My name is Janie Baylis.  I’m just an ordinary mom who has fallen into an extraordinary second career!  Ever since I was in elementary school, it seems that I always had a desire to capture every moment in film.  My friends even called me “Katie Kodak!”  No matter what I was doing, I always had a camera in my hand.  The problem with this, however, was that no matter how hard I tried, my photography efforts were incredibly frustrating.  This was due to having cheap point-and-shoot cameras!

Finally, one day I decided to take a huge leap of faith in myself and my photographic abilities.  I bought my first “real” camera and starting to take my pictures seriously.  At that time, I had no intentions of becoming a professional photographer.  I just wanted decent pictures of my children.  As soon as I started taking pictures with my new camera, I got what I was looking for--and more!   I was finally getting the photos of my children that I had envisioned.  Before long, friends started seeing my pictures and asking me to take photos of their families.  These led to other photography opportunities, which then led to me investing in a little more equipment.  Before I knew it, I starting charging for my services because people I didn’t know were seeing my work and calling to schedule photo shoots.  I decided to call my business “SNAPHAPPY photography” because my family always told me how “snap-happy” I was.

That was ten years ago.  I still feel that same incredible joy and excitement when I do a photo shoot.  It’s so much fun, and people are always surprised with the beauty that I find in all of their expressions--not just the “cheesy” ones.

We lived on the Mississippi Gulf Coast during the first seven years of my photography “career", and as you look through my photos, you will see that many of the photos on this website were taken in and around Ocean Springs, MS.  We moved to Prattville, AL, in June 2006, and I put my photography on the backburner for a few years while I tried to keep up with a stressful full-time career in sales while trying to also raise my children.  I slowed my business to a trickle of shoots and really started to miss it.  I recently shifted the focus of my career so that I could focus more on my family.  I am now serving as a part-time youth director at a local church and a part-time photographer with my business.

About Me