Carly Lenhardt ‘26, a journalism student and Mercer beach volleyball player, has been building her photography business for seven years. The freelance photographer specializes in graduation photos every spring semester while balancing her craft with the responsibilities of being a student athlete.
She said some of her teammates knew her by her social media handle – "Shotsbycarly" – and website before they knew her as Carly Lenhardt.
Carly Lenhardt '26 practices a variety of photography types. She said she recently took up street photography during a summer trip to Italy. Photo provided by Carly Lenhardt '26.
Lenhardt picked up photography during a yearbook class she took in high school, and she got her first camera for Christmas in 2020. But soon after that, photography turned into something more meaningful because she lost access to another of her hobbies.
The Vero Beach, Fla. native tore her ACL in her junior year of high school, forcing her to the sidelines and away from competitive beach volleyball.
Lenhardt pursued photography to keep her tied to the familiar world of sports instead of letting the setback push her away entirely. She began photographing beach volleyball matches and selling tournament images for $5 each. The gigs led her to eventually distribute business cards and place watermarks on her images to ensure proper payment.
"Having a keen understanding of the sport is very important. It helps you predict movements and anticipate players to watch," Lenhardt said. "On the flip side, being on the sidelines due to injury taught me that there’s a lot to my sport I didn’t know and taught me a whole new perspective about the game."
Lenhardt said this new avenue opened her eyes to realize that “it didn’t have to be volleyball all the time.”
Her technical skills and business developed in tandem. Lenhardt began producing vertical videos for businesses, creating ad packages and taking on commissioned projects.
She worked with Beach Prospects, Vero Beach Volleyball and BVNE to produce videos and photos. Lenhardt was also a sports marketing intern for Platform 14400, an organization co-founded by three-time Olympian gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, for the P1440 National Championship.
"I made videos for several beach volleyball athletes to support their NIL partnerships," Lenhardt said.
She created media kits for non profits in Vero Beach as a marketing and communications intern for the Indian River Community Foundation. Lenhardt shot photography for Mercer Athletics and videos for her volleyball team, produced a 30-second explainer video for Traffick Jam's 10-year celebration and photographed for the Macon Magazine.
Carly Lenhardt '26 makes client satisfaction a priority during her photography session, traveling around multiple locations across campus to capture photos that represent Mercer students' time on campus. Photo provided by Lenhardt.
Her photography venture has been so successful that Lenhardt was recently able to purchase new equipment.
“I got a new camera, I upgraded my gear,” she said. “It’s a legit investment into my future of photography.”
Lenhardt has a background in sports photography and photojournalism, which requires her to be a "silent observer with a camera."
She lived in Italy last summer and practiced street photography under Alessandro Galatoli. Lenhardt said shadowing a photographer who specializes in fine art was transformative to her approach.
"It’s all about orchestrating the shot, which means being more intrusive to create a moment instead of waiting for it," she said. "It’s more of approaching it as creating something that’s not there."
Lenhardt said the experience expanded the types of photography she gravitates towards.
“It doesn't just have to be events, portraits,” she said. “It can be everyday life.”
Photography is more than just a business for Lenhardt. She said she is passionate about producing work that clients will love.
“I want you to have the best pictures of yourself as possible,” she said. “I just want to be your friend, not as much contracted. It’s very relaxed.”
Her standard graduation shoot package totals to roughly $300 after about two hours of shooting photos in multiple locations on campus. Clients, she said, can then expect to receive at least 50 edited images that have her self-described vibrant and light style.
She also offers group sessions, priced at $50 per person for groups of four. Lenhardt said she adjusts rates depending on group size and requests.
Clients can start booking sessions as soon as preferable, she said, and her availability is made on a first come, first served basis.
