We recently connected with Casey Chateauvert and have shared our conversation below.
Casey, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you take vacations? Why or why not?
A secret I have held close to my heart in order to keep going for as long as I have for over a decade now is taking breaks to rejuvenate my mind, body, soul, and creative spirit. Even if I just slip away to a mini stay-cation for a weekend at a little airbnb in the country where no one knows where I am and the cell service is 0 bars; it helps me to unplug and take the time to self-care for myself, unwind without distractions, and let my mind de-ravel from the stresses of day to day work and the routine. Traveling is a hobby that I will forever cherish and prioritize in my self care and business practice because it strengthens me to do better and work harder so I can travel even more! The experiences, learning lessons, and confidence boosting that come along with taking a trip are more valuable in being a business owner than one may even realize.
I set aside a traveling budget and save a little every month and try to do a big trip every 3-6 months and a mini getaway every month or so. I always get an itch in my bones if I don’t have something on the schedule and it motivates me to work harder to make sure I can maintain that lifestyle. When I travel for destination weddings, I also add a little time on for myself so I can explore and soak up even more the reason why I love what I do.
It is a necessity to take time away from work and do what you love, rejuvenate your mind and spirit, and come back refreshed with new energy. Every time I come back from a vacation I have a boost of creativity and even more drive to succeed with a higher motivation and excitement. Consider taking a vacation and investment in not only yourself, but your business. Think about it, why would employers at a normal 9-5 company want you to take vacation time? For these exact reasons to grow their business as well!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’ve been curiously passionate about weddings and love since I can remember twirling around in a dress at my first wedding when I was a kid, playing with the bubbles and eye-balling the bubbly. The little girl in love with love never died in me and I am still enamored by all things Lovey-dovey. Aside from my unwavering attachment for the romantics, I also have always treasured the importance of memories and holding dear the things that I love most. Maybe it is my stubborn inability to let go — but I’ve always been a memory keeper. When I got a camera in my hands, it was my way of creating and keeping memories close to me. After college I dabbled in wedding photography and one thing led to the next and I never quit. As my passion grew, I studied more and took numerous workshops and classes to strengthen my skill — and with time and experience it has grown into my full time career and love-affair.
I provide my couples with a heartfelt and effortless experience in their wedding memory journey. I would consider myself exceptionally emotionally intelligent, sensitive to others and creatures, dedicated and passionate about everything I pour my heart into. I reflect that in my interactions and how I work with couples. It really is more than just getting your picture taken; I leave a piece of my heart with every couple and it is truly an honor to be in so many other’s hearts and homes forever. From digital photos, film photos, and extra little videos and small tokens – I make sure they feel special and deliver timeless documentation to remember years from now.
I’m most proud of how far I have come in my career by my unwavering commitment and drive to keep going and doing what I love. Not many people can say in their lifetime that they were able to create a life-job by piecing together their best qualities and talents and being able to sustain life from it, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Being told that you are resilient can be a compliment in so many ways, but also something that you may grow weary of hearing because you’d love to just, not be, sometimes. In order to own any type of business, one of your most powerful qualities to be is to hold your resilience as close as you can to your heart. Being prepared and ready is a great way to keep resilience and the show moving forward!
There have been trying times over the years in many ways that I’m not sure I could solely focus on only one journey. The show must go on no matter what is happening around you, but it helps to have a consistent workflow and system in place to make things go smoother when life around you is not. I’ve been able to do this through a client management system that helps me to maintain an effective workflow even when I am occasionslly unable to be fully present for any reason or change in my life.
One of the key things that helped me during some of these times was to be transparent, genuine, honest, and graceful to myself and others as much as I could be. In return my clients were understanding and thoughtful. Just like with any job, you have to keep going even if your world is falling apart around you. More often than not, sometimes trying experiences in this career has only deepened my relationship and communication with my clients that have turned them into even bigger fans (and friends). With resiliency comes rest and grace within yourself, and is a major key to running any successful business.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Everyone has to start somewhere right? In college I would exchange photos for graduating friends in return for dinner and gas money, ha! I got my foot in the door from one friend to another and through word of mouth and networking. My name for the-girl-with-the-camera, aka, casey goes click spread around campus. When I graduated, my name stayed on hearts of many people I knew and they wanted me to photograph their weddings! Friend to friend, couple to couple, I started primarily on getting referrals from people I had met through college.
Eventually, I started reaching out to other vendors in the Houston area to put together styled sessions and get creative together. I loved working with other like-minded creatives who were also new to the business because I thought it would be a great opportunity to grow together. Sure enough, I was able to put together numerous creative sessions with other vendors and after each one of those sessions I would submit to publications and they started flowing like water. Several magazines, websites, prestigious wedding companies, and other vendors published my work. Who doesn’t like seeing their work published? Vendors became more and more excited to work with me as they would see their creativity on other platforms as well. The more tags on social media, the more your name spreads, and it was a win-win for everyone involved in every project I would do.
From word of mouth, networking with other vendors, and getting published in numerous articles — I was able to grow my fan base on social media and become pretty known in the area in the wedding industry! From photographing senior portraits for food to seeing my name in a magazine at Target, I’m more than elated with starting from the bottom and climbing my way up!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.endless-exposures.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caseygoesclick/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EndlessExposuresPhotography/