Hi! My name is Mandy Daly and I am a "Painter of Light",

Education
I graduated from Southern Illinois University in May of 2009 with a Major in Photography and a Minor in Journalism.

I spent 7 years primarily studying Photography, but also Graphic Design, & Photojournalism at SIUC. It was a very productive and intense 7 years but this is because I wanted to glean as much as possible out of my education! I love exploring different ways to light people, in and out of the studio! I stayed after graduation to work in Advertising Production at the Daily Egyptian and quickly became Manager of that department holding that position for the entire school year. Then the Daily Egyptian presented me with the highly respected Best Supporting Role Award for my diligent and meticulous work throughout the year. I finished up May 2010 and registered my business with the state June 2010!


Since SIU & the DE...

I started my photography business from scratch and continue to grow and evolve. I opened my business in Summer of 2010 at my place in New Burnside, a small town in rural Southern Illinois.  Since then I have been hired for a vast array of work including many portraits, photographed cabins all over So ILL for their webpages, a political campaign, sports and dance teams, all the bands at Moonstock Festival (including Ozzy Osbourne himself), and even built a stellar live music photography portfolio! I am now very happily engaged and have closed down my home studio. We plan to build a separate space for one in the future.


Variety is the spice of life! 

I never want to loose my constant drive and desire to learn more, try new techniques, as well as continually evolve and improve my works. 

I am up for nearly any photographic project! I am interested in doing music & commercial projects as well as portraits. Although I am thoroughly skilled with lighting in the Studio I also utilize that knowledge for my specialty, On Location portraiture in scenic Southern Illinois. I love to find unique places in the area to photograph people in, so just ask me! Commercial Photography experience includes, interior/exterior/detail shots for websites of many local area Cabins, several Carbondale Apartment Complexes, a Nail Salon, many other local businesses, and even a Political Campaign. Through my time at SIU I spent 5 years at the Daily Egyptian Newspaper doing a lot of photography for the Advertising department of the paper. I also created ads and promo photography for the social media page of a local cocktail bar I managed for 2 years.


Next to photography my other great love is music!

What better way to live than combining my 2 favorite things in life, Photography & Music, whether its shooting a live concert or creating promotional photos for a band, it is truly my dream. I love attending concerts & for me, live music especially, can be such a magical and healing experience.  Mom & I made it into Devour The Day's video for Respect & even met Aaron Lewis in Nashville before his show in 2014.  I have photographed quite a few artists performing LIVE including; Avenged Sevenfold, Breaking Benjamin, Ozzy Osborne, Zakk Wylde, Halestorm, Heart, Sheryl Crow, Social Distortion, Five Finger Death Punch, Andy Black, just to name a few! I went to the last 3 years of Warped Tour and photographed a ton of bands each time! I am fortunate to be marrying into a family that loves music as much as I do! My fiancee Danny Brown is incredibly talented and has spent years traveling the country performing with Secondary Modern as their drummer and backing vocals.  He has been involved in many many bands over the years, he is currently in Buzzzard (Carbondale, IL) as their bassist along with a new project, est. July 2023, called Family Bags (Paducah, Ky) as their drummer and backing vocalist. I have done a lot of live photography and promo work for both bands.
 Follow Me on INSTAGRAM @mandydalyphotography


Published Works

- Click on Links to View Work
I have taken photos for and have been published in the Daily Egyptian Newspaper and Gameroom Pinball Magazine. Other commercial projects include photographs of the interior and exterior spaces for Big Creek Cabins, Willowbrook Cabins, and Carbondale apartment complex websites and in their advertising. Blend A capella hired me to do the artwork for their Christmas Album and show advertisements. I have also worked with models for AlitiFashions Clothing Line. I photographed the models on location for AlitiFashions website and promotions as well as their spring fashion show. I also photographed AlitiFashions & Ford Model Tobi Faith Seriki for her portfolio. Links to these websites can be found on the Portfolio page of this site.

Interests: 

I like being outdoors and having fun with my close circle of friends!  Summer is my favorite time of the year because I love swimming, boating, fishing, gardening, pickling, foraging for mushrooms, blackberries, and early summer greens. We love to travel and plan to tour the country with my fiancee's music and I'll do photography. I absolutely love going to Music Festivals, and live music in general. We have a great music scene in the area and we love to support it! My fiancee's family owns John Brown's on the Square located in Marion, IL. It has been voted by the people of So. ILL as Best Live Music Venue several years running now! They have rock and blues based bands from all over the country. We both pick up shifts and help out where we can with the family business. I show my artwork and live concert photography there every 3rd Wednesday of the month for Ben by Ben West our Local Art & Multi-Artist Live Music Showcase! My happy place is enjoying bird and animal watching from my front porch on a beautiful day. I'll take my time tending to my plants while my little dog wanders about the yard and then I'll grill fresh veggies and local meat into the sunset. Once the sun is down all my solar lights begin to kick on, I turn the string lights on, and visit with my loved ones while listening to music, the crickets, and frogs. Those are my favorite days...


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