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

Hi Jesse, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
Growing up I knew I would never be able to tolerate working a “normal” 9-5 job. I did not like the idea of doing the same thing every day. In high school, I had 2 jobs that only lasted a few months due to lack of interest. The money was nice, but it wasn’t enough to motivate me. I spent most of my time at home teaching myself Photoshop, Web Design and how to build and repair computers. While I was at school, I did the same thing.

At the time I was going through severe depression and did not participate in anything during class, ultimately failing the 9th grade. However, I also attended a vocational school (CAT Pickering in Phoenixville, PA) for half the day when I wasn’t at the high school. There I was taking a web/graphic design class for 3 hours a day. Since I had spent a lot of time teaching myself, I was already far ahead of the class. My teacher (Al Tucker) saw my potential and allowed me to put my headphones on and teach myself whatever I wanted each day. He just asked that I show him what I did and he would always give me a 100/100. There were even a few instances where I taught the class what I had learned.

One day we had to do a research project that I participated in. We were asked to research a career that involves what we like to do in that class. That’s when I discovered that I could make a good salary doing what I already love to do all day.

I ended up advancing to 10th grade at CAT Pickering but staying in 9th grade at the high school. Outside of school I had a few individuals and small businesses interested in paying me for odd jobs involving design and computers. About halfway through the school year I ended up dropping out. I tried night school for a few hours but that didn’t last long. My mom wanted me to do something so she enrolled me in a program to prepare me for a GED. I passed and ended up enrolling at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online for a web design diploma.

Similar to high school, I was already far ahead of what they were teaching and I graduated with a 4.0 GPA. At the time, I would have just been graduating high school (2007). After the diploma, I started to enroll for my associates degree. At the same time, I started paying my student loans. After seeing what I was paying I realized it wasn’t worth paying for years of education when I could teach myself what I didn’t already know in half the time. Job offers continued to increase and I decided I would focus on developing a small business and continue to teach myself along the way.

After a couple years of web development and IT work, a friend let me borrow his DSLR. After a short time I developed a passion for photography and saved up to buy my first DSLR (Canon Rebel XTi). I started attending all types of public events and taking photos. Along the way I met several people who offered me job opportunities. I continued with web design and IT services as I learned more about photography. As my photography skills increased and gear improved, I worked my way up into bigger jobs and events. I had landed a few pretty big jobs like photoshoot for the Jonas Brothers and traveling around the country to photograph the Philadelphia Eagles.

By this time I had already come up with a simple name for my business and had a website to showcase my work, but I never got much business from my website. I was okay with that and never tried to get more exposure online. I continued to get plenty of work through word of mouth and I had established annual agreements with a few clients that would guarantee monthly work.

During this time, I was also doing a lot of traveling around the country. I was teaching photography workshops at various national parks and taking the opportunity to explore states I haven’t been to. By the time I was 27, I had visited all 48 contiguous states. This experience sparked a new fire that drives me to continue exploring the world.

Recently I purchased a new camper van with everything needed to live including a bed, shower, kitchen and toilet. I set up a small office area inside the van and now spend a lot of time traveling. With the office in my van, I am able to work remotely. I typically go out for a hike or bike ride, come back and do some work, then head back out. It’s a great balance and creates space in my mind to focus on work when needed. As I mentioned, since high school I did not like doing the same thing every day. While I may work at a computer every day, it’s always something different and most important to me is that when I look out my office window, I see a different beautiful landscape every day.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I have a passion for landscape photography. Sunrise, sunset and the night sky are my favorite times to photograph. The Southwest US interests me the most so I spend a lot of my time exploring and photographing the four corner states.

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.
I would take them to Moab, Utah. Our days would involve mountain biking, backcountry exploring in a UTV, hiking, camping and kayaking. Breakfast at the Moab Diner is a must. We would also stop by Monument Valley to experience Navajo living in the valley with a Navajo family I am close friends with.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My Graphic and Web design teacher from CAT Pickering, Al Tucker (Mr. Tucker) Todd Bauders, Contrast Photography – Many years of teaching me about sports and portrait photography

Website: https://jcsdesignphoto.com

Instagram: offroadrevel / jessesimmersphoto

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessesimmers

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