📸 CEO got a little more professional on Thursday! ...

Amy Gould of Amy Gould Photography kicked off the morning by bringing out Belleville CEO’s professional side with an early-morning portrait shoot on Belleville’s Public Square. Along the way, she also captured plenty of the fun, energy, and personality of CEO with dozens of candid shots.

After their photo session, First Session headed to Sugar High, where Amy debriefed the class on her photography business and the journey behind her side hustle. First Session's Ahmed Brooks captured one of the biggest takeaways perfectly:

“I don’t sell photography; I sell memories."

"That statement really stood out," Brooks said. "Amy showed students that photography can be about so much more than taking pictures. It’s about nostalgia, relationships, and creating something that allows people to return to important moments in their lives."

She shared how her business has grown through passion, adaptability, hard work, and the relationships she has built with her customers. And, of course, the professional photos she took for the Belleville CEO website gave us a firsthand example of exactly what she means. Years from now, we may look back at those photos and remember not only what we looked like, but the people, experiences, and memories we made during our time in CEO."

That’s a pretty great lesson in entrepreneurship.

Meanwhile, Second Session beat the heat and debriefed indoors at Pour 322.

Meet the Class of 2027 and check out their new professional headshots at BellevilleCEO.com/students/class-of-2027