Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebekah Walden
Hi Rebekah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I went to ETSU and got my degree in Early Childhood Development. I taught 1st grade for one year in my hometown LaFollette, TN. I decided not to return to teaching the next year after finding out I was pregnant with my first child. I was blessed to stay home with her during her first year and found myself taking photos of her all the time. I enjoyed it so much that I spontaneously decided to start my own photography business in 2007 around the time of her first birthday. Without much knowledge of photography, I jumped head in and got a $10K business loan. I started with a studio in the basement of my home shooting everything I could ranging from babies to high school seniors to weddings. I learned a great deal by trial and error but also invested in training and education as I was able. My first goal was to pay off the loan, and I did that successfully within three years while continuing to grow my family and work from home.
I was soon able to open a studio in the community center of my hometown. Realizing my love for babies, I made the decision to stop shooting weddings and focus more on creating a niche for myself in baby and family photography. I operated my studio in LaFollette for ten years drawing clients to our small town from all over East and even Middle Tennessee. I added a professional photo editor in 2012, and in 2017, I opened a new commercial studio in the Powell area to better serve my Knoxville & East TN client base. Having a centrally-located, store-front space really helped my business to continue to grow and further establish itself in the Knoxville area.
I commute from LaFollette to Knoxville still and am proud to have one of Knoxville’s leading newborn photography studios. I specialize in newborn and baby’s 1st year photography and offer both studio and outdoor sessions. Many of the families that I work with return for yearly birthday portraits, family photos, and seasonal mini sessions. Some of the first newborns I photographed are now juniors and seniors in high school!
While my full time focus is baby photography, I have shot youth sports portraits behind the scenes in my hometown for 10+ years. This past year, I extended a sports branch of my business “SCP Sports” offering high-end, magazine-worth sports portraits using state of the art equipment and techniques. Link: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564570025792
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
One of the biggest struggles I have had is being both a working and stay at home mom. In the early years of business, I stayed home with my children while running my business and eventually homeschooling them. The year I moved my studio to Knoxville, I put them in public school. Seven years later, I still have little ones at home (4 year old twins) and my three older children are still in school. I still very much consider myself a mix of stay at home mom and a working mom.
Finding balance between work and home life has always been a challenge. One day, I feel like I’m being a great mom but letting business stuff slip and other days I feel like I am killing it with business stuff and missing out at home. I know that probably resonates with other working moms. Being a great mom and business owner are both important to me!
The flexibility I have as a business owner has been a blessing. I do try to plan my work schedule around my home life, as much as I am able. I was able to “scale back” some when my twins were born and have been slowly starting to work more over the past year. I will probably work a little bit more once they go to school. Also, having a one hour commute has not always been easy, but I have made it work.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I would say that I am known for my baby photography the most! “Southern Charm Portraits” is one of the top baby portrait studios in Knoxville and surrounding areas— specializing in maternity, newborn, baby, and children’s photography, offering both outdoor and studio sessions. Our brand is simple, classic portraits. Our commercial studio has a warm and inviting atmosphere paired with a simple white aesthetic that allows your baby to be the focus of each image. You will not only receive stunning photographs but also a cherished experience for your family.
My degree in Early Childhood Development and natural talent of working with little ones quickly allows me to connect with clients and put them at ease. I’ve often had clients comment on how I have a magical way of working with babies and call me the “baby whisperer”. I truly feel so blessed to get to work with so many wonderful families in East TN. I give credit to God for always blessing my business– He is faithful! (Colossians 3:23)
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
We have a website as well as social media. We update our instagram and Facebook weekly to show our recent work and share what sessions we have coming up.
www.southerncharmportraits.com
IG: @southerncharmportraits
FB: https://www.facebook.com/southerncharmportraits/
We offer online booking: https://book.usesession.com/i/cad8qivlJJ
We appreciate clients that book their baby and family portraits with us, and also appreciate a share or comment on social media! We have got many 1st time clients through “word of mouth”. We are blessed to have a great online presence and following and are always looking for opportunities to collaborate with others in the baby industry.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.southerncharmportraits.com
- Instagram: @southerncharmportraits
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/southerncharmportraits/
