S03 E03: The Business of Photography with Karen Rosalie of Rosalie Agency

02/17/21 • 39 min

Karen Rosalie is the Founder and Creative-in-Charge at Rosalie Agency in Los Angeles. Rosalie Agency is an LA-based creative team that produces and shoots campaigns and ads for beauty brands, specifically Sephora brands such as KKW Beauty, Dr. Dennis Gross, Summer Fridays, Kate Somerville, Kylie Skin, and many more. On top of all of the branded content and projects that she has produced for Instagram and other mediums, Karen also shares helpful content and advice for the next generation of photographers. In this episode, she talks about getting her start out of school, what brought her to photography in the first place, and some of her first big clients, as well as the transition from her personal work to a branded agency approach. Tuning in, you’ll find out why Karen believes that every photographer should be a businessperson. One thing that stands out about this interview is how intentional Karen is in everything that she does, from starting her business to producing work for her brands. Her advice is not just helpful for photographers and freelancers, but also people in the agency space or even on the branding side; across the board, you have to be creative, reinvent how you bring your product to market, and capture the value it offers. No matter what your role is in the creative process, you’ll find value in today’s episode, so make sure to tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Karen’s background and how she first got into photography.
How studying fine art taught her about meeting deadlines and the business of photography.
Hear about Karen’s shift from independent creative to business owner and working with a creative team.
Why Karen believes that every photographer should be business-minded.
Karen describes the process of starting Rosalie Agency, including her first client.
Overcoming imposter syndrome using a fake-it-till-you-make-it approach.
Her advice for listeners looking to land a first big client: consistently shooting and networking.
Learn about Karen’s “social first” strategy and how she uses Instagram to market herself.
The moment that Karen saw Instagram as a powerful marketing platform.
What the evolution of Rosalie Agency looks like, and why Karen loves the beauty niche.
Some past projects that stand out for Karen, such as with brands that completely surrender the creative direction of a campaign.
How Karen manages to insert her own creative style into her commercial work.
Behind the scenes of working with a big brand: how to prepare for a large-scale shoot.
How Karen balances being behind the lens versus sitting in the creative director’s seat.
The biggest challenges she has faced as a business owner, like scaling and hiring out.
Why Karen creates personal content and invests so much time in supporting the next generation of photographers.
How COVID has impacted her work and how she is overcoming those challenges.
The importance of great digital content and high-quality images, especially during COVID.
Shooting on her camera versus shooting on her phone for social.
Karen talks about getting married and starting a painting studio during a pandemic.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Big Things with Mitzi (@mmmitzi) and Mike (@mmmiiike).

For more from Arcade, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @helloarcade. https://www.arcadearcade.ca/
Production by Morgan Berna, editing by Oliver Banyard.

Key Points From This Episode:

Karen’s background and how she first got into photography.
How studying fine art taught her about meeting deadlines and the business of photography.
Hear about Karen’s shift from independent creative to business owner and working with a creative team.
Why Karen believes that every photographer should be business-minded.
Karen describes the process of starting Rosalie Agency, including her first client.
Overcoming imposter syndrome using a fake-it-till-you-make-it approach.
Her advice for listeners looking to land a first big client: consistently shooting and networking.
Learn about Karen’s “social first” strategy and how she uses Instagram to market herself.
The moment that Karen saw Instagram as a powerful marketing platform.
What the evolution of Rosalie Agency looks like, and why Karen loves the beauty niche.
Some past projects that stand out for Karen, such as with brands that completely surrender the creative direction of a campaign.
How Karen manages to insert her own creative style into her commercial work.
Behind the scenes of working with a big brand: how to prepare for a large-scale shoot.
How Karen balances being behind the lens versus sitting in the creative director’s seat.
The biggest challenges she has faced as a business owner, like scaling and hiring out.
Why Karen creates personal content and invests so much time in supporting the next generation of photographers.
How COVID has impacted her work and how she is overcoming those challenges.
The importance of great digital content and high-quality images, especially during COVID.
Shooting on her camera versus shooting on her phone for social.
Karen talks about getting married and starting a painting studio during a pandemic.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Big Things with Mitzi (@mmmitzi) and Mike (@mmmiiike).

For more from Arcade, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @helloarcade. https://www.arcadearcade.ca/
Production by Morgan Berna, editing by Oliver Banyard.

Previous Episode

S03 E02: How Brands Can Avoid Kindwashing with Eric Solomon, Ph.D.

Throughout the global pandemic and the escalating Black Lives Matter movement, we have heard from hundreds of companies expressing empathy across every known medium. For the most part, though, organizations are reacting rather than acting on their word in a phenomenon that today’s guest calls “kindwashing.” Eric Solomon, Ph.D, has held leadership positions for some of the top technology brands in the world, including YouTube, Spotify, and Instagram. Now he builds and installs Human Operating Systems for organizations and their leaders. In this episode, he shares a bit about his studies in psychology and artificial intelligence and how it led to roles at some of the biggest tech companies, as well as how he came to be involved in the early days of mobile tech, which is now the standard of how we all communicate online. Eric speaks candidly about the tragedy he has experienced in his life and how that brought him to focus more on what mattered to him and the difference he wanted to make, rather than just going for the big roles or becoming a cog in the marketing machine. One thing that stands out about this interview is Eric’s views on empathy and how it the term is overused in marketing. He has coined the term kindwashing and he goes into detail about what it means and how it has become a common brand response to conflict or crisis. Listening in, you will hear Eric turn kindwashing on its head, challenging listeners to think about how brands can “walk the walk” rather than throwing out blanket statements, to go back to the beginning and challenge companies and brands to stop talking about empathy and start acting on it. Tune in today!

Big Things with Mitzi (@mmmitzi) and Mike (@mmmiiike).

For more from Arcade, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @helloarcade. https://www.arcadearcade.ca/
Production by Morgan Berna, editing by Oliver Banyard.

Next Episode

S03 S04: The Enduring Power of Curiosity with Alyssa Yuhas, Award-Winning Art Director and Designer

Creativity doesn’t only exist in the form of design, photography, or tangible art-making, but also in the form of creative problem solving, which is equally as important. Today’s guest is Alyssa Yuhas, an award-winning designer, multidisciplinary art director, and co-founder of the Designer VACA. She is also the mother of two beautiful young boys and is currently pursuing her Masters’s Degree. Overall, Alyssa has a wealth of knowledge in the design, curiosity, and creativity spaces, and, tuning in, you’ll hear her perspective on creative problem solving, client relationships, and nurturing curiosity. She also elaborates on the importance of leaving space for perspective in your client relationships, surrounding yourself with good people, and prioritizing over-communication, as well as being intentional rather than reactionary, being strategic about which voices to amplify, and staying off Pinterest! Alyssa believes everyone is creative and that, if you stay curious and look around you, you will find that creativity is everywhere. To find out more about the enduring power of curiosity, tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Learn a bit more about Alyssa’s background and her career trajectory.
How she chose between being a graphic designer versus getting a “real job.”
Encouraging creativity and curiosity in her kids by modeling it for them, not teaching it.
The power of creative problem solving: why Alyssa believes that everyone is creative
What sparked her interest in going back to school and pursuing her Masters’s Degree.
Hear about Alyssa’s freelance and consulting work, what she does, and why she loves it.
The formula for good design that communicates: Alyssa shares her creative process.
Working closely with her clients but also leaving enough space for perspective.
Alyssa shares some of her favourite projects, including Darling magazine, the UN, and Nike.
The value of working with good people who are also trying to put interesting things out.
Nurturing strong client relationships: Alyssa prioritizes over-communicating.
Teaching your client how to treat you; some boundaries that Alyssa sets with clients.
Alyssa speaks about Designer VACA, what it is, and how it started.
How COVID has affected Designer VACA and what their next steps are.
Alyssa’s perspective on ethical advertising: it is intentional, not reactionary.
Choosing which voices to amplify and acknowledging your responsibility as a designer.
How the events of 2020 have changed the way Alyssa approaches design and the work she produces for her clients.
How Alyssa stays relevant by being as curious as possible (and staying off Pinterest)!
Hear about her experience of the creativity of her community during COVID.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Alyssa Yuhas on LinkedIn

Alyssa Yuhas on Instagram

Big Things with Mitzi (@mmmitzi) and Mike (@mmmiiike).

For more from Arcade, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @helloarcade. https://www.arcadearcade.ca/
Production by Morgan Berna, editing by Oliver Banyard.