local storiesMay 6, 2024

Conversations with Carsten Tice

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carsten Tice.

Carsten Tice

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I got my BA in photojournalism but didn’t immediately dive headfirst into a career in photography. Instead, I somehow became a 911 dispatcher for a large police agency in California. I was unhappily working the graveyard shift for years when my cousin asked me if I’d photograph her wedding in 2014. I’d never photographed a wedding before, but I was up to the challenge and figured I’d give it a shot! That one wedding snowballed into hundreds more! Between 2014 and 2024, I photographed over 330 weddings – some years over 60 weddings. I’d accidentally found myself running a full-fledged photography business. I’d photograph my clients during the day, and then I’d spend my graveyard shift at the police department working on the editing. It was quite the grind, but I was able to go down from full-time to part-time at my law enforcement job in 2018. I now am working only for myself and have a brick-and-mortar studio located in Dana Point’s Lantern District where my team and I create family portraits, pet portraits, headshots, and personal brand photos. We also still provide wedding photography to a small number of couples each year. And since 2017, we’ve also been providing wedding videography as well!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Covid was a terrible time for wedding photographers, as you can imagine. As if running your own business isn’t hard enough, Covid was definitely a challenging time, but we made it through.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I specialize in offering a completely custom-tailored experience for my clients. From our first call til their portraits are on their wall, it’s my goal to create images that will bring them happy tears for years, even if they think they’re awkward! (I’d even say ESPECIALLY if they’re awkward!) We provide our clients with the opportunity to have an in-home wardrobe consultation where we’ll literally walk through their closets and pick out the best outfits for their photos, taking any pre-portrait session homework off their plate! My team also offers professional hairstyling and makeup artistry so our clients can look and feel their best.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Carsten Tice Photography LLC

Suggest a Story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.