I’m Shayan Ather and I founded this business in 2016. Photography was a hobby of mine when I was younger and later on, it turned into a way of earning a livelihood during financially tough times. I kept learning more and more about it as I worked, and soon, it became a deep passion, which led me to start my studio.

I had two dreams for my company. One, that it should be women-led and two, that it should offer high-end services. While we did cover corporate events, fashion photography etc, our speciality was weddings where our approach of ‘storytelling’ through high-quality photography/videography really appealed to the clients.

Women make up most of my staff and I strive to create a flexible work environment for them as I understand the challenges women face everyday. My company has a strong social media presence due to the visual nature of the work. It helps in showcasing all of our best and relevant work, which, in turn, helps the business. All of these factors have helped establish us as one of the leading wedding-coverage firms in Pakistan.

Then the pandemic struck and business suffered. Weddings were almost non-existent and I had to rethink my whole business plan. We introduced new coverage packages which were more relevant during those times. Like changing our core speciality from luxury weddings to intimate family gatherings, family portraits and festive celebrations. In addition, I also offered photography and videography courses. All this combined with our social media presence actually gave us a 12% growth during the pandemic, which was an unexpected and pleasant surprise during those otherwise tough years. While I’m happy that my business decisions were sound and successful ones, I’m happier that our work spread some good cheer and warmth all around.