If you’ve seen my work, been on my website, or my social media pages and clicked all the way through to this post...thank you! Welcome to my brand new space on the web! Not gonna lie, it’s taken a LOT of work to get to this point, but I’m so glad we’re here and that you are enjoying the little pieces of me that I’ve put out into the world so far.
When I started this relaunch project, there were two things I knew I wanted:
1. I wanted to launch January 1st
2. I wanted a blog
If you own any kind of a business or side hustle, you know how difficult it can be to produce content for social media consistently, let alone an entire blog. I knew this too, yet I couldn’t help but continually be drawn to the idea of having a separate space that was all my own to share my voice and my love for what I do. So, a ton of hours and almost a year of dreaming later, welcome to the SCP blog!
Launching this website, the blog and the overall new look of Sarah Coffey Photography was a way for me to start out the new year with intention for my business and more purpose for myself. If you’re new to me and my work, here’s a little introduction for you!
About Me:
Hey, there! I’m Sarah. I’m a 24-year-old wedding and small business branding photographer serving Western NC and beyond. I live in Morganton, NC, a beautiful little town at the foot of the Appalachian mountains. I love it here and my mountains are my happy place.
When I’m not shooting, I’m usually at the studio working on my next pottery project. It’s become such an outlet and a stress reliever for me and I’m always excited to try something new. I’m very detail-oriented and I love the idea of slowly working on a piece until I get it right. I also enjoy baking, music and traveling anywhere, anytime. I’m an aspiring minimalist (although my closet is one area that may never comply with that!), and I have a goal to run a 5k in 2020.
My Marriage:
I married the love of my life, Stephen, in May of 2017 and we have spent the last 2 and a half years working towards a life of intention and impact. We both serve within our local church and I’ve had the privilege of traveling with Steve when he ministers to other churches both domestically and overseas. Although he holds a full time position as Director of Growth at a digital marketing agency, he is a huge supporting role in my business and he helps wherever he can.
I say this at the risk of sounding cheesy, but Steve really is the best thing that ever happened to me. I feel like the person I am today - the outlook I have on life and the way I process the things that I deal with - is totally different than the person I was when I got married. They say marriage doesn’t change you, but I feel like it changed parts of me, for the better, and that’s all because of Steve. It’s because he takes the time to talk me through hard situations, give me a better perspective on things, and isn’t afraid to call me out gently when I’m wrong. To anyone who may be reading this thinking it’s all made up, you’re welcome to come over for one of our evening couch conversations and see for yourself. Not to mention that he isn’t afraid to vacuum the floors, cook dinner or do a load of laundry when I get overwhelmed with my to-do list. We had early anniversary photos taken this fall, and it was one of the sweetest experiences I’ve had with him since our wedding day. I shared a little about it in a recent Instagram post if you want to read more. I’ll cherish these photos forever.
(Photos by Meghan Rose Photography: www.meghanrosephotography.com)
My Business:
I began my business at the end of 2018 after leaving my desk job as an insurance agent that June. I had landed a job as a full time customer service rep there right out of high school and after working at that for awhile I took my exam to become a licensed agent. I worked for that company for a total of 5 years, and I’m very thankful for what it has taught me about attention to detail, staying organized and serving clients well.
The funny/scary thing about that whole story is that Steve and I both quit our jobs the SAME day. Yes, you read that right. He was working as an office manager for an HVAC company, and although both jobs served us well and allowed us to accomplish a lot in our personal lives, we both felt a pull to something different at the same time. We had a lot of conversations about “what if” and after calculating our finances carefully and weighing out the pros and cons, we decided to make the jump.
I immediately knew that I wanted to make photography a serious business. Steve worked on my website and logo in between getting his own boutique marketing agency off the ground and I worked on my first serious portfolio, a collection of black and white images. Even though my vision has shifted from it, I still love that body of work today. It was one of the first things I can remember that really gave me life. It inspired me and gave me the confidence I needed to take the next step forward. I remember thinking “I actually accomplished something!” No joke.
The rest of 2018 flew by and 2019 has been a year of discovery and change for me. I found out, despite having some experience in them and definitively telling myself they were NOT for me, that I did want to photograph weddings. I saw great small businesses struggling to create enough content to show up online consistently, and I found out that branding sessions are some of my favorite jobs. I tried everything I could, and for the first time I wasn’t so afraid to fail. Letting go of that fear has served me well, and it’s advice that I would give to anyone who wants to try something new. I have an entire blog post coming about this, but “just start” are two words that have transformed me over the last 2 years. Because of that outlook, I found what I love most and I’m excited to dig into it further in 2020.
Let’s be Friends:
So...now that you know a little about me, tell me about you! I’d love to get to know you better, so let’s hang out on social. Here’s where you can find me during the week...shoot me a DM and let’s be friends!
My IG account: www.instagram.com/sarah.coffey.photography
My Facebook page: www.facebook.com/sarah.coffey.photography