15 years ago
The first iteration of Cassey Golden Photography began in 2006, my senior year of college. I’d taken a photography darkroom class and started getting a few friends asking if I’d take engagement pictures for them. The summer after I graduated, an alumnus of the art department asked my professor to recommend a student to take her wedding photos for $600 and for some reason he gave her my name. There must not have been many experienced photographers around campus that year! She knew it was my first wedding and she was great to work with…but I was so in over my head! My new husband was my second-shooter…with a tiny point-and-shoot camera.
So I kind of fell into a little photography business, but I was lacking experience and decent equipment and was very much learning as I went. When we moved to Indy, a new friend invited me to join a group of photographers that met monthly. I was so out of my league with those girls, but I learned so much from them and am so grateful they didn’t revoke my invite when they realized how inexperienced I was! A few years in I was finally able to afford a workshop on lighting and getting that experience was a game-changer.
Over time I was improving and my business was gaining consistency…but then we had a second baby, my husband joined the army, and we moved far from home…with moves coming every few years from then on. I set my business aside for a long season and focused on the kids.
And that brings us to today.
It’s more than a decade later now, and I just miss doing this! So I’m coming back, happy that I am free to do as little or as much as I want while I keep parenting and moving every few years (military life and small business ownership are a tough combo!) But it feels really good to start afresh with a lot more experience and the ability to invest in education and better gear from the beginning. I’m taking it slow, setting things up and enjoying taking some new classes for now…but I’m excited to be back in business.
