How One Photographer’s Engagement Shoot Became a Viral Hit

It’s not every day that a photographer is asked to shoot her clients as they hang upside down. Or suspended from ropes. Or holding the “I Said Yes” sign while doing a headstand. But Cricket Whitman of Cricket’s Photography was up to the challenge. For her engagement shoot with Crossfit enthusiasts Iliana and Joe, she captured an incredible, gravity-defying set of poses. Her phenomenal photos went viral and were covered by The Huffington Post, People, BuzzFeed, and Cosmopolitan. We sat down to talk to Cricket about the Crossfit shoot, its popularity, and how she uses Animoto in her photography business.

The Concept

Initially, Iliana and Joe planned to do their whole engagement shoot by a lake. But then the couple mentioned they’d like a couple shots at the box where they do Crossfit. “They were very apprehensive about the idea, but I assured them I thought it was an awesome idea. So what was going to just be a few photos ended up being half of their session!”

The Shoot

The couple developed the poses themselves. That didn’t mean it was easy to shoot. According to Cricket, “I did have to be very quick and try and get it right the first or second time because most of the poses they couldn’t hold long. And some of them I definitely didn’t want to have to ask them to do again.”

Going Viral

Cricket posted a sneak peak of Iliana and Joe’s shoot on her Instagram account. The Huffington Post saw it and contacted her, asking to see more photos. She quickly edited her images and gave them to the media outlet, along with her couple’s contact info. When the Huffington Post ran its article featuring Cricket’s photos, it racked up more than 45,000 likes on Facebook and was shared more than 2600 times.

After the Publicity

“After Huffington Post went live with the article, it was a media frenzy for us,” Cricket said. She was contacted by People Magazine, Buzzfeed, The Daily Post, Cosmopolitan Magazine (and Animoto.) Unsurprisingly, the press has been great for business. “Lots of our couples even shared articles they would see and say ‘These are our photographers!’”

Right now, Cricket’s business is booming, and she’s busy photographing weddings, including Iliana and Joe’s — the couple tied the knot this April. In their photographs, they re-created one of the Crossfit poses — this time in a gown and tuxedo instead of workout gear.

Using Animoto in her Business

Cricket is an Animoto fan, with several Animoto videos on her website. “We have been using Animoto for many years and love it! It’s such an easy way to make a dramatic presentation of the images for our portrait and wedding clients. And we use the video as something extra they can purchase — an upsell to getting the next package or as a bonus for booking. There’s nothing better than seeing your images put to music to touch the heart strings. I have even used it personally for our kids’ end-of-year videos in all their classrooms . . . and with 4 kids that saves a lot of time!”

Cricket Whitman and her husband, Sean, run Cricket’s Photography in Central Florida. Check out their website, including marketing videos created with Animoto, at https://www.cricketsphoto.com/.