Twin Cities singles turning to professional photographers to ramp up dating profiles
More singles are turning to professionals to take their pictures for online dating apps in an effort to attract better matches.
"Who doesn't love a good picture of themselves," laughed Alecia Anderson of Champlin.
Anderson is taking a shot at love.
"I've had quite a few friends find success in dating online, so I decided to recently make that switch," said Anderson.
At 36 years old, she is seeking genuine connection.
"When I was initially making my profile, I was struggling to find pictures of myself. I felt like I had to crop all my friends out and nothing truly captured myself, my personality," explained Anderson.
Not long after, she noticed Shannon O'Malley's online dating photography on Instagram.
"As you get older, you take it more serious and so I thought I'd give it a try," said Anderson.
"It has become the biggest bulk of my business," said Shannon O'Malley, owner of
A professional photographer for over 15 years, O'Malley's focus for the last two-and-a half-years has been helping singles — ranging in age from 25 to 70 — create standout images for their dating profiles.
"These are people who are serious about getting out there and wanting to find love," said O'Malley.
O'Malley admits there is a stigma around hiring a professional to shoot dating profile photos.
"Yeah. Some people may not tell their friends or family that they're doing this, but then a lot of what I hear back is that once they get their photos back, they're proud to show them because they feel good," said O'Malley.
It's a feeling O'Malley says she needed when she stepped into the world of online dating in her 40s.
It led her to her husband of four years — and it helped her see her true self again, turning the camera on herself.
"It just gave me this profound empowerment of like oh, there I am. You kind of forget who you are sometimes in life after a bad relationship, or just playing the role of a mom or a sister or a caretaker. We can lose sight of ourselves easily," said O'Malley.
It's an important lesson O'Malley passes on to clients like Anderson in each one her shoots.
"It goes past the pictures, right? She makes you feel good and then you bring that into your every day and people can feel that good energy. The pictures have definitely worked for me but also, I feel so good about myself," said Anderson.
Shannon Kathleen Photography's online dating photograph packages start at $749.
