Tara Brown: Deadly slang, positive energy and event photography

By Chevi Rabbit, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

(ANNews) – Tara Brown, from Little Pine First Nation in Saskatchewan on Treaty 6 Territory, has lived in Edmonton for nearly two decades, but her entrepreneurial spirit has been with her much longer. Although her roots are there, she was raised in Maskwacis, Alberta. After completing high school, she left the rez and made Edmonton her home. She is also a proud MacEwan University alumna, holding a diploma in Human Resources Management.

“I’ve been in Edmonton for the past 19 to 20 years,” she says.

When asked what got her into business, she reflects on how early the feeling started. “Even when I was younger, I always felt like I wanted to do something,” she says. “I just didn’t know what it was, and I always had that entrepreneurial spirit in me. I was always thinking, okay – what should I do?”

That question followed her into adulthood, alongside a series of early attempts at small business ideas that didn’t fully take shape at the time. “I’ve tried a few things before,” she says. “Not fully opened businesses, but different ideas and small ventures.”

Over time, Brown built a career in community development and youth programming. Today, she works at CanDo, where she began as an assistant in special projects and has grown into the role of Special Projects Director, coordinating initiatives such as economic development youth summits and Indigenous coaching programs.

“I’ve tried a few small businesses before,” she says. “Of course, those didn’t work out, but I kept going.”

Much of her growth, she explains, came from being immersed in learning environments that shaped how she now approaches leadership and entrepreneurship, particularly through Indigenous coaching with Kendall Night Maker.

“I’ve been sitting in it for three years,” she says. “And it’s not the same scripted thing every session. I’m there in most of it, but he keeps bringing more – he shares more. He’s an open book.”

For Brown, that experience became more than professional participation – it became personal application. “So I’m sitting in this Indigenous coaching not just as a coordinator or manager or behind-the-scenes person,” she explains. “I started listening to Kendall and started applying things that he was teaching to myself.”

That shift in perspective eventually connected back to her own ideas. “And I knew that I had an idea,” she says. “It was a photo booth.”

But the idea itself didn’t come from a formal business environment. It came from lived experience at events. “I attended an economic development conference in Kananaskis, and at the reception they had a photo booth,” Brown recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh, cool. That looks fun.’”

That simple observation became the foundation for something much larger.

Indigenizing the photo booth experience

Indigenous Camp Photo Booth is a mobile event service that travels to weddings, graduations, birthdays, conferences, and community gatherings across Edmonton and surrounding areas. What sets it apart is how it reflects Indigenous humour, language, and pop culture.

“I indigenized it with Indigenous slang props,” Brown says. “Words like ‘deadly,’ inside jokes, and expressions we use in our communities.”

Instead of standard commercial props, she created custom signage and visuals that reflect Indigenous ways of joking, speaking, and connecting. “Some of my props are a little bit crazy,” she laughs, “but it’s that we understand it. They understand it. I understand our humour.”

For Brown, humour is central to connection and celebration. “I just want them to have fun and I want them to be celebrated,” she says. “I want them to be heard.”

She adds that being part of those moments gives the work meaning.

“And if that’s the way I can do it – through pictures or little videos that I do, and I can be part of their celebration – that’s always… yeah, that’s how you add a good part to it.”

“It’s positive energy.”

A mobile business rooted in community

Brown’s business model is intentionally flexible. Rather than operating from a fixed location, she brings the experience directly to clients. “No one else comes to me, I’ll go to them,” she says.

While Edmonton has many photo booth companies, Brown saw a gap in cultural representation. “There are hundreds of photo booth businesses in Edmonton,” she says, “but none of them basically cater to the Indigenous population. We understand each other.”

Indigenous Camp Photo Booth is self-funded, launched using Brown’s personal savings. “I started my own business from my own savings account,” she explains. “It was just sitting there, and I knew I wanted my money to start growing somehow.”

Brown’s experience reflects a broader reality for many early-stage Indigenous women entrepreneurs in Canada; businesses are often self-funded at the beginning before external financing becomes accessible.

For small mobile service businesses like hers, startup costs are typically driven by equipment, branding, and transportation – often ranging from a few thousand dollars to around $10,000–$15,000 depending on scale.

“I did look into some grants,” Brown says. “I think funding is a big issue sometimes for Indigenous people and our businesses.”

Even with available programs, many entrepreneurs still rely on personal savings to launch and test demand before expanding.

Brown continues to grow through partnerships and community networks, including Indigenous organizations such as the Aboriginal Indigenous Corporation (AIC) and Five Applied. “I do a lot of partnerships with other Indigenous organizations,” she says. “I’m really trying to utilize their resources.”

Growth has brought new challenges as demand increases. “I’ve had to say no to some people because I’m already booked,” she explains. “It would be nice to have another booth or two.”

Entrepreneurship as identity and confidence

For Brown, entrepreneurship is deeply tied to personal growth and confidence. “It’s independence, self-growth, and self-actualization,” she says. “And confidence – I had to build confidence in myself to do this.”

She admits that finding the words isn’t always easy. “I’m not the best with words sometimes,” she says. “The thoughts are all in here, but then it’s like – how do I say it out loud?”

Still, her direction is clear. “So far, it’s been a success,” she says.

A business built on humour, joy, and representation

At its core, Indigenous Camp Photo Booth is about celebration—of people, culture, and connection. “You know, some of my props are a little bit crazy,” Brown says with a smile, “but it works.”

Through Indigenous humour, slang, and pop culture references, she is reshaping what event experiences can look like in Indigenous spaces and beyond – bringing representation, joy, and recognition into moments that matter.

“It’s about being able to be different,” she says. “And building something that feels like us. It’s positive energy.”