Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Newhouse.
Hi Sarah, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always loved taking photos and capturing memories. I always go back to the story of when I was maybe 12 years old or so and I had a tiny little orange point and shoot and I would bring it to my neighbor’s house to take photos of us on her swing set. It was a little something that truly brought me joy, capturing the way we felt playing together.
I continued using that little camera for a while until I upgraded to a larger cannon camera and started taking my friends out for little photoshoots. Basically, I would bring my camera everywhere and everyone knew I would take photos of anything we did. I just loved capturing those moments of everyone, so timeless!
When I was a sophomore in high school, someone a year older than me asked me to take their senior photos for them and paid me $50. Now that was fun! I never even thought that I could make money from something I just always loved doing and came so naturally to me! Then the next year rolled around and I took many of my classmates’ and friends’ senior photos and I jumped into senior photos. Then soon after a photographer that I looked up to a lot asked me to second shoot some weddings for him one summer which helped me learn all about weddings and build my portfolio. It slowly started to grow from there and I owe it all to God to where I am now, being a full-time wedding + portrait photographer. It is a gift and I don’t want to ever take it for granted!
What started as my little hobby when I was very young to a full-time business in my mid 20’s. So so blessed!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh, absolutely not! I have struggled on the business side of things a lot, constantly asking for help from other photographers, family & other trusted people. I have struggled with some clients which have made me doubt my profession and myself a lot. If I didn’t have the village of people surrounding me in this profession, I wouldn’t have been able to keep going. It is a journey and there are always bumps along the road, but I am thankful for those bumps because I have grown immensely through them!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a Wedding Photographer. I also do photos of seniors and families when I am able to as well! I believe what sets me apart from others within the industry is who I am personally. There are truly SO many incredible photographers that I personally know and that I don’t know but this industry is overflowing with creative, insanely talented people. Sometimes it is hard to pick out what makes you different in the sea of people!
But truly, I know what makes me different is who I am as an individual. I bring a new light, joy, and excitement to shoots just being who I am. I value my clients, who sometimes turn into my friends, so so much! I just love being able to serve them in this way creating timeless and beautiful images for them to look back on for years down the road.
I am just so proud of where I am today through all of the years I have been doing this. I am so thankful to be able to meet every person I have met through this job and bless them in photography.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Taking risks is what helps you grow! I graduated college with a communications and advertising degree hoping to get a job in advertising in Minneapolis after graduating. I searched for jobs for some time after college, but the emails I kept receiving for photo inquiries were piling up and I thought to myself “I might as well just give this a try and go all in.”
It was really scary not moving forward with the safer option of a corporate job in advertising but taking the risk I did bring me to where I am today. Like I said, it wasn’t always easy and I definitely had some rough spots along the way but I get to do what I truly love and am passionate about. Taking risks can change your life completely!
Contact Info:
- Website: http://newhousephoto.com
- Instagram: sarahhnewhouse
Image Credits
Amber Holte Photography
