Meet Sarah & Elias | Film Photography Duo

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarah & Elias and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah & Elias, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
This applies to a lot of visual artists in general but one thing outsiders are probably unaware of in the photography industry is that posting on social media does not equal business. Followers, likes, and engagement do not directly translate to making money. Photographers are almost required in some sense to keep up with their social media engagement so they are not forgotten and yes you can have a ton of followers, you can have a good amount of engagement but that does not mean that you are even paying your bills. There are also many periods where there are no inquiries or very little at all. There are times when because we are in a ‘posting’ phase people think that we are drowning in work and that is not the reality. Many people like to look busy as a business strategy and we get it but for us, our posting schedule on socials does not always happen at the same time the work does, it is at MOST times simply finding the capacity to post.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
We are photographers! Mainly film photographers, and just recently finished building our darkroom for printing. We really do our best to stray away from attaching so much ‘identity’ to ourselves as a brand. We consider ourselves to just be two people who really love taking photos and finding beauty in the world. We believe that this kind of creative spirit exists within what we do, and we have a relationship with this creative spirit. Every relationship requires commitment and adaptability and because every part of life is interconnected and intertwined it ebbs and flows just like everything else in life. The are a lot of lessons we have learned, but maybe the biggest being that there are so many people in today’s world telling you how you should be or look or talk as a ‘brand’ as a ‘professional’ as an ‘artist’ but the truth is that none of that matters because if you want to do something you will because you will feel compelled to tell your story or perspective in any way that it wants to express itself. Has it been easy? Perhaps at times, it came easier to us than others, and at other times not so much. The most important thing to know is when to put it down and when to pick it up back up again and to not let anything or anyone tell you who you are and what you have to offer.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Love this question. We are currently in the Asheville area and have so many places we love.

Places we are bringing you to eat:
Breakfast/Brunch: All Day Darling, Regina’s Westside, Miami Diner
Lunch: Simple Cafe & Juice Bar for vegan eats/pastries and juices/smoothies
Lunch: Cousins Cubanos in Black Mountain
Dinner: Neng Jrs (A MUST TRY WHILE IN ASHEVILLE)
Dinner: La Rumba (Mexican)
Dinner: Pad Thai Asheville (Thai)
Dinner: Good Hot Fish
Bars: The Golden Pineapple ( must try the baja blast shot), Character Study Bar (books and cocktails), Anoche (tequila bar) Shakey’s (dive bar with pool tables) ALSO watch out for DayTrip reopening in 2025, a bar and community event space that does cool markets and art pop-ups.
Dessert: French Broad Chocolate Factory, The Hop (ice cream), and Old Europe (pastries/traditional desserts)
Coffee: High Five Coffee and Rowan, honorable mention for great coffee and good lunch items is Ultra Coffee in River Arts District and Pollen for beautiful flowers and amazing coffee.
Tea: Dobra Tea

Hikes: Black Balsam Knob, Bent Creek, The Arboretum, Catawba Falls (just to name a few), or just get on the Blue Ridge Parkway and take a day drive (one of our favorites)

Entertainment: Sky Lanes Bowling Alley, Grove Arcade, Pinball Museum
Books: Downtown News and Books, MalaProps, Firestorm
Thrifts&Goods: Atomic Furnishing, Sweeten Creek Antiques

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many people we could attribute our success, to but for starters

Sarah- Firstly my parents, who gifted me a camera at the tender age of 16. I also would like to thank Odelia Tov, the first person in my life who made me feel as if I had something to offer via photography.

Elias- I would like to thank my dad Terry Pittman, who raised me in a dark room and my high school photo teacher Lisa Holder, who taught me about alternative processing

Last but not least we would love to say thank you to two people collectively:

Terrence Richard, who without his support and acknowledgment of our work we are not entirely sure we would be exactly where we are today.

and Hannah Deese, a creative force in our world who has inspired us for many years and has been a well of support, not just for us but really for anyone who is doing something creative in her world.

Website: https://www.sarahandeliasphotography.com

Instagram: @saelphoto