Meet Emily Carter

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Emily Carter. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Emily below.

Emily, we can’t begin to explain how much we appreciate you sharing about your PPD experience, but we can say that so many in our community are suffering from or have suffered from postpartum issues including postpartum depression and so you sharing your story and how you overcame it might help someone who is going through it right now or in the future. What can you share with us about how you overcame PPD? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.

A huge reason why I started my photography business, besides making an income as a stay at home mom, was because of my experience with postpartum depression. Postpartum depression was an unexpected visitor after welcoming our first baby. A new mom with a newborn, unsure of her new identity, and scared to let people down. I spent my first few months as a new mother being absolutely miserable and not understanding what was going on, after all wasn’t this supposed to be one of the best times of our lives?

With the support of family we finally realized what I was experiencing was PPD, and then started the journey on how to navigate through that. I decided when I was pregnant with my second that I was going to find something for myself that set me aside from my role as “mama.” Something that brought joy into my life, because I was my own person before having children and I really struggled finding her again in the thick of parenthood. Enter photography, a hobby that I have been passionate about for as long as I could hold a camera and take pictures. My mom had recently gifted me her old canon camera, so I decided to take the step and see where it went. My photography business was a huge outlet for me in being able to overcome my PPD.

Here I am, 3 years later completely thriving in my business! I have meet incredible people on this journey, made some amazing connections, and have created the most memorable moments in my life that I hold so dear to my heart. Not to mention, we welcomed a third baby in the chaos of running a new business and I am happy to report that photography has positively affected and improved my PPD experience the second and third time around. We are now currently in the home-buying process as first time homebuyers and are so excited for all of the opportunity and experiences this business has opened for us.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am an original East Coaster from Virginia, but Arizona has been our home since 2019. I am a mama to three beautiful earth-side children, and 2 angel babies. We love everything outdoors, although i’ll admit I’m a big scaredy cat of the rattlesnakes here. Hiking, lake days, and camping are a big part of our family, as well as being goofy and loving loudly.

It’s important to me that I offer an affordable photoshoot experience to others, because as a new mom we could not afford newborn pictures or family pictures until my oldest was about 3 years old. I want others to have the opportunity to capture their most precious moments, so that they have a priceless heirloom to pass down from generation to generation.

I have two moths tattooed on each shin that represent myself finding the light in the dark, so I created my brand around that concept. My brand is warm, earth tones with hints of jewel tones. It’s fun, moody and emotive. It’s been a dream connecting with the sweetest clients and being a part of their journey. I hope to continue to always make a positive impact through my business in the community.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three qualities, or skills, that were most impactful in my journey have been resilience, patience, and ambition.

I feel like without these three things I wouldn’t be where I am today. I allowed myself patience through the slow seasons of booking when I questioned my value, resilience when I’m learning through something hard, and ambition to keep going forward despite failures and setbacks.

My piece of advice to someone early in their journey for this is to remember to give yourself grace. Take a step back, learn, and then grow from your experience. The best of the best didn’t get to the top without mistakes, they got there because they picked themselves back up and tried again.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?

My ideal client is someone who has done their research behind their photographer and comes prepared to have FUN. I want my session experience to be laid back, silly, and romantic in the best ways. Clients who are able to go with the flow are my favorite, because at the end of the day it’s important to have a client who trusts your instincts as the creative photographer.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://blacksagephoto.mypixieset.com
• Instagram: Blacksagephotography_
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blacksagephotography/