Corrie was our theme challenge winner at Snap Maven this week. That challenge was to create an image with the theme "unexpected". This image fit the bill, as the sweet little one was "expected" to be napping!
"Expect everything, I always say, and the unexpected never happens."
— Norton Juster (The Phantom Tollbooth)
We can't anticipate everything; but sometimes, the unexpected turns out
even better than what you had planned for yourself - if you let it.
With that she becomes our third artist to be featured.
1. Please tell us about yourself...
I am 30 years old, married to a guy who was in my preschool class, and mom to a 3 year old daughter and a 5 year old Boston Terrier. I love to laugh, cook, drink wine, watch terrible TV shows, and philosophize about any and everything. I majored in Politics in college and I thought for a long time that I would be a lobbyist but I later decided I wanted to teach government instead. I got my masters in teaching when my husband was deployed to Afghanistan for the first time. I discovered photography when he deployed to Afghanistan the second time. I think it’s important to never be afraid to go where life is leading you.
2. Can you describe your style in 3 words? Why those words?
Simple,
emotive, nostalgic. I really like a simple composition and I try to
frame up an image with as much emphasis on my subject as possible. Of
course, sometimes if I’m trying to capture a moment, the “clutter” might
be part of the story so I’ll leave it in. I want to feel something
when I look at my images and I want my clients to feel something
too. Sometimes it’s happiness, but sometimes it might be more complex
like the bittersweet feeling of a child growing older. I say
“nostalgic” because when I try to
capture someone I always want the image to feel authentic so that one
day when someone looks at it they’ll say “that’s how we were.” Some of
my favorite images of my own daughter are ones where she’s just quietly
thinking or engrossed in something and not engaged with the camera at
all because they feel like *her* to me.
3. What sparked your passion for photography?
I
was always interested in art as a kid and I even took art lessons for
years. I loved painting, pastels, and even pottery, but I never really
felt like I found a medium that clicked with me. I tend to be a pretty
analytical person so I just thought maybe I wasn’t that artistic after
all. Many years later my husband was getting ready to deploy to
Afghanistan for a year when our daughter was 6 months old. I decided to
get a “good” camera and do a 365 project for him. During that year I
just wanted to learn everything I could about photography and became
obsessed. I opened up my business about 2 years after that.
4. What's in your camera bag right now?
Nikon
D7100, 50mm 1.4, 85mm1.8, 35mm 1.8, 60mm 2.8 (can you tell I love prime
lenses?!). For my film work I use a Nikon F100 and the 50mm 1.4
5. What is your dream shoot or project?
A lifestyle newborn session on film in someone’s house full of interesting light.
6. What are some of the hurdles you have had to overcome this far in your photography journey?
My
biggest struggle is learning to shoot strangers with the same eye that I
shoot my own family with. I get caught up in wanting to give people
what I think they want and
I get nervous sometimes about really leading a session in the direction
I want it to go. I think I love lifestyle newborn sessions so much
because it’s impossible for people not to act natural and show how much
they love each other and I love capturing that feeling.
7. What advice would you give to newbie photographers? What advice do you wish you'd been given at the very beginning?
My
best advice to a newbie photographer is to shoot every day. Shooting
all the time in all kinds of light is the fastest way to learn your
camera and to find new ways to photograph things. I am also a really
big fan of
finding photographers whose work speaks to your heart and try to
identify what about their work is so powerful to you. Try to
incorporate some of that into your own images with your own spin on
it. I know some photographers don’t like to compare themselves to
others but I find so much inspiration in the photographers I
follow. The advice i wish I’d been given at the very beginning is
probably to trust my instincts. I used to really agonize over what
images to share and now if something really sings to me I share it and
try not to worry about how many ‘likes” it’s going to get.
To see more of Corrie's inspired work, please visit her at
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