Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlie Foshee.
Hi Charlie, 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?
My photography career started during Covid. I was originally a logistics broker but the company I was working for had a division shut down a few months before Covid. After that I got a job at another logistics company but then Covid happened and most of us lost our jobs again including myself. During that same time my best friend and I had a YouTube channel that went viral and I realized I hated logistics and wanted to do photo and video. I moved to Atlanta and started working for a photo video Company on top of making YouTube videos. I was in a serious relationship with a girl at the time and she wanted to move to Nashville. I wanted to marry her and I knew that if I was gonna do that I needed to change careers to something that paid more than my current job so I took a job as a life and health insurance agent. Three months in the moving to Nashville with my girlfriend we had broken up. I was homeless for a month sleeping on friends couches and finding places to stay on Facebook marketplace. I had one good month in sales that I was able to use to get an apartment with a friend but the next two months after that all Sales had dried up for me and I ended up having to sell everything I owned including my cameras and equipment to pay rent. At that point of my life I realize that if I could’ve fixed myself on my own I would have so I hired a life coach. Two months into working with him he asked me why I wasn’t a photographer anymore and why I don’t consider going into that again and I told him it was because I sold all my equipment and I couldn’t afford to buy a camera. He asked me why I didn’t just finance one and I told him because my credit had gotten so bad no one would loan me money.. My next plan was to save up money so on top of life and health insurance I was driving for Uber Eats. I ended up driving 12 hours a day for Uber eats and evenings I didn’t drive I was going to events hanging out my business card as a photographer. I didn’t own a camera but I knew I was gonna figure out a way to get it. One morning before driving for Uber Eats I was brushing my teeth and I got a notification on my phone that PayPal just released a new credit program and I was preapproved for some amount. I figured it was something like $500 which isn’t bad but wasn’t what I needed. The camera I wanted to buy was $2500 and the lens I needed with it was $500. I clicked the confirm button and waited for the amount to load. Believe it or not it was $3000 that they approved me for. I couldn’t believe it. I immediately linked my card to my Amazon account and bought a new camera and a lens but that was just the beginning. Now I had a camera but I needed to build a portfolio again so anytime I was at a bar or a restaurant and saw an attractive girl I would introduce myself, asked if she modeled and told her I was Photographer in Nashville and would love to do a photo shoot for her. That person would get to keep the images and it would help my business. That led to me making a lot of connections. People on Facebook and Instagram saw my work and started to reach out. I was still driving for Uber Eats on days I didn’t have shoots though. I still was doing 12 hours a day certain days. I was delivering to houses two and three times in a row sometimes. People even recognized me. From there, I continue to work and market myself and that led into more shoots and more opportunities. I got really good at posting on Instagram consistently and using hashtags and keywords. People started reaching out to me for different things like proposals, weddings, lifestyle and branding. That’s a lot of what I do now. That led to me getting my own apartment that I turned into a photography studio. My first two years in business I didn’t even own a couch because my living room was my studio. I now have a two bedroom in the guest bedroom has a couch but my living room is still my studio. It’s just a much nicer studio now..
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Moving to Nashville and not knowing anyone was a struggle at first. I had no friends or business connections so everything I have now was built from scratch. I learned to get really good at networking events and I went to every house party I was invited to. Photography is an expensive industry to get into so when I didn’t have shoots I would deliver food on Uber Eats.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m very well known for surprise proposals, helping men get good photos for their dating apps, weddings, and helping Buisness owners Market themselves.
I’m really proud of being able to give people something beautiful and provide them a level of confidence they didn’t have before.
My personality and ability to bring the best out of people through photo and video is something that sets me apart.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I love how friendly everyone is. Nashville has this first year of college energy where everyone is just excited to work and collaborate and meet new people. It’s something really special that I hope we don’t lose.
The restaurant scene isn’t great. Most restaurants in Nashville don’t have to be that good because a majority of their clientele are tourists so it’s more about location than it is about overall quality. That being said there are some great restaurants but it doesn’t compare with bigger cities like Atlanta.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Charlie.Foshee
