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

Lindsay, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

I officially launched my photography business in January of 2022. I believe part of what makes me as a photographer and my business “unique” is that I want to be able to put a certain percentage of my profits towards various organizations and good causes. During October – December of 2023, 10% of all business I made went towards two mental health organizations (AFSP and NAMI). I have also made donations during ALS Awareness Month in May. It is a long-term goal to generate enough monthly business to consistently do more of this.

Something new I started in 2024 was donating some of my concert photos, autographed by the artist, as part of the Cook Children’s Hospital auction with Cumulus Media DFW stations, New Country 96.3 and 99.5 The Wolf. It has been very well received and goes towards a really great cause, so I am happy to say that I am doing that again this year. The two radio stations join together for a special broadcast/radiothon to raise money for Cook Children’s in Fort Worth at the beginning of December each year and the photos are some of the items available in their online auction. Last year, $1,327,708.92 was raised from the annual two-day on-air/online fundraiser so it’s a terrific thing the stations do. Stay tuned (literally) to New Country 96.3 or 99.5 The Wolf in DFW towards the end of November and early December for more information about the 2025 radiothon for Cook Children’s.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Lindsay Scarlatelli and I am a photographer that specializes in concert photography, family photography, senior portraits, and proposal/engagement photography. I also do sports photography, headshots, and select event and commercial photography.

During college, I didn’t fully realize it then, but capturing moments, big or small, was always something I enjoyed. I carried a pocket-sized digital camera everywhere. Fast forward, I could finally afford to purchase my first professional camera, a Canon 6D Mark ii, in the fall of 2018 when I moved to Dallas. My career at this point was working in college basketball as an assistant coach and Director of Operations, which is what led me to Dallas. Photography became not only my stress relief but also my creative fix that was missing from my job.

The catalyst for my big career decision came from a Thomas Rhett concert in May of 2021. It was after that concert that I spent the next few months mulling – do I want to officially launch a photography business or not? I could start a photography business and stop at any point knowing I tried, or decide not to and forever live wondering “what if?” Looking back, definitely one of the best decisions I’ve made was officially launching my business in January of 2022. As I continue to sit and reflect, I know I could stop tomorrow if I wanted to and would be proud of all the things I have done. I am in disbelief when I think about all I would have missed out on if I never tried. Some of those things include having a photograph archived in the George W. Bush Presidential Library, the opportunity to photograph Taylor Swift on ‘The Eras Tour,’ and working the red carpet at a major awards show (The Academy of Country Music Awards), among many other events and opportunities.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I gave photography a try “unofficially” in 2021, I had been cold calling and cold emailing various media outlets and platforms to give me a chance to be a photographer for them. Most of them would not even take the time to respond, and then the ones that did reply were a politely worded no thank you. That was the most frustrating and discouraging part. There were multiple times I questioned if it would ever work out for me. Despite this, I continued to photograph in small venues/bars for local artists or bands to continue to build my portfolio and work on my skills.

It wasn’t until a year a half later, through a friend named Corey Wernecke, that I was connected with New Country 96.3’s on-air talent, Michelle Rodriguez. As they say, the rest is history and I am incredibly grateful to Jessica MacKenzie-Williams and Cumulus Media (New Country 96.3, 99.5 The Wolf, and formerly Hot 93.3) for taking a chance on me. They are some pretty great people that I love being around and make what I do that much more fun.

I still do some photography for artists and bands separate from Cumulus Media, and oftentimes that still involves cold contacting, so it’s not like there is no longer “work” to do on my end. Building clientele, with photography as a whole and not just on the music side, is definitely the hardest part. This year I am trying to focus a little bit more on further building clientele within the family portraits and senior/graduation portraits space but again, building clientele as a whole is definitely the hardest part.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect is knowing that the person you are photographing loves the images you took of them. It is one thing for you as the photographer to be happy or proud of your work, but it’s so much more rewarding when you also know the person you photographed loves the images just as much. I love hearing when a family or a musician or whoever it may be loves the photos I took of them. Friendly PSA that if you love images a photographer has taken of you, spread the word about them and tag/credit them in the photos they took of you! :) It costs nothing and can be a tremendous help to that photographer, whether it is me or someone else.

Another rewarding aspect is the opportunities that have come my way thanks to a camera. I’ve been able to experience my first “red carpet” by photographing for upcoming country music artist, Annie Bosko, along the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards red carpet. I’ve also been able to photograph the two highest-grossing tours of all-time by women with Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” in front of a sold out crowd of 70,000+ and P!NK’s “Summer Carnival” tour in front of a sold out crowd of 90,000+. Those two artists were on my bucket list not only for their music but also because of who they are and what they stand for as people. I had tears welling up in my eyes when I was done photographing Taylor Swift because, as I looked around at all of these screaming fans, it hit me that my hard work had finally paid off and I was photographing someone I never actually imagined to be possible, let alone so soon.

It is also highly rewarding to photograph an artist when they are first starting out with little to no fanfare and watch them grow along their careers. I feel like a proud parent when I see them achieve various career milestones and know some of the hard work that has gone into where they currently are. Some of those artists I have photographed include Lainey Wilson, Ashley Cooke, Dylan Scott, Annie Bosko, Grace Tyler, and Conner Smith.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lindsayscarlatelli.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scarsees
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ScarSees/
• Other: Email [email protected] for needs and pricing

Image Credits

Jared Anderson
Lindsay Scarlatelli