Meet Alexandria Monette Cardenas of Alexandria Monette Photography

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandria Monette Cardenas.

Alexandria Monette, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Photography was always a hobby for me and wasn’t something I believed could become a career! After high school, I went the traditional route of going to college and graduated with all my pre-med credentials and a B.S. in Biology. During my time in school at San Francisco State, I would take my roommate out on “model adventures,” as I like to call them, as a way to decompress from the chaos that was my student life. (I was taking 19 units, teaching an after-school science program, interning with a research program at UCSF and trying to be a normal human). So, this was essentially when my passion for photography grew from a hobby to “Hey, maybe I can make more out of this.” I was also knee-deep in wedding planning, because marrying my fiancé two months after undergraduate graduation and before medical school sounded like a GREAT plan. Haha! Through Instagram, my eyes were opened to this entirely new-to-me creative world of photography.

I began obsessing over the idea that I could be a wedding photographer, so after my husband and I married, he gave his full support for me to pursue this wild dream of mine. Medical school applications were never sent off and now, I’m here! We had moved from San Francisco down to Southern California, where I emailed a ton of photographers to find a mentor. Jenna (who is now a dear friend of mine) of Jenna Joseph Photography was the only person to reply. She invited me to The Rising Tide Society, where on the 2nd Tuesday of each month, a bunch of creative entrepreneurs gets together to help build community + teach each other about business. These meetings are called Tuesday’s Together and that’s where I met all the incredible people who would become my biggest supporters and guide me into entrepreneurship. It took a ton of hard work to build up my aesthetic, business and community, but it has been the most worthwhile journey.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There are always bumps in the road, identity crises, and pitfalls to being a business owner, period. Luckily, I have always had a supportive group of friends and family who encouraged me along my journey. I have heard from a lot of people that their family/friends don’t feel photography is a lucrative, honorable or worthwhile career and it makes me so sad when people are put off from pursuing their wildest dreams. My husband and sister in law were the first to instill confidence in me to pursue this and not be ashamed of changing course.

My first year, I was focused on figuring out what type of photography I wanted to shoot, who my ideal client was, what my identity was as a photographer and how to appeal to the people I wanted to attract. Beyond that, figuring out how to set up a business legally, make enough money to profit while still spoiling your clients, do taxes, etc is extremely overwhelming. For the most part, I wear ALL of the hats and had to figure out how to do that without driving myself insane.

Last year, I finally hit a breaking point. I was working so much and not taking care of myself physically or mentally. My anxiety became too overwhelming to bare and my body broke out in hives for over a month! That was the point I knew I needed to take a step back, delegate the overwhelming tasks to other professionals (for taxes, branding, accounting) so that I could focus on the joyful parts of being a creative business owner, give myself the self-care I deserve and focus on my personal relationships more!

Please tell us about Alexandria Monette Photography.
I’m a wedding and elopement photographer for people who want creative imagery, a focus on intimate moments and who aren’t afraid of a little adventure! I’m known for making people feel extremely comfortable in front of the camera, for capturing really special in-between moments and for bringing a certain level of art/uniqueness to a couple’s wedding day. My goal as a business is to focus on what matters most to my couples, to allow them to have a stress free day and receive beautiful images of all the moments they have between their closest friends and family. It’s weird to say, but I fall in love with all my couples’ stories and get emotionally attached to their celebrations. Because of that, I put my heart and soul into my work. I probably cherish their memories just as much as they do! I’d say I’m always the proudest when we’re ending an engagement session and the groom says “that was actually a lot of fun!” when they expected to be in front of the camera to be awful, haha!

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over… I would have taken the chance at becoming a photographer sooner! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE science and have a deep appreciation for the STEM fields. BUT, medical school wasn’t my passion and I wish I had followed my gut sooner, because, you know, student loans.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://alexandriamonette.com
• Email: hello@alexandriamonette.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexandriamonette/

Image Credit:
Dani Carissa Photography, Katie Ruther Photography, Alexandria Monette Photography

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