlanta into such an interesting place to live. My lifelong love for learning is continually renewed in refining my processes, building my client list, investing in my skills and my business, and slowly discovering my creative voice. I’ve learned countless lessons the hard way, struggled to find my way as a first-time entrepreneur, and forged precious relationships with my peers nation-wide.
Today I’m honored and fulfilled to collaborate with some of the biggest names in Atlanta real estate, a few creative agencies that are pushing the boundaries of digital marketing, and other creative entrepreneurs who inspire me with their enormous talents.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Absolutely not. Frankly, it’s been struggle pretty much all the way through, but historically, that’s been a zone where I thrive. From childhood, I learned immense resilience from my experiences.
That resilience has carried me through long days, sleepless nights, failures big & small. It’s fueled me to never stop striving, to never stop fighting for a better life, and to make my family proud. I’m one of the few female entrepreneurs in a male-dominated field, but I’ve turned being underestimated into my own unique advantage.
Knowledge is power, and I’ve learned failure is the most effective teacher. Learning to fail and accepting failure in stride has probably been the biggest struggle of my career thus far. It’s actually easy to beat yourself up for every mistake, what’s hard is to take responsibility for what you may have done wrong without internalizing the idea that there is something wrong with you.
For that reason and so many more, building a successful business is not for the faint of heart. It’s challenging in new & surprising ways every day. Clients will test your patience, employees will break your heart, advancements in industry will make you question your entire business plan.
Have a clear vision for the future and keep your heart and mind set to that true north. Keep your blinders on, because there will be distractions, naysayers, and fears that creep in if you’re not mindful of them. Defeat claims only those who submit to it, so as long as you don’t give up, you always have a fighting chance.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a photographer, a cinematographer, a creative director, and I’m obsessed with all things marketing. I specialize in spaces, places, and people — particularly in real estate, interior design, architecture, and hospitality.

My clients know me for my artistic approach to marketing luxury properties, meticulous attention to detail in my work, and unique perspective on building local brand recognition in an ever-changing digital landscape. I’m always thinking 10 steps ahead, anticipating needs, pushing creative boundaries, and going the extra mile that other photographers/videographers don’t consider. Real estate media in particular has gotten quite formulaic, but my passion is always in crafting something different & creating narratives that captivate.

I’m incredibly proud of the people I get to work with from clients to collaborators. Watching so many of my clients’ businesses flourish over the years we’ve worked together gives me joy, and I take the privilege of representing their business very seriously. It’s truly a team effort, because without great client preparation my work is nothing. The editors, agencies, and creatives I’ve had the privilege of collaborating with continually amaze me with their talent, and what we create together is a deep well of pride and inspiration for me as well.

Furthermore, I’m proud of the diversity of projects I’ve been able to capture: dozens of celebrity homes, “The Versailles of the South” — one of the state’s most expensive listings in it’s history, multi-thousand acre estates, and award-winning architecture across the city.
Much of this work has been published in Architectural Digest, Dwell, Luxe, and many more notable periodicals, and I’m excited that my photography will be published on my first coffee-table book cover this year. I’ve had the honor to speak at the biggest RE Media industry conference, PMRE, in Las Vegas twice, to hundreds of my peers from all over the world.

Lastly, I think what sets me apart from others the most is my clarity of vision and deep care for the client and the results they receive. My work is deeply personal to me, and I will go to great lengths to achieve the creative vision in my mind’s eye. Regardless of the project scope, I approach every shoot with my utmost effort..Anything but excellence is draining and unfulfilling for me.

What’s next?
I’m looking forward to going deeper into my craft and forging fresh perspectives on what my field can be. I hope to cultivate more opportunities that inspire me, capture projects that provide the space and time to do my best work, and attract people into my life that care as much as I do about intentionality in their businesses, and providing service that goes above and beyond the standard. Further diversifying my portfolio is important to me in the coming years, so I’m looking forward to applying my expertise in innovative ways to new industries.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheyennecrawford.photo/

Image Credits
Images of Cheyenne credited to Emily Hart, Connor Leland.
All other images are Cheyenne’s work.