Emma Rose
This past June a new photography business -- Emma Rose Company LLC -- opened its doors in South Bend.
Situated at 1015 W. Robert Bush Drive, between Elixir Café and the Chester Tavern, the space is utilized by owner Emma Rose not only as a studio but for hosting photography workshops as well.
If the last name Rose sounds familiar, it may be because her husband's family owns Rose Ranch in Bay Center. Rose explained that the main reason she and her family moved to the South Bend area two years ago from Quincy was so that her husband could take over his family's ranch. Rose herself is originally from Wenatchee.
During an interview in her new studio, Rose explained that she first picked up a camera and started dabbling when her daughter was six months old.
"I was playing and practicing. Then we moved here and that's when it started taking off," she said.
Asked about her photography experience prior to that, Rose said, "I'd played with my dad's DSLR camera before, but I'd never switched it off auto mode. So I forced myself to learn manual mode immediately, and that's what I teach a lot of people. I teach classes on manual mode because that's how I got started."
Prior to finding out that she wanted to pursue photography as a career, Rose earned her BA in Human Development and Sociology.
"I thought I wanted to be in the social field for helping kids," Rose explained. "I did love it, but [realized after 2 years] that it wasn't for me."
From there, Rose worked in finance and accounting, holding jobs at a bank and as a bookkeeper at an accounting firm in Quincy. After the birth of her daughter, and having experienced her first tax season at the accounting office, it was then she decided to become a stay-at-home mom.
Rose attributes having her daughter as the reason she started her business. Not only did she want to be able to take better pictures of her daughter, Rose also wanted a more flexible schedule so she could spend as much time as possible with her.
"It all started because I wanted to be able to take better pictures of my daughter. I've always known I was creative, but it didn't really hit me until after she was born," Rose stated.
Since starting her business, Rose has also been focused on blogging and growing her audience not only in the Pacific Northwest but worldwide. She has also started hosting photography workshops with her first having been a great success. Roughly 20 people from all over the United States made the journey to participate.
Rose will be hosting another workshop on August 27 from 4-6 p.m. called the "MAMATOG getting started class with Emma Rose." More information and class registration can be found at emmaroseco.com.