Meet Cassie aka ‘Sassie’ Constanzo | Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cassie aka ‘Sassie’ Constanzo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cassie aka ‘Sassie’, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I started photography in college as a side hustle doing the typical senior portraits for local families but it did not go great for me. Portrait photography requires so many different elements to take into consideration for that perfect picture. You are trying to create a perfect moment in time for your client. You want your subject to feel comfortable enough to be vulnerable and authentic while posed in an attractive (most of the time uncomfortable) manner, the light to be even and warm, all while calculating the optimal camera settings to capture that moment just right. While some people do this all naturally so well, I was not one.

You could visibly see how uncomfortable all my clients were in my pictures. They were confused, half talking, posed awkwardly – but the lighting was perfect! Even though my camera settings made a “good image” by theory, it wasn’t pretty to look at. So when they didn’t like they way they looked, they didn’t like my pictures which meant they didn’t like my art. So I stopped. For probably 10 years.

Then one day I had a realization. I was at a friends wedding and of course there was a photo booth and the line wouldn’t stop the whole night. It was packed from open to close. I would watch people pick the worst props and actually enjoy making themselves look awkward as hell. I watched them laughing at how stupid they’re all looking and then I remembered how good I was at making people look bad in their pictures. I knew right then and there, that was what my skills were made for.

A few months later, I decided I started Mugshot Photo Co – Where being bad has never felt so good! We give our clients a mugshot they actually want to frame. A mugshot that makes them smile every time they look at it. We aim to create memories that last a lifetime. And I love every minute of it.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Mugshot Photo Co. or MSPB Co is all about creating authentic moments. Moments that show personality, show true friendship and show you having the time of your life with the people you care about most. We don’t want perfectly posed pictures, we want imperfect, authentic moments that hold a memory. We want to you feeling free to be imperfect in its truest form.

What I have found that sets us apart is our creative studio design & photography background. We are an all female ran company that supports young female creatives starting their careers. While we also do photo booth rentals, we are also doing agency design work at the same time. We apply our agency standard of work to all of our photo booth clients. Everything is done custom and photography quality is of professional studio photography equipment.

I remember how hard and how overwhelming it was starting my career as a young creative. I hope through Mugshot, I can grow a network of female designers and photographers that together can continue to support and help each other grow through out their own careers. We are also launching a program called Pup Shot that I am most excited about. We are raising money for local animal shelters through pet portrait sessions and sending our photographers out to local no-kill animal shelters to give the adoptable animals a time to shine with some professional portraits for their online profiles.

Starting a business has its fair share of ups and downs. It’s never easy and it will test you to your limits. But it’s worth every minute of it. You may fail or it may succeed but you will never know unless you try. Winston Churchill once defined success as ‘the ability to move from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm’ and this is something that has stuck with me since the beginning. Failure can show in many different forms when you’re running a business but it is how we handle those moments that truly defines our own successes.

We are a company of bad ass babes with hearts of gold. We want to grow our company and support our community at the same time.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Eat:

AJ’s Pit BBQ – Being from the south, I am a hard one to please when it comes to bbq but damn these guys do it right! Get the burnt ends and some mac and cheese

Koi & Ninja Food Truck – SOOOO good! They move around town but it’s worth keeping track of.

Drink:

McMullens Irish Bar in Englewood – Go on a Friday and ask for Katie or Silver. This true Irish experience is a local favorite and the bar staff (especially Katie) makes you feel like family as soon as you sit down.

Roosevelt & Front Porch – It’s in a little bit of the tourist part of downtown area but the staff make it worth the drive and the old fashion’s are to DIE for! You can enjoy great drinks and watch their bartenders wheelie around serving the guest. Also of course – amazing photo booths at Front Porch!

Hang Out:

Washington Park on Sundays in the summer – you can easily make some new grass volleyball friends, picnic, or just walk your dog. It’s also a great spot for some people watching on a summer day.

St. Mary’s Glacier – it’s an easy hike with a beautiful view not too far outside of town.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to thank my friends and family for their undying support though out this journey from starting the business to COVID and today. To my network of creative friends that continue to support me and my creative growth through difficult moments of wins, blocks and client feedback and continuing to push together to accomplish and learn more every day.

Website: www.mugshot-photobooth.co

Instagram: @mspbco

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cconstanzo/

Image Credits
Adonye Jaja