Michelle Rose Photography

07/22/2024

"Don't call it a comeback" ...I've been with the Newhouse family for years. 🎵🥰

07/21/2024

My niece, Stevie Mae. 👑

12/12/2023

It hardly seems real.
It has been an nearly entire year away from Michelle Rose Photography. After 10 years of intense focus on building this business, it still feels surreal to have separated from it. In a way I don’t know if I ever truly will. After dedicating so much of yourself to creating something from nothing, it becomes a part of you. I am thankful it remains a piece of who I am now. A year ago though, I was extremely burnt out and had been for far, far too long. I was unable to find a way to cope while still running my business. A complete lifestyle overhaul was needed for me to find a sense of peace again. Thankfully, after all this time the heaviness that burnout leaves you carrying is drifting away. With that weight lifted, I am able to discover a new sense of balance in my life. Please don’t mistake me using the word balance as meaning a “work/life balance,” a term that makes me cringe. The way you earn a living (your work) is a piece of your life, not separate from it. I want to feel passionate and dedicated to all parts of my life. When I say I’m finding a balance, what I mean is that I have learned how to set boundaries with myself about how much energy each part of my life receives and then developed a structure to support that. I don’t have it all mapped out yet, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it? Knowing exactly where life is taking us would make for a pretty boring story. This journey I’m on is beautiful and leaves me excited to wake up and smell the coffee each day.

For the past year, my camera has remained inside its bag for my children's milestones, family events and holidays. My heart hurt believing the desire to create using my lifelong favorite medium had been burnt completely. As my energy finds an equilibrium, I find myself being called back to my camera again. I do not have any plans to reignite this business. However, there have been bonds made during the last decade that I dearly miss documenting moments with. Excitedly, I’ve decided to open up just 3 sessions for 2024 - message me if you’d like to reserve one.

As for what comes next… who knows, but may we always look forward with pleasure, and backward without regret. Cheers to you, me and wrapping up an inspiring year full of adventure.

*Images taken in my home, feeling creative photography energy for the first time in so long.

04/17/2023

Hello, my long-lost friends! As you may have noticed, this page has been silent for months. I was taking some time to quietly adjust to significant changes in my own life, but now it is time to fill you all in! Today is a big day for the business you and I have created together. April 17th, 2023 marks ONE DECADE since opening Michelle Rose Photography. It’s been an incredible journey for me. I’ve been witness to some of the most intimate moments in the lives of my customers and have always felt such a deep sense of honor and gratitude for these opportunities. There have been countless moments that will stay in my memory for the rest of my life. This career has always been about relationships with people for me, which is why it makes the next part of my announcement emotional to say.

I have made the choice to close Michelle Rose Photography. Although I have a few obligations to finish up, I will no longer be taking on any new sessions. While this decision came with a wide range of not-so-easy emotions, it also comes with an overwhelming amount of relief and excitement.

The relief stems from running a business solo and trying to manage demands that eventually took a large toll on my mental and physical health. To the photographers and entrepreneurs who’ve been in my shoes, I know you understand. I hope you are able to create the support system you need to make your business sustainable for your life. Like many of us, I am a recovering perfectionist and had pushed myself too hard for far too long. There were many times I paid the price with my own health and sacrificing critical time with my loved ones. Yet, it was so difficult to walk away from a career I felt so passionately about, which brings me to my excitement.

I am excited to fill you in on what’s next! Last Fall I accepted a position at Sweet Alice Floral and their NEW sister company, Golden Afternoon Design Co as a social media manager and photographer. Working here has allowed me to use the skills I’d developed over the 10 years I spent running my own business, while also expanding and exploring new creative avenues. Sweet Alice is a sustainability-focused company, owned and led by women. It has given me a feeling of community I had not realized I desperately needed.

I feel at peace. I feel supported. My heart is filled with gratitude and love, not only for my current opportunities but for the people and experiences that led me here. I am deeply thankful to each of you that has been a part of my story. I would be thrilled for you to check out what I’ve been up to and follow along with us at Sweet Alice & Golden Afternoon Design Co. We have been working on a project with local, women-led small businesses that are creating positive changes in the world. It has been exceptionally inspiring to hear their stories and have the opportunity to use photography in a new way.

And speaking of supporting other women in business, Rayns Photography LLC and Crystel Becker Photography are two phenomenally talented photographers that have been such an inspiration for me to watch grow. If you are on the hunt for a new photographer, I leave you in their incredibly capable hands.

“There are things that we never want to let go of, people we never want to leave behind. But keep in mind that letting go isn’t the end of the world, it’s the beginning of a new life.” – Unknown

From the bottom of my heart, thank you. I am forever grateful.
XOXO, Michelle

08/10/2022

Layer upon layer of art. Inspiring. 💃

08/04/2022

"Perfume came naturally from Paris, naturally
For cars she couldn't care less
Fastidious and precise
She's a Killer Queen
Gunpowder, gelatine
Dynamite with a laser beam
Guaranteed to blow your mind, anytime"
- Queen

*behind the scenes in comments*

08/04/2022

The start of family-picture-season is less than one month away! 🍂

07/28/2022

It's time that we redefine how we view getting family pictures taken.
..by redefine I actually mean to throw all definitions out the window.

Family pictures are just that, pictures of family.

Let your curiosity run wild.
Dream up all the "ridiculous" ideas you can.
Don't judge yourself for being weird.

My children will vouch for me here...
Weird people are my favorite people. I am weird people.
And by this, I simply mean unique.
Be someone who colors outside the lines.
Let's let your next session be different from all the rest.

Let's create and document real, pleasurable, authentic memories.
Photographs that make your soul light up when you reminisce.

Come be weird with me.

XOXO, Michelle

Serving the Mankato area and all of Minnesota.

07/24/2022

I'm a sinner
I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
I'm your hell
I'm your dream
I'm nothing in between
You know you wouldn't want it any other way
- Meredith Brooks, "B*tch"

07/23/2022

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."
-Henry David Thoreau

07/20/2022

Stealing a piece of time. 📷🥀

07/20/2022

"You belong among the wildflowers
You belong somewhere close to me
Far away from your trouble and worry
You belong somewhere you feel free"
🌸 -Tom Petty, "Wildflowers"