A stranger hired me as her assistant so I could quit my day job and turn my photography side hustle into a full time business. Here's how I did it.

• Tiana Duarte-Kargbo took her photography side hustle full time after a stranger offered her a job.
• She built her business by taking freelance jobs and creating editorial projects to show her skills.

This is an as-told-to story based on an interview with Tiana Duarte-Kargbo, who runs her own photography business, Tiana Michele Photo.

Duarte-Kargbo picked up photography as a creative outlet in May 2020 and, the following month, moved from Memphis, Tennessee, to New York City to pursue the side hustle professionally. To make ends meet, she worked day jobs, including one in a salon.

In November 2021, a salon customer asked to see her photography and was moved by her talent, Duarte-Kargbo said. The client, who owns a photo agency, offered her a job as an assistant, which gave Duarte-Kargbo the salary she needed to support herself and the flexibility to get the photography business off the ground.

Between December 2021 and January 2023, she booked five figures in revenue, documents viewed by Insider show. Here's how Duarte-Kargbo leveraged an opportunity to build her business and her advice for other creatives trying to do the same.

The following has been edited for length and clarity.

Lean in to opportunities

I always thought photography was fun but never took it too seriously. I was a dancer, but when COVID-19 hit, dance jobs became nonexistent and I was suffering from some serious injuries. So I took time off, and that's when I picked up my camera again.

For the first two years of living in New York, I worked as a barista, in retail, and as a receptionist. I shot photos on the weekends and during my time off.

When I was working at the front desk of a salon, a client found out I was a photographer and asked to see my work. I showed her my Instagram account, and she told me I "shouldn't be here," that I should be out there doing photography instead. But I explained to her that I couldn't afford to quit my job.

She said she was going to help me out, and later that day, she offered me an assistant position working for her. She said it would be low maintenance and give me time to do my own thing.

For whatever reason, I believed her. In November 2021, I quit and worked for her for the next month and a half. In the meantime, I got my website redone and put out as much content as possible because I didn't have time to do any of that before. Working for her gave me the time and space I needed to get on my feet.

After that month and a half, I was landing enough freelance gigs to leave the assistant role.

Build a portfolio with what you have

Even before I met the stranger, I had created a portfolio with whatever work I could. I did a lot of stuff for free, like photo shoots with people I'd randomly message on Instagram.

I also launched a mini project called the color of dance in summer 2020. I worked with a handful of dancers of color whom I photographed and then interviewed about their experiences in the dance world, because the industry is pretty racist.

By the end of the project, more people had heard about my work and reached out to work with me. It was a good way to build my collection of work.

Then, when I quit my salon job, I earned money through freelance jobs, like photographing a national dance convention and social-media content for a marketing company. Those jobs paid the bills until I was ready to take Tiana Michele Photo full time.

Be intentional with the jobs you take

It's mentally exhausting to constantly look for jobs, weigh whether you're on the right path, and decide what your work is worth. But my biggest piece of advice to other creatives is not to settle for work you don't want.

For example, wedding photography can be profitable, but the more I shot weddings and posted those photos, the more inquiries I got for wedding-type events. Ultimately, that's not the work I want to get.

I've intentionally posted more of my editorial work to show prospective clients that's my style and ideal gig.

Now I get a lot of inquiries from clients who are in the social-media field, either small-business owners who need content or creators who need content for themselves. And I get a lot of clients who want to just have fun photo shoots for themselves.

I love these clients because it gives me the freedom to play and experiment. Finding my voice and getting my name out there are how I'll get my dream gigs.