Community Highlights: Meet Casey Irwin of Penne For My Thoughts

Today we’d like to introduce you to Casey Irwin.

Hi Casey, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always been a creative-minded person, which has taken its form in everything from music to writing, to photography. With that creativity has always come to a sense of curiosity and a craving for learning, which helps me in my pursuit to improve the projects that I have done over the years. In college, I decided to study interpersonal communications at the University of Delaware, with minors in Spanish and in writing. My classes allowed me to learn about things that I was genuinely so intrigued by, such as human communication and different cultures. I valued the lessons that I learned both from the lectures themselves and from the various experiences I had during college. I gained a real sense of perspective on people and interacted with others in a meaningful way, which I knew would serve me well post-grad. Still, all those four years I never would’ve expected myself to be pursuing photography as a career.

Upon graduating college, I moved to Nashville with little to no plans. I wanted to experience a new place, and I chose somewhere where I knew no one. After a few random interviews at public relations or marketing firms, I felt a pull to photography. I had a nice camera that I had experimented with over the years, and I had a food instagram that I had dedicated time to over the past few years. Out of the blue, I knew I could really turn it into something. From there I took to teaching myself more about my camera and the art of photography itself. I quickly started cold emailing restaurants in hopes that they would be willing to let me photograph their food, often offering free photoshoots just so that I could build a portfolio. I had spreadsheets of No after No after No as I kept track of who I had talked to, but it only took a few yes’s to motivate me to develop my business.

Three and a half years into my life in Nashville, I am so proud of where I have come. I have really developed my skillset as a photographer in a way that allows me to photograph food so much better–as well as expand my horizons into portraiture and landscapes. I suffer from imposter syndrome and I get shy about boasting about my accomplishments, but starting my own photography business, and learning to call it a business instead of a hobby, has been such a hard and incredible experience. I am only just starting on this road to build the business itself and let it turn into something even bigger!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has been anything but smooth. The vulnerability that comes with starting a business is very striking, and I’ve had to learn to draw the line between business and personal many times. I’ve had bad photoshoots, and I’ve been rejected, I’ve had to take a step back from my photography in order to focus on my day barista job in order to pay the bills. I’ve had to work through exhaustion in order to be a consistent content creator that people remember.

On top of all of that, starting my business just months before the pandemic struck was not ideal timing. I really had to find creative solutions to not having clients during the pandemic, which turned into an extremely valuable time to create a home studio environment and improve my editing skills.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Penne For My Thoughts is the name of my photography brand. 5 years ago it began as a fun way to share the iPhone quality photos that I loved taking of the meals infant of me. At the time I was also writing for food publications called Spoon University, so food was just my all. Fast forward to now and I created stunning imagery that captures not just the meal itself but the atmosphere around it and the emotions that meals create. I am a female-run business and a completely self-taught photographer. I know I have avenues to improve on, but I also know that I capture food in a way that makes people want to sit at the table and share that food with those around them. The thing about food is that you need people to enjoy it.

I have recently expanded my business to go beyond the table to capture those around it. This can be at a restaurant itself, or simply with people on their own. I am constantly expanding my offerings, which is exciting in it itself. I really do want to expand my horizons and be the business that people (and restaurants) can count on to capture their special moments and their special meals. I am very proud of the content that I make. I think it’s aesthetically appealing while also being real and not too overproduced. I want the food to be as real as the positive feelings that it creates.

Pricing:

• $200 for an hour restaurant photoshoot
• $150 for an hour portraiture photoshoot

Contact Info:

• Website: https://penneformythoughts.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/penneformythoughts/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=X4d3oN64XePaBnKnlZAEtw