We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kaleigh Schouten a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kaleigh, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Growing up, like I’m sure many young girls in America, I was incredibly insecure. I would spend hours looking in the mirror – not because I admired myself, but because I was practicing my posture, what I should wear, and how to apply makeup to cover my flaws.

Also growing up, I spent most weekends in the summer with my cousins and grandmother. I was raised in the midwest, which meant the summers were spent mostly riverside or exploring different festivals across southern Indiana. One thing about my grandmother, she always had a camera in hand. Using a disposable camera was almost motion memory for her, which at the time… I hated. I loved swimming in the Ohio River, eating candy apples at the local county fair, toasting marshmallows with my cousins and brother fireside. I, however, did not love that my grandmother was always there snapping photos. Now that I’m older, I understand why she did. She wanted to soak up every memory on 35mm film so that those moments would be permanently framed even when they no longer lived rent free in our heads.

Throughout middle school and high school, I continued to shy away when a camera came out from hiding. I’d smile and hold still, excited for it to be over with. What I didn’t know during those years is that those that were closest to me might not be around for those next chapters of my life. Summers were long and your parents lived forever, right?

Right before my last semester of college, I was between moving back to Purdue University and traveling to Alaska for a final summer trip with my college best friends when I got a call. The doctor found a lump on my father’s lung, and it wasn’t looking good. He completed chemo while I was finishing up my construction engineering degree. After graduation, I moved home temporarily to take care of my father while he lived his final days on hospice in his mother’s living room. Some memories you don’t need to photographs to remember it. It’s burned into your brain cells, into your DNA. Although my father passed away almost 5 years ago, I can still remember how he slept in the donated bed in the corner next to the window. A window where watching the neighbors he grew up alongside now walking their dogs with their kids, living their lives, was effortless.

When someone you love so dearly becomes sick, your final memories of them are not them. Their humor and their smell isn’t the same. Their hugs are weaker. They sleep longer and eat less. The real memories you have them are more distant. As time passes slowly, the details of those memories seem to fade exponentially. Unless, you have photographs.

Like I mentioned early on, I hated to have my photo taken. Because of that, I have a small handful of photos of me with my father. Luckily, my dad loved the camera; and the camera loved him. Looking back at those photos, I can remember my father when he was goofy, fun loving, and full of life. I even have an old 1 GB SD card siting on my desk from a camera my grandmother gave me. The photos were taken at a random family holiday party with an abundance of my dad being my dad.

Photography was one of those things in life that found me. I didn’t grow up dreaming about this career. I believe my father, dancing around in heaven, placed a camera in my hand knowing I’d do great things. My mission is to always make my clients feel both confident and free. My sessions are designed to be more playful and engaging in hopes of capturing their true authentic selves. So when the days get really dark, they always have a light to hold on to.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After graduating from Purdue University with a Construction Engineering degree, I moved to Atlanta and then eventually to Huntsville, Alabama. While in Huntsville, I worked for a construction company that was contracted by Facebook to build a data center. Within my first few weeks on the job site, I became fairly good friends with a project engineer. Her name was Elisa, and she was full of fire and passion. When Elisa had her mind on something, their was nothing in this world that could distract her.

When covid hit in 2020, we were all forced to work from home. Elisa only lived down the street from me, so we decided to take on covid house arrest together. During those months, Elisa grew tired of her career in the construction industry. She knew life was more than slaving away hours on concrete specs and procedures. She started dreaming of working for herself and moving away from Alabama. To embark on this journey, she decided to become a “Boss Babe” and join an MLM. Although that’s not my cup of tea, I was Elisa’s biggest fan. She knew I had a small hobby camera body that I used sometimes when I traveled. She pleaded for me to take photos of her to elevate her instagram presence. Excited to do something different with my free time, I agreed.

After months of taking photos of Elisa, she persuaded me to start marketing myself. So, I did just that. I took my first paid costumer back in early 2021. By spring 2022, I was at a crossroads. More projects were coming in than I had time for. At this point in my career, I was on the job site for almost 12 hours a day. Work was followed by dinner, a quick shower, and then hours of photo editing. My weekends were full of sessions. As they say, I was burning the candle at both ends. Life was no longer sustainable. I had to make a decision – continue with my engineering career or quit to pursue photography.

March 2022, I quit my engineering career. The same career I spent hours preparing for in college libraries. The same career I put what felt like blood, sweat, and tears into. The same career I though I was going to have until I retired. However, my heart was pulling me in a different direction. If the engineering degree didn’t say it, I will – I was a planner. This was not part of my 5 year plan, but sometimes life doesn’t work that way.

Between March and December of that year, I took up a part-time job to help make ends meet. By Christmas 2022, I was self-employed. Today, my business brings in almost six-figures. I’ve hired an assistant and, soon, additional photographers. This little business has brought more to this life than I could have ever imagined. The people I have met and the places I have traveled would have never been possible without photography.

I’m proud of the artist I’ve become over the past 2 years. My sessions are entirely focused on the people in front of the lens. I’ve worked hard to introduce more prompting over posing during my sessions to truly capture my client’s authentic and confident selves. I want my clients to not only feel their photographs, but to also see them as a true work of art.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When starting off my photography business, I was fully in the mind set that if I was take photographs, I was going to be paid for it. Free work was not part of my vocabulary. Because of this outlook, my business almost failed from the get-go.

I started reaching out to girls that have modeled for either local businesses or other photographers to offer my services to them for free. That pivot in my mindset and business strategy really allowed me to not only practice my skills, but also start networking. Just like most careers, sometimes it’s about the people you know. Photography is no different.

I also went to the other end of the spectrum – paying to take photos. I started attending content days and retreats. I cannot stress this enough for those that are getting started; go to content days! It’s the best place to learn from others, ask questions, and grab content based on your ideal clients and work. After attending my first content day, my confidence truly switched to “I could do this” to “oh, I can definitely do this”.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

My photography business started in the midst of my engineering career. Therefore, I used my engineering career to both fund my life and my business in the early stages. Once my photography started to take off, I took on a part-time job to fund my life as I used my photography income to upgrade my equipment. Once I had what I truly needed to sustain and maintain my business and at least 4 months of expenses, I turned in my notice to my part-time job.

Starting a business takes a ton of work. Not only do you need to practice your skills, market to potential clients, and prove that you’re credible, but you also have to fund all the expenses along the way. In my opinion, financial security is in the top of priorities. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with your small business starting off as a slow-burn as you take on other jobs to make ends meet.

Contact Info:

• Website: kaleighmadison.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/kaleighmadison.photo
• Facebook: facebook.com/kaleighmadison.photo
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kaleighmadisonllc