Today we’d like to introduce you to Mateusz Jagiello and Pamela Godwin. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Matusz’s history began in Poland, where he was born and raised. Interestingly enough, he had been studying music his whole life and he was growing up to become a professional musician. But it wasn’t music that was filling up his soul. When he graduated with his Masters in Music Performance, he decided to finally use the money he saved up that year to purchase his first camera.
His whole life he felt this calling to pick up a camera and just simply capture the world the way he sees it. His first intuition was to try to take photographs of beautiful landscapes and nature. Very quickly his attention turned towards human connection. Once people knew he was starting to learn photography they asked him to take their portraits. And then the truest magic in the world happened. He saw people cry, burst out the biggest smiles, or even look disbelieving.
“I’ve never had a photo of myself that I loved until now!”, “I never thought I could actually look good in a photo!”, “This is ME?!”, “I used to hate being photographed but now I want to do it again!”. These were the experiences that made him realize the true beauty and power of photography.
Mateusz lives and breathes cameras and photography. He cannot stop. He does it in his free time before he falls asleep, and as soon as he opens his eyes. He loves it so much and the thing that he loves most about it is that he can share the experience of creating art with others. Photography is always a collaboration. No two photos will ever be the same because no two people are the same.
Everybody brings their own experience, beauty, character, and spirit. This is where the magic happens – magic that is absolutely unique and priceless. Pamela moved to Utah in 2015 to pursue her love affair with nature and go back to school. Though her major was anthropology, she spent more time and energy on her minor, entrepreneurship. After winning a competition and receiving two grants through her program, she started a small business called Sideshow Photo Booth Co.
The photo booth was a vintage camper that she turned into a mini-photography studio. She knew nothing about photography but understood how to craft an unforgettable experience. Then Pamela met Mateusz through a mutual friend and saw some of his work. She had the idea of creating a mobile boudoir studio in her camper and asked Mateusz if he would like to start a little side hustle with her. Kismet obliged; Mateusz had received his work visa the week previous and he was wanting to start a photography business.
They asked some friends to model for them, created a little portfolio, and started researching everything, taking classes, watching tutorials, doing market research, and registering the business. They found a killer hair and makeup artist, a trustworthy lawyer, and a very experienced accountant. They modeled their business, Silk + Salt Photography, after other boudoir photography studios that they respected and Mateusz worked hard to find and then refine his style.
Most importantly, they defined their mission: to help every one of their clients cultivate a body-positive attitude and a sense of empowerment over their bodies and lives. In 2019 and 2020, Mateusz submitted some of his work to the print and digital competitions at WPPI, which is the largest photography competition in the United States. He won second place in the print competition for boudoir, a huge honor, and a silver award for the digital competition. That was the moment Pamela and Mateusz knew that they were creating something really special.
Just as things looked like they were taking off, the pandemic hit. They had to close the studio for several months. In an effort to pivot, they offered web sessions but they weren’t as gratifying to execute. It was difficult to connect with clients or give them a personalized experience through a webcam. So instead, they created a safety policy for Covid-19 and reopened the studio. They also hired an expert on Facebook marketing to run an ad campaign for them.
People were sick of being stuck at home and were excited for an opportunity to do something that made them feel extraordinary. To widen their reach, they grew their Facebook group, the Salty Witches, and posted lots of body-positive, sex-positive content as well as fun interactive posts. They became allies of the LGBTQ+ community and sponsored their local Pride Festival in an effort to make their brand more inclusive.
Mateusz and Pamela have been consistently shooting four sessions a week since they reopened and have been booked out 8-10 weeks. Silk + Salt is on track to triple its gross income in 2021 from what it was in 2020. In 2022 Silk + Salt, will be offering body-positive luxury weekend retreats which will include a photography element, some meaningful events for their Facebook group, and a trip to Europe in late summer where they plan to offer some exciting destination sessions.
And they will stop using the word boudoir as often in their marketing and instead rebrand what they do as empowerment photography because it more accurately describes their mission and their passion.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Building a business is never smooth!
Our greatest obstacle has been convincing our potential clients that they are worth a luxury experience, that they have a right to feel sexy and powerful, and that even though our principal photographer is a man they will be comfortable and respected every step of the way. Utah is still mired in a lot of patriarchal attitudes that are holding people back from living their best lives.
We are on a mission to change that.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are an inclusive empowerment photography studio specializing in portraiture and boudoir photography. We are known for the luxury experience we provide as well as our award-winning photography. Clients come to us looking for a transformative experience.
Society has told them that they are ugly, or too fat, or too skinny, or too tall, or too short, or too average, or “deficient” in some other way and we show them that all of that is a lie. We teach our clients to see themselves in a new way, that isn’t reliant upon societal expectations, and to love their bodies exactly as they are.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
We would love for anyone who identifies as a woman and is looking for an inclusive, supportive community to join our Facebook group, the Salty Witches!
Pricing:
- Our session fee is $500
- Collections start at $2200
- Gallery Art starts at $300
- Albums start at $1200
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@silkandsaltphoto.com
- Website: www.silkandsaltphoto.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silkandsaltofficial/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/silkandsaltphoto/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXsXhKcL1zseHslRU6YEdFQ
Image Credits
Mateusz Jagiello of Silk + Salt Photography
