Meet Jade Thompson of Charlotte

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jade Thompson.

Hi Jade, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My mother has one hell of a survivor story but one things she never missed out on was taking family photos. As her rainbow baby, she made sure she bought the best camera of that time and dressed me in the cutest dresses and frilly socks if all different vibrant colors. She taught me how to pose and smile but she captured a lot of candid moments. When I became an adult, she gave me that striped self-adhesive album with over 40 pages of pure memories. Every page told a story.

In my last year of college I obtained an internship in marketing with a BioScience company. I helped with the website, events and many other roles. When I began taking photos at the event I felt comfortable and the most passionate but didn’t pick up another camera until I had my first daughter in 2019. She was a 23-weeker weighing just 1 pound, 9 ounces.
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We were in the NICU for 99 days and all of it was filled daily with tears and prayers. We kept her in a bubble for a while since it was flu season but still wanted to capture some photos. We couldn’t afford any newborn pictures so I decided to do it myself. Bought a camera and took some amazing photos. Turned it into my own part time business since I needed to be available and flexible to for my daughter’s medical and developmental needs.

Why the name Precious Stone Memories?

The album my mother gave me was all I have to remember those days. That is why I named my photography business, Precious Stone Memories – these memories and moments are etched in stone and can never be erased from our minds and hearts. They are Precious like a jade stone and will carry out for many years to come and forever hold its value.
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What made you decide to be a videographer?
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Can I be honest? I never wanted to be one. Thank God for the unplanned moments that led me to be one. I initially started to do food reviews then Covid hit. In the mean time, I watched many videos on how to advertise food and some amazing transition videos while still doing product photography for different businesses.

I always had a thing for working with businesses and to help boost sales but that didn’t pop out at me until later on when I met another photographer that became my mentor . She asked me to hold her phone to get some content of her for social media. In amazement of what I did for her, she and her husband asked me if I’ve ever done this before. She said “Jade, I think I just discovered another you”. With more exposure and practice, within a month I worked with several businesses and had gotten a lot of great feedback on those videos. It was then time to branch out into Jade Cut Visuals to attract businesses for branding services as well as wedding and event special moment seekers. I have many talents but this one came to light super fast. I already had experience with photography so it was easy to transfer some of those skills over to the video side.
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Tell me all the tea about your personal life?
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I graduated from a technical high school where I had special courses in business and accounting. I then attended the University of Delaware – Go Blue Hens – with a degree in Marketing. Wow, I had no idea all my education and experience will lead to this. It was all in alignment.
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I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Being an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. You would think one would need an absolute sense of determination, grit and risk taking to become a business owner. In the very beginning, I kept making steps towards the idea but would find something that would make me quit. Let me tell you, I did this start and stop movement as I like to call it, about 3 times. I struggled with self-confidence especially imposter syndrome.

Greif is something is not talked about enough. When I lost my sister in 2022, I was devastated. It was definitely a shock. My art is where I can feel safe and allow creatively to speak to entrepreneurship is it will give you the mirror so fast to look within yourself. You have to do it scared and you have to be delusional about your business.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Branding, event and wedding photography and videography

We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
Something surprising that most people who know me or my brand might not know is that behind the creativity and confidence, I’m deeply strategic. A lot of people see the visuals, the events, and the polished final product but they don’t always realize how much thought, planning, psychology, and intention goes into everything I create. I’m not just capturing moments, I’m building experiences, brands, and opportunities along with making connections.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.psmemories.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jadecutvisuals/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/preciousstonememories/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jade-thompson-53542245
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@preciousstonememories