Aura photographer Carrie Moss discusses her path to entrepreneurship.
By Saba Ghaffari, Photos courtesy of Carrie Moss
A picture may say a thousand words but the unique photographs created by MoodbyMoss Founder Carrie Moss have the ability to capture people’s auras.
While Moss has only been in the business for the last two years, the Austin-based photographer is no stranger to the field. Originally from Denton, Texas, Moss studied painting and sculpture during college and focused on photography during her senior year. Following graduation, Moss shot portrait photographs for 20 years.
“I always knew I wanted to be a photographer,” Moss says, “so, really, I was just looking for a new direction.”
Moss was first introduced to the concept of metaphysical energy when her daughter, Madison, was 9 months old. At the time, Moss’ sister had recently passed away. Moss’ daughter would call out Moss’ sister’s name and say, “Pink,” something that, at first, took Moss by surprise, but was also a harbinger of her later career. When Moss’ mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and also passed away, Moss decided she wanted to take a break from photography entirely. Reflecting on the decision, Moss says she was tired of hustling between jobs as a freelancer and yearned for more structure and stability in her career.
In 2015, she left the photography business and worked as a sales assistant for commercial interior-design group Shelton Keller. Alas, after about six months, Moss realized her heart was still in photography. During that time, a friend introduced her to aura photography on Instagram. Moss was intrigued and shortly afterward, made the decision to open her own business and pursue this unique form of photography.
“It’s kind of blending all of my passions,” Moss says. “I’ve always been a spiritual seeker, studier. My mom introduced me to [a]new-age metaphysical way of thinking. And when I entertained the idea of aura photography, I was like, ‘Yeah! You know, it feels right.’ ”
The aura photography process is quite simple. A person enters her yurt and places his or her hands on two small boxes with silver hand plates on them. Those hand-sensor plates are then able to pick up on the person’s energy, which emanating off in wavelengths. The plates are connected to a camera that is able to interpret the information it receives via biofeedback technology. The picture is then printed and Moss is able to interpret the person’s aura based on the color or colors that show up in the photo. While there are five or six primary colors, Moss explains there are many variations of each color, and a person’s color combination can change from time to time.
“The more that we can get a visual representation of our aura, the more we can start to learn, see these patterns and then get information from that,” Moss explains, “but also, figure out what our dominate color is because a certain color or vibration will show up a greater percentage of the time.”
Each color has its own unique identifying characteristics, and Moss says auras tie into people’s personalities as well. Each color has both positive and negative traits, and when people fall out of harmony with their color, Moss says their negative traits can come out more.
“We’re human. So we’re all going to fall out of harmony,” Moss shares. “However, I think it’s key to be able to recognize it. And then, self-care, whatever it is that you do. You can listen to music, you can meditate, you can cook. The main thing is [to]start laughing. Laughter gets you back into harmony.”
April marks MoodbyMoss’ second anniversary. In addition to booking her own sessions, Moss has also been hired for brand activations, working with big names such as J.Crew, SoulCycle and Lululemon.
While MoodbyMoss does not have a brick-and-mortar location, Moss is constantly traveling the country for pop-up events and tries to come to Austin at least once a month.
“My mission is really to spread awareness that we are more than our physical bodies,” Moss says. “And the more that we can start to realize that we are all connected through energy, I think the more we can become compassionate with others.”