Meet Keagan Phillips | Equine Photographer

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

Hi Keagan, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I was born and raised in a small town called Winter Haven, Florida, on a beautiful little 20 acre Ranch. My sister and I loved horses, and from a young age had the privilege of getting to ride and own them. My parents taught us that God, school and horses were our top priorities and we learned so many important life skills on that ranch — everything from responsibility and hard work, to appreciating the big and small opportunities in life. I’ve been able to take all those life lessons, combined with my love for horses, and create an Equine Photography business that I love and have real passion for!

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
While I’ve loved horses practically my entire life, my love for photography really started to bloom in college during my studies at Southern Methodist University. I took multiple photography courses including my favorites: a film class and photojournalism class. Through these classes, I realized I not only enjoyed photography but also had an eye for it. I took photos of my teammates on the Equestrian Team at SMU, took senior grad photos for friends on campus and began to dream of a photography business. My photography niche was a no brainer — combine my love for horses and my love for photography. I knew I wanted to have an Equine Photography business one day!

I quickly learned however, that a dream to have a business and actually starting one are two completely separate things. After graduating, I was hit with the harsh reality of needing to pay bills and make a living. Looking at the big picture, I realized that photography was, at the time, more of a hobby than a business. I had so much to learn to better my work and learn how to operate a truly successful business. I took a corporate sales job straight out of college and had very little time for photography. While I enjoyed the job at first, I really started to miss utilizing my creative strengths on a daily basis. After 3 years with the sales job, I was burnt out and ready for my next adventure. I took a job at my church on the video production team — while strengthening my videography & editing skills at work, I was finally able to start growing my photography business on the side. I worked both jobs until photography started taking off, regularly working 70+ hours a week between the two. In the late Spring of 2023, my Husband, Luke, and I knew I needed to make a decision on going all-in with photography — it was scary to let go of my secure job at the church that I loved, but man am I proud of making that leap! Creating & building Keagan Phillips Photography has been one of the hardest, but most rewarding adventures. Getting to capture a moment in time between a girl and her heart horse, a western couple in love on their ranch, or the beauty of a horse for their owner to display in their home — these things make me so giddy just thinking about them! Sometime I can’t believe this is really my job & business.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
We would have to cover a lot of ground to show them all my favorite places in DFW! But here is a list of some of my musts:

Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, dinner in the Stockyards and finish the night two-stepping at Billy Bobs.
Rent a party pontoon boat on Lake Ray Hubbard – party cove is the place to be on a summer day!
Dinner at Delucca Pizza is a must.
Night life on Lower Greenville – Truck Yard then a comedy show at Four Day Weekend.
Dinner (or Brunch) and live music at The Rustic.

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?
The list of shoutouts to those that have been by my side through launching and running Keagan Phillips Photography could go on and on — however this one has to go out to my husband, Luke! Without his love, support and encouragement in me, I wouldn’t have made the jump to go all in on my photography business a little over a year ago.

Website: www.keaganphillips.com

Instagram: @k.p.photog

Facebook: Keagan Phillips Photography

Image Credits
Photo of me with horse and camera (first upload) – Rylee J. Photography All other photos are my images – Keagan Phillips Photography