MEET SAVANNAH GRIMM // BRASSPENNY'S ASSOCIATE PHOTOGRAPHER

Have I ever told you how Brasspenny Photography started?

I was a young single mother, living at home with my parents while working as a waitress. To put it simply, I wanted more.

I wanted to be creative. I wanted freedom. I wanted to build something that fulfilled me and enabled me to provide for my little boy. So as I was trying to get this business off the ground, I photographed anyone who would let me near them and honed my craft. Ten years later, I have been blessed with more business than I know what to do with. It’s been that way for a while, honestly; I cannot even begin to tell you how grateful I am for that.

And that is why I’m so excited to announce that because of you, Brasspenny Photography is growing! I’d like to introduce you to my Associate Photographer, Savannah Grimm!

savannah_grimm_brasspenny_photography_nashville_0022.jpg

Savannah and I met during what she calls her “former life” as an On-Air Personality & Music Director at 107.5 The River in Nashville. We collaborated on a couple of pinup-inspired boudoir shoots, and now a couple of years later, I coerce her at least three times a week to sleep over at my house. My couch basically has a perfect imprint of her body at this point. :-)

But seriously: if it took me ten years to add a team member (!!!) then you know it means she has to be pretty special. Sav has the BEST personality, eye, and love for the job. She’s been shooting all of my photos for a while now, and I can’t wait to unleash her on all of you, too! In fact, some of you may have already met her at my summer mini sessions, where you would have seen her behind the scenes filming, fixing hair, adjusting babes’ outfits and doubling as a human buffet for every mosquito in Middle Tennessee.

After revealing this happy news, we hosted a Q&A via IG Stories to make sure that we filled you in on everything you wanted to know about Sav [+ what this means for Brasspenny moving forward]. We’ve got a full recap for you below, just in case you missed it!

Q: What does an associate photographer mean? Does this mean I can’t book with you now?
A: An associate photographer is someone who takes my place when I cannot be present; if I am fully booked, if you have a firm deadline, if we have no wiggle room and you’re trying to get your album ordered before your wedding — that kind of thing. Shooting with Sav is never going to be a surprise! That’s the most important thing that I want you to know — if you already have a session booked with me or if I’m booked for your wedding, nothing is changing. This is for anytime someone reaches out to me and I’m already fully booked.

Q: Will Sav be at all the boudoir shoots?! Will it be one of you shooting or both of you?!
A: It’ll probably be just one or the other shooting, but if you’re booked with me there’s still a strong probability that Sav will be around. She helps out behind the scenes and edits for me, and is happy to provide some extra hype anytime you need it. [And trust me, she’s an amazing hype girl.]

Q: How did you guys meet?
A: I met Sav when I was shooting her best friend Kati’s boudoir session a few years ago. Kati (like many of the babes that come to my studio) felt a little nervous and needed some moral support, so she brought Savvy along [see below for a pic of us from that day!]. After that, we collaborated on some pin-up shoots and had the best time together. We’re passionate about a lot of the same things: female empowerment, pin-up photography, motherhood, astrology — you name it! Striking up a friendship was the most natural thing in the world.

Q: How did Sav get into photography?
A: Savvy comes from a super creative family. You know how some kids play video games or play sports to entertain themselves? Sav’s idea of fun was to get dressed up and take pictures with + of her siblings. I noticed over the course of our friendship that not only was she super comfortable ON camera, she also had a fantastic eye behind it. I recruited her to help me execute some of my personal/creative shoots, and was obsessed with her energy and how good she made me feel.

Q: How did you know it was a good fit + how are you going to go about reassuring your clients?
A: Where do I start?! Perhaps most importantly, we love the same kinds of imagery + have similar taste, with the same ideas about how to pose women + highlight a babe’s best assets. This whole thing started small and very organically— she was helping me edit + answer DMs and as we went along, things got aggressively + progressively more awesome. And when she shot me, she gave me direction + made me feel amazing; it was all the things I did for my clients, and she was naturally inclined to do it. And here’s a secret for you: while I have the final sign off on every edit, we’ve been editing side by side for months now, and she’s been delivering beautiful photos to you before you even knew it! If you got your gallery back in the last six months, chances are Sav edited it. She’s shot with me, trained with me, edited with me, and I have every confidence in the world in her capabilities.

Q: Will Savannah be shooting everything, or just boudoir?
A: For now, Save is helping cover boudoir, maternity boudoir and solo portrait sessions. I’m still covering 100% of family sessions + engagement sessions + weddings, but Savannah will likely be there if there’s a second shooter.

Q: What if you’re fully booked, but I’d rather wait until I can shoot with you? Do you have a waitlist or any other options available? Can we request who we want to shoot with?
A: Feel free to check back in as needed! When you fill out the contact/session request form, tell us what [or who] you want and we’ll do our best to accommodate you!

Q: What kind of changes can we expect to see from this?
A: Sav’s presence will only bring about good changes! First, it’ll afford me the opportunity to maintain a more sustainable schedule. You have no idea how long I’ve been falling asleep on the couch, hugging my laptop at night. Well, no more. Because in addition to taking on shoots, Savannah will also help with editing and other behind the scenes stuff [which is going to make staying on top of turnaround times so much easier]. Plus, the luxury of working with someone who shares your vision means the creative juices are flowing AF. New ideas + a capable wingwoman to help bring them to life — what’s not to love?



Rachel Tenpenny