Today we’d like to introduce you to Tracey Hagen.
Hi Tracey, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
A native of South Beach, my family has been full-time Miami Beach residents for more than ninety years since the 1930s. My Grandfather was a developer and owned the Cardozo Hotel on Ocean Drive where my mother lived with her parents and siblings as a young girl. I have always been interested in the arts since childhood and became obsessed with photographing street photography when my parents gave me a point-and-shoot camera from Walgreens when I was about 7 years old. Even though my passion has always been photography, my mother groomed me into the real estate business to follow in her footsteps which a did for a while.
I have always been interested in transformation and empowerment and being the best, I can be through workshops and seminars. During one of my many seminars is when I had an AH, Ha moment that I had to follow photography as my business in 2001. I got accepted to a juried artist residency at The South Florida Art Center on Lincoln Road now Oolite Arts where I exhibited my photography and :and focused on my craft in my studio. In 2008 I was awarded a juried artist residency at The Bakehouse Art Complex in Wynwood where my studio was located for four years and I continued to exhibit my work including Aqua Art Fair in Art Basel Miami Beach. I have always enjoyed photographing people and capturing the true essence of their energy and personalities in my portraits.
During our lockdown in 2020 when the pandemic hit, I photographed environmental portraits of my neighbors families on their front porches of their homes to give back and raise money for Feeding South Florida, a non profit food bank that delivered meals. The word got out and I ended up photographing 100 families from Coconut Grove, Miami Beach, Belle Meade & Miami Shores. After the murder of George Floyd I pivoted the project to photograph black owned businesses in our community to shine a light on them. The project was published in a cover story for The Wall Street journal, NBC 6 local news segment, the cover story of our local paper, The Biscayne Times and in a book; And Then the Pandemic Hit…Covid Chronicles. The project was a life changing experience for me and getting to know our community families and businesses was a ray of sunshine in a very disconcerting time for all of us. The summer of 2020 I opened my current photography studio Nothing makes me happier than when my clients share with me how the photo shoot experience has made them look and feel beautiful, confident, and empowered and they absolutely love their photographs. This is what has inspired my current project The 40 Over 40 Goddess Experience. I am looking for 40 women who are over the age of 40 who want to participate and be seen and heard. I am featuring each woman in a gallery-style exhibition on March 11, 2023, to celebrate their beauty, strength & wisdom during Women’s month. I am sharing their stories and featuring their images in a printed magazine that I am designing about the 40 Over 40 Goddess Experience. I do have a few spots left if you are interested, you can apply through my website.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I struggled in the 80s & ’90s being self-taught and not finding education on how to make photography a business. Since the internet, I now have access to online courses whenever I want to freshen up my skills and learn more.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a contemporary portrait photographer. I specialize in photographing women for Personal Branding & Headshots, Glamour Portraits, and Boudoir at my Miami studio. I am known for making women feel comfortable and empowering the everyday, real woman to look and feel gorgeous through a magazine-style photo shoot and having them exist in print to be seen. I am most proud of empowering women and being able to give them legacy images of themselves that will last 100 years and they will pass down to future generations.
What sets me apart from others is The Experience. I provide a custom luxurious experience for each client. I meet them over Zoom & help them choose their outfits and design their dream photo session and answer any questions they might have. I email them beauty and wardrobe tips on how to prepare for the photo shoot. When they arrive at my studio, on the day of the photo shoot, I meet them in their car to help them carry up all their outfits. They also have full access to my studio wardrobe collection to wear whatever they want if they want to play dress-up. When they enter my studio, their favorite music is playing and the AC is on their requested temperature. I have a professional makeup artist waiting for them to work her magic for full makeup with lashes and she stays on to set their entire photo shoot for touch-ups or to glam up the looks while you sip on your Nespresso coffee. We laugh and dance and make empowering images. The client comes back to my studio a few weeks after the session to view their re-touched images and order digital packages, wall art, or albums.
What was you like growing up?
Growing up I was artsy, creative, rebellious & fun-loving. You could always find me in the art classroom in high school. I was an adventurer and loved to travel and explore new cultures and places that I had never been to. I always had a camera on me and would have my friend’s model for photographs.
Pricing:
- Promotional Pricing for The 40 Over 40 Goddess Experience is $690 to participate
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.traceyhagenmiami.com
- Instagram: @traceyhagenphotography
- Facebook: @traceyhagenphotography
- Twitter: https://www.traceyhagenphotography.com
Image Credits
Alex Luna
Tracey Hagen
