I would have never believed you.
I've been thinking a lot lately about where I am in life and how different things look compared to five years ago. And I don't think I've really given myself enough credit for any of it.
In 2021, I graduated from Western Kentucky University with my bachelor's degree in photojournalism. I knew I loved photography, I knew I loved telling stories, and I knew I wanted to do something with those things. But I had absolutely no idea what the next five years would look like. If you would've told me then that I'd be traveling across the country photographing weddings, meeting people from all over, and building a photography business that people genuinely wanted to support, I would've thought you were insane. Like, actually insane.
And now here I am, five years later, looking at a calendar full of weddings, trips, sessions, and people who have trusted me to photograph some of the biggest moments of their lives. It's a little hard to wrap my head around.
I think one of the things I've struggled with most as a photographer is comparing myself to other photographers. And I mean A LOT. I'll scroll through Instagram and see someone photographing these incredible weddings, traveling to places I've only dreamed of visiting, or producing work that makes me question everything I've ever done with a camera. And suddenly I start feeling like I'm behind. Like I should be booking more weddings, traveling more, posting more, creating better work, doing something more. It's such a weird feeling because I can be genuinely happy for another photographer and still somehow use their success as a reason to question my own.
I think they call that imposter syndrome, and I definitely have my fair share of it. Sometimes I wonder if I'm actually good enough to be doing what I'm doing. If people see something in my work that I don't. If I deserve the opportunities I've been given. Which sounds absolutely ridiculous when I type it out because I'm currently trying to figure out how to fit multiple weddings, four states, a full-time job, and approximately a million other things into one month. Like, girl. What exactly are we trying to prove here??? 😂
But that's kind of the point. I spend so much time thinking about what I haven't accomplished that I forget to look at what I have. And this year has given me A LOT to look back on.
I've gotten on planes and driven hundreds of miles with my camera. I've photographed weddings in places I probably never would've visited otherwise. I've explored unfamiliar cities, met some genuinely incredible people, and gotten to experience things that have absolutely nothing to do with taking photographs but everything to do with why I love this job. And I'm not finished traveling yet. October alone is taking me through Indiana, West Virginia, Montana, and finally back home to Kentucky. MONTANA??? I'm sorry, but that's still crazy to me. The fact that somebody wants me to fly across the country to photograph their wedding is something I don't think I'll ever fully comprehend. And I hope I never get so used to it that it stops feeling special.
I've talked before about my 50 Vows Project, my goal of photographing a wedding in all 50 states, and how excited I am about the possibility of seeing more of the country through photography. But the more I travel, the more I realize it isn't really about the states themselves. It's about the people I get to meet along the way.
And that brings me to the biggest reason I wanted to write this in the first place. Every single person who has supported Chloe Skeese Photography this year means more to me than I could ever properly explain. And I don't just mean the people who have booked with me. I mean everyone. Every bride who has filled out an inquiry form. Every couple who has trusted me with their wedding day. Every family who has invited me to photograph them. Every senior who has let me document such an exciting chapter of their life. Every person who has recommended me to a friend, shared something I've posted, left a review, commented on a photo, or simply reached out to tell me they like my work. I see those things, I remember them, and they matter so much more than you probably realize.
I think it's easy to forget that behind every small business is an actual person who gets excited when their phone lights up with a new inquiry. That's me. I still get excited. I still tell people when someone reaches out about a wedding. I still get nervous before meeting new clients. I still get ridiculously happy when someone tells me they love their photos. And when someone tells me they found me because a friend recommended me? Oh, that gets me every time. Because that means somebody thought enough of me and my work to pass my name along, and I don't think there's a better compliment.
Especially when it comes to weddings. There are SO many talented photographers out there. So many people whose work I admire and whose businesses I look up to. And out of all those people, someone looks at my photographs and decides they want me there. They want me to be the person standing beside them while they get ready, the person photographing their parents watching them walk down the aisle, the person capturing their friends crying during the ceremony or their grandparents dancing at the reception. They trust me to photograph people and moments they can never get back, and I don't take that lightly.
I think that's one thing my photojournalism background has really stuck with me on. I didn't fall in love with photography because I wanted everything to look perfect. I fell in love with it because photographs tell stories. They show us people and places and moments that might otherwise be forgotten. And even though my career looks a little different than what I originally imagined when I was graduating from WKU, I still get to do exactly what I went to school for. I get to tell people's stories, and I get to do it in a way that feels like me. That's pretty freaking cool.
I've also been thinking about how many people have been a part of this business without necessarily realizing it. The people who booked with me when I was still figuring everything out. The people who have come back year after year. The friends who have shared my work. The families who have welcomed me into their homes. The strangers who have turned into friends. The people who have trusted me before I completely trusted myself. That last one is a big one, because as much as I struggle with comparing myself to other photographers, I think it's important to remember that there are people who have looked at my work and never questioned whether I was good enough. They just knew they wanted me to photograph them. And maybe I should start giving myself a little of that same confidence.
Not because I think I'm the best photographer in the world. I'm absolutely not, and I have so much left to learn. But because I am allowed to be proud of what I've built. I'm allowed to be excited about the weddings I've booked, the places I've traveled, and the people I've met without immediately comparing those things to somebody else's accomplishments. Someone else's success doesn't make mine any less real, and I think that's something I really needed to remind myself of lately.
Because the truth is, this business has grown into something I never would've expected five years ago. It's taken a lot of work. A lot of late nights editing. A lot of figuring things out as I go. A lot of mistakes and learning from them. And a lot of wondering if I'm doing any of this right. And somehow, here we are. I have a website I'm proud of. I have weddings on my calendar in places I've never been. I have people reaching out to me from other states. I have clients who come back and let me keep photographing their lives as they change. And I have a whole lot of people who have made all of that possible.
I still have so many things I want to accomplish. So many places I want to visit. So many weddings I hope I get to photograph. I'm not even close to being finished. But I also don't want to spend the next five years so focused on where I want to be that I forget to appreciate where I am right now. Because five years ago, this would've been a pretty big deal to me. Actually, it would've been a HUGE deal. And I think sometimes I owe it to that girl graduating from WKU to stop scrolling, stop comparing, and just be happy about what she's gotten to do.
So to every single person who has supported my business this year, thank you. Whether you've booked a session, trusted me with your wedding, recommended my name, shared my work, or simply followed along, you've been a part of something that means the world to me. I know I say thank you a lot, but I hope you know I genuinely mean it. I wouldn't be traveling to these places or meeting these people or getting to do any of this without you, and I hope that never becomes something I take for granted.
If you would've told me in 2021 that this is where I'd be in 2026, I wouldn't have believed you. And honestly, sometimes I still have a hard time believing it. But I think that girl graduating from WKU would be so excited to see where life has taken her. I think she'd be proud of the people she's met, the places she's gone, and the things she's created. And maybe she'd tell me to stop being so hard on myself every once in a while.
Because while I'm busy looking at everything everyone else is doing, I'm forgetting that I'm getting to live a life that a younger version of me would've been so excited about. And that's something worth being proud of.
Here's to everyone who's helped me get here, all the places this camera has taken me, and all the people I haven't even met yet. I can't wait to see what the next five years look like.
