From Hiking Trails to Home Listings: Meet Kando Photo
From hiking trails to listings
Keith's love of photography started with an elective his senior year of high school. He enjoyed it but never saw it as a career. Decades later, he joined a local hiking group and started carrying a small waterproof camera on every adventure, sharing his photos online so others could see what he'd seen.
When his niece got engaged, she asked Keith to be her wedding photographer. His answer was a firm no. A wedding day can't be redone, and he wanted her to have a professional. He did promise to show up with a camera, though, and that promise sent him shopping for better gear. As he researched, his feeds filled with photography content, including a webinar on building a real estate media business. He signed up, loved it, and jumped in, right in the middle of COVID.
In 2022, Keith attended the program's first conference in Florida and met a couple who had just started their business together. His first thought: how amazing would it be to do this with his best friend?
“I’ve been waiting for you to say that”
At the time, Amanda was working in customer service, most recently in a job where she wasn't happy. In 2024, she went to the conference with Keith, and by the end she was ready. "What are we doing?" she asked him. "Let's just do this."
Keith's response told her everything: he'd been waiting years for her to see it.
God’s plan was better
The couple had a plan. Keith would leave his IT job first, and Amanda would stay in her role so they'd keep health insurance. Last summer, after hitting their business goals two months in a row, Keith was ready to turn in his notice. Then he called his dad, who asked all the hard questions about savings, slow seasons, and making ends meet. It wasn't what Keith wanted to hear, but he listened and waited.
Not long after, Amanda's job situation sped up her own exit. It pushed them to solve the health insurance question and freed Amanda to focus on networking. The business grew, and this past February, Keith left his job to join her full time.
"Not a way that I could have planned it," Keith said. "It's a perfect example of how we have our own plan, but God has other plans."
That faithfulness has continued month after month. Some months, the whiteboard calendar in their home office looks pretty empty, and they wonder how the bills will get paid. Every month, God has provided, often through people He has placed in their path at just the right time, including the community here at Needle's Eye.
Working Together
People warned the Kerseys that working with your spouse would be hard. They're still waiting for that part. "When is it supposed to get hard?" Keith laughed. After years of giving their best energy to other jobs, they now get to spend their days together, and Mondays have become something they actually look forward to.
Their secret is simple: say what's bothering you before it becomes friction, and say it with care. As Amanda put it, "It's all in the way that it's communicated."
Why pictures matter
Residential real estate is Kando Photo's bread and butter, and their message to agents is that the MLS is your first showing. They've seen the proof. One home they photographed is set to appear on HGTV this month after producers noticed it because of the photos. They've also heard from buyers who almost missed their perfect house because the listing photos weren't good enough to click on.
Along with photography, the Kerseys offer drone photography and video, a service that always grabs people's attention, and they are both licensed drone pilots. They also provide floor plans, custom property websites, and their popular Social 6 Pack, six videos agents can use to market a listing from coming soon to just sold. They serve the greater Richmond area and travel farther for a fee, and their referral program gives both the new client and the referring agent $100.
If you know a realtor who needs great listing photos, or you'd like to meet Amanda and Keith yourself, you'll often find them at Needle's Eye lunches. Learn more at kandophoto.com.
