Today we’d like to introduce you to Brooke Rumbold.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I actually had no intention of pursuing photography as a career — I finished undergrad with a degree in journalism and decided to then get my Master’s degree in English with the goal of eventually teaching at the college level. Since I had also minored in photography while in undergrad, my mom offered up my services when a family friend needed some high school senior photos taken. I realized that small photography sessions could be a great side gig to help get me through grad school, so I continued to photograph seniors, families, and newborns. I started teaching English Composition as an adjunct at two different colleges after graduating, and thus, continued to book sessions on the side. As my business grew, I had clients interested in booking me for their weddings — and to be honest, I was vehemently avoiding doing so. I had never considered myself to be the “wedding type”; I didn’t “love love”, or weddings, or any of the antiquated traditions and expectations I had seen wrapped up in the process itself.
I eventually decided to shoot a few weddings here and there, and slowly, surely, I got hooked on photographing these events for all of the elements I hadn’t known could exist before experiencing it for myself. I found myself enamored with the people I was working with, and the moments they were in the midst of, and the emotions and the dancing and the joy that fills up a room when two people are surrounded by all of the people they know and love. By 2014, I found myself as a full-time wedding photographer with a part-time teaching position, and eventually decided to focus solely on wedding photography and move my business from the Central Illinois area to Chicago, which has been one of the most challenging and rewarding decisions of my career thus far.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I can’t imagine that many self-employed people would describe the road as “smooth” — I think one of the most challenging parts of self-employment in general (especially in the beginning stages) is the uncertainty. When I moved to Chicago from Central Illinois, I was not only coming into a different and unfamiliar market, but I also didn’t know many people in the Chicagoland area — and with a business that had been almost entirely referral based in the past, this was pretty nerve-wracking. There were a lot of hours spent on the road traveling all over Illinois for weddings and a lot of double header wedding weekends to fit in all of the Chicago bookings I could get, but the grind paid off, and I feel pretty grateful to be able to say that.
Beyond that, I’d say one of the biggest ongoing struggles in this gig is the continual desire to make our clients happy — the hope that they’ll love their images, and the goal to get their photos edited and delivered to them promptly, and ultimately the desire to make our part in one of the biggest days of their lives as seamless and helpful as possible. I’d be lying if I told you I hadn’t cried in a McDonalds parking lot in Wisconsin once while trying to snag some wifi in order to deliver an online gallery to a client once while on the road, but I’d also be lying if I said it doesn’t always end up feeling worth it.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I specialize in photojournalistic wedding photography, which essentially just means my central focus is to simply document the wedding day as it truly happened — less posing and more hugs and cheers and laughter and crying and sweaty, enthusiastic dance moves. The narrative of the wedding day itself + the two people choosing to spend the rest of their lives together as a whole are pretty fascinating to me, and ultimately I always hope that my images help tell the story that is uniquely theirs.
What were you like growing up?
I was a kid from a small farming town who was a little bit quirky and a lot bit timid. I grew up with three brothers and in turn took to the tomboy role quite aptly. At that age, I dreamed of my adulthood consisting of playing in the WNBA, having a pet ferret, becoming a songwriter, and marrying a sandy-blonde haired guy by the age of 23 and having three children by the age I’m at now. While I think the younger version of me would be pretty disappointed that none of those things came to fruition, I am pretty thrilled with the alternative life I’m currently living.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://brookealaina.com/
- Phone: 309-238-2579
- Email: brookerumbold@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brookealaina/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brookealainaphoto/
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