Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kirsten Tate. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kirsten , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

On January 12, 2020 I became a mother to a beautiful, wonderful little boy. As life comes and goes in many ways, I tragically lost my grandmother the hour my son was born. Her name was Connie Lou. She went by C.Lou her whole life and we had a very special bond. I named my business ” The Lou Project ” because I was just becoming a brand new version of myself as a new mom and trying to navigate life with a piece of me missing. I wanted to honor her and keep a part of her alive.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hello readers! My name is Kirsten Tate. Currently, I’m a 31-year-old loving mom residing in Olympia, WA. Washington has always been my home and yet my passions keep me discovering new places. My experiences in life have created a different perspective that through the lens others may not see. I can find beauty in just about anything. Depending on who I’m around, I can either be very outgoing or shy. I love people and being kind, which is what pushes me out of my comfort zone. I do also enjoy time to myself where I can get creative editing my pictures or dremeling wood gift pieces for friends and family. I’ve had many odd jobs which has helped me understand unique walks of life. This along with hardships I have endured have molded my heart to adapt and show empathy to others. I believe my photography thrives because of this; bringing all human emotion out and capturing it with a click.
I’ve been taking pictures since I was little, always behind a camera. I took a photography film class in high school and looking back now it was a cool experience to be in a dark room watching photos develop. The process is such a lost art! I still have a print that I developed in my memories box.  It wasn’t until 2019 that I got my first DSLR and I was so intimidated at first. I spend a lot of time researching on the internet and putting into practice what I was learning. Eventually, I got to a point where I felt my work was decent. This confidence led me to scheduling my first small sessions here and there. The following year I had my son, and he was the spark I needed to motivate me to be better, make something of myself. Who doesn’t want cute professional pictures of their babies? I got serious and have been working since then to make a name for myself. I’m still learning every day, but here we are four years later and now I’m working on way bigger projects to include weddings, school photos and family sessions.
My favorite creative work must be Lifestyle photography, ex. Families, babies, branding. It’s always such fun trying to get babies and kids to smile because it can be quite challenging which brings out the silly in me, but always rewarding for sure. Overall, though, I’d have to say I have a wide variety of what I shoot because I have an eye for everything. I also love Nature pictures, there’s so much beauty in the details. I LOVE details.
Something I believe that sets me apart is that my life has humbled me and all I want is to root for others. Every photographer has something special, it’s just about your preference. My goal is to make every client feel like family. I want to capture their natural beautiful expressions, make them feel something and hopefully they add it to their family albums for generations to admire together. It should tell a story and not come off as a J.C. Penney catalogue photo. One day, my dream is to see my work displayed in galleries across the world. I always send back what I can edit because you may like my style, but if we can be real here, not everyone likes every angle they’re photographed at, and I want to make sure you love your pictures just as much as I do. Truthfully, I’d just love to see you again! By putting the client first, always, it keeps us little guys going.
Just a couple weeks ago, I got offered to take on the Rainier School Cheerleading and Football teams pictures. While that is a huge challenge for just one person, I’m extremely grateful for my incredible support team that help me makes things happen. If you ever decide to take a chance on me, you won’t regret it. I’ve learned to love and be proud of myself with how far I’ve come. Just call me a smile enthusiast, a magic creator and overall, I sincerely believe my love language is to bring joy to others through my hard-earned passion and talent.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

While social media is great for promoting yourself, I can’t shout it any louder that word of mouth is the best source. If people love your product they will most certainly tell their loved ones about you too. I always ask my clients, ” so how did you find me? ” and it’s always really cool to hear who referred you or how they found your business.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Just knowing that a picture can last decades is just really powerful to me. Have you ever been in an old museum and see photographs from the 1800’s and just imagine where that picture has been, what it has seen? Pictures that are still in history books and magazines. That speaks volumes to me. Creating lifetime images, what gets better than that?

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thelouproject.wixsite.com/tlpp
• Instagram: The.Lou.project
• Facebook: The Lou Project

Image Credits
All images and edits belong to The Lou Project.