On February 6, Mia Kayser walked into a hair salon in her Los Angeles neighborhood with her camera and asked if they wanted photos. “I’m literally shaking,” she told her phone on the way in. It went well, and she kept going. Nine months and 18 filmed “days” later, the photographer behind @miakayserphoto has pitched record stores, cafes, flower shops and pop-ups, booked work from some of them and inspired other photographers to try it too.
At a glance
- Name: Mia Kayser
- Based in: Los Angeles (since 2016)
- Shoots: Portraits, brands, events, graduation, family and couples
- Experience: About nine years in business, started at UCLA
- TikTok: about 2,000 followers, 19,300 likes
- Handle: @miakayserphoto (TikTok and Instagram)
Who is Mia Kayser?
Mia Kayser is a Los Angeles photographer who shoots portraits, brands and events, and her bio promises to share “what I’ve learned over my 9 year career.” Photography has been her constant since she was 12, when her dad gave her his Canon 10D for her birthday, she writes on her website. She was born in Taiwan, grew up moving between Singapore, Shanghai, California, Beijing and Indiana, and came to Los Angeles for college. She started her business as a UCLA student taking graduation portraits and has since photographed hundreds of families, graduates and couples.
What is her door-to-door series?
Her TikTok took off with a simple, scary idea: walk into local businesses and pitch yourself in person. On day one she planned to hit just two businesses “because I’m scared and overwhelmed at the thought of getting rejected.” The first was Goo, a hair salon, where she met the owner and “instantly fell in love with her.” The second, a vintage shop, didn’t need photos but wanted to stay in touch.
The videos that followed are part pep talk, part sales lesson. On day seven, Nick at 310 Record Market told her “more people should be doing this kind of thing” and wanted to hire her for events. A gift shop owner who didn’t need photos pointed her to five other businesses. By then she’d been handed three free coffees, and decided “baristas are literal angels on earth.”
Not every stop is a yes. On day 18, posted November 5, a gym owner told her flatly that they don’t really post photos (“On to the next”) before the team at Seed Floral started pulling out bouquets for her to shoot. She calls it rejection therapy. “Regardless of today’s outcome, I’m already considering it a success,” she said. “I’m doing something that is out of my comfort zone.”
Her dad, who has been in sales most of his career, gave the series its motto when he came along for one video: “Every rejection is one step closer to an acceptance.”
Does going door to door actually work?
It has for her. In March she shared that a flower shop she walked into had loved her sample photos and asked about a monthly collaboration. She has also booked a cafe shoot by cold-messaging businesses she found on Google Maps. She filmed slow-motion espresso pours for the first time on that job. And the series spread: she has shared messages from photographers who copied the idea, including one who booked a car dealership after watching her.
She also gives her pitch away. Her flyer, which she shares as a free Canva template, offers businesses a 30-minute shoot covering headshots, products, events or interiors, with the first three photos free. After that it’s $25 a photo, 10 for $125 or a 30-image gallery for $200. “Obviously you can change these numbers if they’re too low for you,” she says. “Make them higher. As you should.”
Reader poll
Would you pitch your business door to door like Mia?
How did Mia Kayser make $30,000 from grad photos?
Her most-watched video, with about 23,700 views, opens with the number: “I made $30,000 taking grad photos this year.” She credits three changes:
- Search keywords on Instagram. Instead of captions like “beautiful sunset,” she wrote phrases people search for, like “Los Angeles grad photographer” or “UCLA grad photographer,” because Instagram “is now kind of like a search engine.”
- Pricing on the booking page. Sending prices separately slowed people down, so she put them right on her calendar page.
- An interest form in Facebook groups. In December she posted it in class-of-2026 and parents’ groups, got about 30 sign-ups and converted at least half of them.
In a follow-up she explained the package change behind it. She used to deliver 10 edits plus all the unedited JPEGs, until she saw clients posting the unedited shots. This season her basic package was 45 minutes and at least 100 edited images, starting at $325 and rising to $500, at a flat rate no matter how many friends joined. She did 80 sessions, up from about 30 a year. “I feel like I can be Ariana Grande’s photographer,” she joked.
What’s next for Mia Kayser?
This summer she hit a goal she had been chasing: a photo studio in her own home, built with stands from Amazon, a C-stand from Facebook Marketplace, a Godox strobe and seamless paper from Samy’s Camera. Her first shoot there was a “big me versus little me” concept with a friend she met when they were both vendors at a flea market. “As much as I love doing grad photos, it’s not, like, really an expression of my soul,” she said. “My goal is just to experiment more and really push my creative boundaries.”
She is also turning the door-to-door stops into stories. On October 30 she posted a photoshoot and interview with Molly, better known as Goo, the owner of Goo on Fairfax and the first business owner she met on day one.
Where to find Mia Kayser
- TikTok: @miakayserphoto
- Instagram: @miakayserphoto
- Website and booking: miakayserphotography.com
Sources
- Mia Kayser’s TikTok profile, video captions and spoken audio, February 6 through November 5, 2026; follower, like and view counts as of November 5, 2026.
- Her About page at miakayserphotography.com.
Image credits: portraits of Mia by David Keith Canete, from Mia Kayser Photography; Royce Hall by Beyond My Ken (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons, illustrative. Videos are embedded through TikTok’s official player.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Mia Kayser?
Mia Kayser is a Los Angeles photographer who shoots portraits, brands and events, along with graduation, family and couples sessions. She started her business as a UCLA student and shares what she has learned over a nine-year career on TikTok.
What is Mia Kayser’s door-to-door series?
Since February 2026, Mia has filmed herself walking into local LA businesses (salons, record stores, cafes, flower shops) to pitch her photography. She usually offers a short shoot with a few free photos so owners can see her work. By November 5, 2026 she had posted 18 days of it.
How did Mia Kayser make $30,000 from grad photos?
In a June 2026 video she credited three things: posting consistently on Instagram with search keywords like “UCLA grad photographer,” a booking page with pricing on it, and an interest form shared in class-of-2026 Facebook groups. She booked 80 sessions, up from about 30 a year, with a 45-minute package of at least 100 edited images that started at $325.
What does Mia Kayser charge local businesses?
Her flyer, which she shares as a free Canva template, offers a 30-minute shoot with the first three photos free, then $25 a photo, 10 photos for $125 or a 30-image gallery for $200. She notes other photographers can set their own prices.
Where is Mia Kayser from?
According to her website, she was born in Taiwan and grew up moving between Singapore, Shanghai, California, Beijing and Indiana before coming to Los Angeles for college at UCLA. She has lived in LA since 2016.
How do I book Mia Kayser?
Her bio lists Hello@miakayserphotography.com, and her website has her portfolio, pricing and contact form. She is @miakayserphoto on Instagram.
Bill Choudhry is a digital marketer who specializes in e-commerce, with a not-so-secret knack for the entertainment industry. He channels that passion into features and interviews for The LA Note.
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