Meet Simone Schiess | Wedding & Lifestyle Photographer/Videographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Simone Schiess and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Simone, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
As a former educator, I wanted to be able to have more freedom with my life and be able to explore creative pursuits more aggressively. That said, it happened quite organically. I was teaching Art and Photography in Denver public schools when one summer I decided I wanted to photograph some weddings in the area. I had just moved from Boston, so my portfolio did not reflect being in Colorado at all, and I needed to change that ASAP. So, I joined a small, local wedding company that worked with couples who wanted budget friendly wedding photographers – the catch was that many of us had little to no experience photographing weddings. That said, I jumped in and LOVED it. It all came very naturally to me and involved a lot of the skills I had built up over time from working in corporate spaces, teaching, and being a photographer in general. Once I got momentum and had my own weddings coming in, I realized that I could use my dual degree in Fine Art and Entrepreneurial Leadership to my benefit and start my own small business. After a few summers of shooting weddings, I looked at my schedule for the fall of 2021 and said OOPS, this is now my full time job! I was sad to leave teaching, as I loved the kids I worked with, but I knew that if I didn’t jump full into my business that was now growing quickly, I’d be kicking myself in the butt for years to come! I’m so happy I trusted my instincts and went for it!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
An artist from the start, I began my adventure in the art world as a lil gal just drawing. My mom always encouraged it and it offered a great outlet to be able to see the world through my own lens. A point and shoot camera throughout high school allowed me to mess around with perspective and distortion of everyday objects, and I loved it. Then when I was 18 we traveled to Africa for a Safari and I got hooked on photography. Documenting animals was everything. I quickly realized my first year of college that I wanted to study photography full time and made the transfer to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, MA where I learned about fine art photography as well as the fine arts in general. This really solidified a well rounded background in the arts – as our course work was not stuck in one genre or another, it was actually ENCOURAGED that the photographer take a painting class – as all art speaks to each other.

Once I graduated, I turned to rock climbing as my outlet for fitness but also it became my passion. One thing led to another and I was photographing for the climbing gym I worked at. Through there I met so many amazing folks who took chances on my photography and eventually I ended up working for the Boston Red Sox for 1 season. While I loved working there, sports photographing didn’t pay well and also the culture at the Red Sox was very male centered and riddled with complicated HR issues. So leaving that was IDEAL, as I decided I wanted to teach and went to get my Masters in Education at Tufts University.

From there, I moved to Denver with my now husband Calvin (who is our wedding videographer and all around all star hubby who endlessly supports my creative endeavors) and began teaching.

I was teaching Art and Photography in Denver Public Schools when one summer I decided I wanted to photograph some weddings in the area. I had just moved from Boston, so my portfolio did not reflect being in Colorado at all, and I needed to change that ASAP. So, I joined a small, local wedding company that worked with couples who wanted budget friendly wedding photographers – the catch was that many of us had little to no experience photographing weddings. That said, I jumped in and LOVED it. It all came very naturally to me and involved a lot of the skills I had built up over time from working in corporate spaces, teaching, and being a photographer in general. Once I got momentum and had my own weddings coming in, I realized that I could use my dual degree in Fine Art and Entrepreneurial Leadership to my benefit and start my own small business. After a few summers of shooting weddings, I looked at my schedule for the fall of 2021 and said OOPS, this is now my full time job! I was sad to leave teaching, as I loved the kids I worked with, but I knew that if I didn’t jump full into my business that was now growing quickly, I’d be kicking myself in the butt for years to come! I’m so happy I trusted my instincts and went for it!

My brand now encompasses a full wedding photography & videography business that also offers event photography, boudoir, family, newborn maternity, and small biz branding sessions. Wow what a mouthful! I currently take about 30 weddings per year, but am always open to more. I love to work, love to create for my clients and especially love to bop around to different parts of Colorado and all the many amaaaazing venues that it offers. That said, when wedding season is not in full force, you can find me a the Denver Photo Collective utilizing their amazing studio space for boudoir, family and maternity, and branding photos. I’m obsessed with using that indoor space when we can, as it’s sometimes just a ltitle too cold outside for photography. Also, because I am a big fan of fine art photography, I offer special discounted branding photo sessions for Artists in the surrounding area. It’s not easy being an artist and I truly love to help support the arts where I can!

Some lessons I’ve learned since owning my own small business:
– Focus on the connections you make with others – whether in your industry or not! You never know where your next lead will come from –
– When giving discounts is beneficial vs. desperate (a very hard choice to make). Sometimes there a multiple benefits to it and sometimes it’s just because you need the money. Neither should take away from your business values, so always remember to stay aligned!
– Keeping in mind that my personal life is valuable and that my time needs to be protected! For instance, wedding season tends to take a lot of out me and I don’t travel much during the summer, but that doesn’t mean I can’t take a few days to go disappear in the woods with my husband and dogs. And remembering during the slow season to use the extra time for fun!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Ooooh this is fun. We always have folks coming to stay! Our agenda would look something like this:

Wake up, make breakfast home or pop over to The Hungry Goat in Morrison for a tasty bite. Hike up Green Mountain (we live just south of it on a trail) to get them aclimated and to get some easy views in (Red Rocks and Foothills).

Lunch time we would go to Federal for Pho and Boba at Pho Duy – the best in the city (Calvin is Vietnamese and if we don’t eat Pho at least once a week, we are in trouble!) If it’s in the summer time, we would likely end up at the Firefly Art Market to go see some of my clients and a LOT of my art friends show their beautiful work.

I’d then take them to an evening workshop at Rosy Rings on 6th ave or go to a show at Red Rocks and then off to El Five for dinner with views of the city.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I think there are a few people that need recognition in my story. The first being my dad, as he supported me in my educational pursuits through university BUT he also gave me a LOT of tough love – the toughest being that I must study Entrepreneurial Leadership alongside Fine Art. I really refused to at first and it caused a lot of tension between us. But if I hadn’t taken those courses, I’m not sure I would feel the confidence to take my pursuit of the Arts forward into a full blown business without that structure. I’m also VERY fortunate to have had a mother who was always making art. She is an artist, through and through, and without learning creativity from her, I wouldn’t have the holistic and joyful lens about the world of art and photography that I do now. Thanks parents!

Additionally, some folks that truly were and are inspirations – the late Vanessa Cox, who was the first to plant the seed of starting my own photography company back in Massachusetts. I’m so grateful for the positive energy that she put into that seed and the belief she put into me. She is missed by so many, and I think it’s important to recognize the impact she made on me.

Emily Knight, the owner of Pattern Co and a former art education colleague of mine. She is constantly inspiring me with the energy she puts into her own paintings and how she has grown her small business quite organically. Her work is also beautiful and is all around my home. Emily also just has the greatest eye, and we often collaborate on projects, so it’s always nice to work alongside another artist.

My dear friend Robin Van Wageningen, also a landscape painter out of Golden, Co. She is always so organized in her business growth. We often co=work together, so I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that she is such an important and positive force in my own growth and organizational skills haha. It truly takes a community to be a female business owner in the Arts. Her work is also all over my home hah!

All my clients and friends who trusted me to photograph their weddings, families, newborns, works of art, cats and dogs! All of these people who trust me to create for them really inspire me every day!

And lastly my husband Calvin – who has fearlessly let me tackle this small business thing and has also joined on as our wedding videographer! He is a true champion who keeps me level headed, makes sure I’m well fed and is always so supportive 🙂

Website: https://www.simoneschiess.com

Instagram: @simoneschiessphotography

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simoneschiessphotography/

Image Credits
all credits to Simone Schiess Photography