Rising Stars: Meet Charles Caswell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Charles Caswell.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I was wounded in combat and was medically retired from the US Army. I was involved in a Multi-vehicle IED (improvised explosive device) where I received shrapnel wounds to left leg, a lower back injury and a concussion resulting in a brain bleed. The brain bleed wasn’t found right away, and it left permanent scaring and cognitive impairment on my frontal lobe. When I came home, I was severely depressed and struggled with PTSD. I needed to find a way to force myself out of the house. I found I had a new passion for art (that wasn’t there prior to my injury). So, I decided to start studying photography as a form of therapy and go back to college and obtained my Graphic Design Degree.

As my photography improved, I found continuous doors to open. I’ve photographed countless wounded veteran events for nonprofits across the country. I’ve had incredible opportunities along with being on staff for Cheyanne Frontier Days and have also been published in 3 magazines. I’m also a registered member of Professional Photographers of America.

Fast forward to today. I’m happily married to my wife, Ashleigh and we have a beautiful family with 4 children ranging from 8 – 14 years old. Ashleigh and I recently opened a photography studio in Muskegon, MI the 1st of October 2021.

Having a studio has been my dream since I started this endeavor years ago. But due to my injuries I couldn’t wrap my head around the business side. Ever since I met Ashleigh 4 years ago, she has always pushed me to chase my dreams. After we got married the studio space opened and we decided to make this dream a reality. Ashleigh has always had a passion for photography and is great at the business and marketing side.

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?
Working though PTSD, cognitive impairments with reading comprehension problems along with being Red/Green color blind has made my dream a huge challenge. But I’ve always told my kids to never give up on their dreams and Ashleigh taught me to never give up on mine.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We offer Family, Senior, Maternity/newborn, Boudoir, Wedding, Holiday mini sessions along with Professional Headshots. We can do on location along with in studio.

Ashleigh ad I love volunteering and giving back to the community. We work with Fruitport Marching Band and volunteer our time to photograph the band and their performances. Families can purchase their child’s pictures directly from our website with 10% of all proceeds going back to the band. We also recently started working with a group in Muskegon and will be offering maternity or newborn photoshoots free of charge to young girls who are struggling.

It’s so much fun working with my wife. She and I have different styles so when you walk into our studio it’s almost split down the middle. She has her side with her vision, and I have mine. It’s nice because we can offer more variety of shoots to our clients.

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
This has been hard on everyone including businesses. I have a lot of friends who struggled keeping their studio open during this time. People didn’t want to go out and didn’t want to get in front of a camera with no mask on. I’ve learned to always keep open communication with our clients. We have a Covid page on our website explaining our protocols. Ashleigh and I are both fully vaccinated and have our boosters. Our number one concern is keeping everyone safe. Our second is capturing their story in a photograph that they can treasure for years to come.

Pricing:

• Family Investment Starts @ $200
• Senior Investment Starts @ $200
• Corporate Investment Starts @ $100
• Wedding Investment Starts @ $700
• Boudoir Investment Starts @ $100

Contact Info:

• Email: info@caswellstudio.com
• Website: www.caswellstudio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/caswellstudios/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caswellstudios
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/caswellstudios
• Other: https://headshotcrew.com/caswellstudios

Image Credits
Charles Caswell