Check Out Emmie Rotsky’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Emmie Rotsky. 

Hi Emmie, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I have always loved photography and have had a camera since I was in 7th grade. I was constantly doing photoshoots with my friends and family over the years, but once I graduated high school, I realized that I wanted to start taking my photography more seriously and start my own business! I created an Instagram just for my photography which is @emmierotskyphotography, and was able to start getting my work around the easiest through there. Since I started my freshman year of college at the end of that summer at Duquesne University, I had to put my business on pause since I wanted to focus on my academics. Once my freshman year ended, one of my brother’s friends was recently engaged and wanted me to take their engagement photos. This was my first paid shoot which was super exciting for me. The end of the summer came again and I had to go back to school but was hoping that I would potentially be able to do shoots for people at school. At the beginning of March, I was contacted by a mom of a senior at Duquesne who heard about me and wanted me to do her daughter’s graduation photos. I recently did those at the beginning of April, and just got the photos back to her earlier this week which she then posted about me on the parent Facebook page. This was all super exciting since it felt like my business was really going to start to take off a bit. From that one post, I have been contacted by four more seniors to do their graduation photos here! As you can tell it definitely takes time to start a business and have it be consistent, but if you love what you’re doing it is all worth it in the end. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Like I mentioned in the last question it was difficult to get clients. Since my business was new, people wanted to go with someone who was more established than I was. Especially when the photography/videography business is a lot of word of mouth to get clients, it was difficult for me since I hadn’t had a photoshoot with anyone that I hadn’t known personally yet. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I mainly shoot seniors, families, and couples. I think my favorite one to shoot is seniors since I am closer in age with both seniors in high school and seniors in college. Considering my business is new I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m known for anything yet, but I think my graduation photos are starting to be recognized since that’s what I have been contacted for recently. I would say I’m most proud of myself for keeping with it after not really being recognized or reached out to for a while before I got my first client. I would say what sets me apart from others is how young I am since I only just turned 20, but I think I bring a different energy to the shoots because of that. I’m very laid back and go with the flow since I want the shoots to feel as natural as possible and not too structured where the clients can’t have fun during them. 

We’d love to hear about what you think about risk-taking?
I think risk-taking is important even though I am someone that definitely struggles with wanting to take risks. I believe taking risks is a part of getting yourself out of your comfort zone which is why I struggle since I am one who is content with being in my comfort zone. Even though I don’t love taking risks since it requires me to get out of my comfort zone, I think it’s what helps you grow as a person. A risk I’ve taken would actually be starting my photography business for a few reasons. The first being a financial risk since photography equipment is extremely expensive and if I didn’t get clients, I wouldn’t be able to earn my money back. The other risk being taking photos of people I’ve never met before which I know is a part of the job, but it’s intimidating not knowing how your clients will react to the photos you produce for them. 

Pricing:

• 1 Hour Shoot: $150 at 1 location with 40-50 edited photos
• 2 Hour Shoot: $250 with the option of going to 2 locations with 80-90 edited photos

Contact Info:

• Email: emmierotskyphotography@gmail.com
• Website: emmierotskyphotography.squarespace.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emmierotskyphotography
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emmierotskyphotography