Photographer Spotlight– Katie Jordan of Photographed by Katie

2011’s first Photographer Spotlight is Katie Jordan! Katie and I first met at Me Ra Koh’s Confidence Workshop in Seattle in 2009.  I have enjoyed watching her evolve as a photographer and artist! I am excited for you to learn about Katie today!

If you would like to be featured on a Photographer’s Spotlight, please feel free to email me at MRS@MRS-Photography.com.

I hope you enjoy learning about my “Seattle Sistah” (that’s the name we have for our workshop sisterhood) and enjoy her beautiful photography!!! Don’t forget to stop by her blog and give her some blog love – www.photographedbykatie.net

1. How long have you enjoyed photography?
Pictures trigger memories and make them more vivid. Good photography elicits an emotional effect that mimics the moment captured. Most importantly, our photos document our lives and preserve our memories for the future. For as long as I can remember, I have been that person that always has a camera in my purse (even now when my camera weighs a ton), the one that made everyone get their picture with Santa in the mall, and the one that bought the cheesy photos at the amusement park for an unreasonable amount of money… all because I have an ever-present desire remember and treasure the moments that fly by so quickly. Over the years, my interest in photography shifted from a simple desire to document to the desire to capture the emotions of the moment and turn the photos into art.

2. Do you have a photography business or are you an enthusiast? If you have a business, please share your website and/or blog.

Blog: www.photographedbykatie.net
You can also find me on Facebook under Katie Jordan Photography --- Inspired by You, Photographed By Katie

I love e-mails and am thrilled to talk to anyone that wants to chat, especially brides and fellow photographers – photographedbykatie@gmail.com

3. What is your favorite subject to photograph and why?

Couples! Couples in love have a certain look that exudes pure adoration for one another that is extraordinary. My aim is always to capture your emotion… the love, the joy, the laughter, the inside joke, the breathe-it-all-in-and-just-be-happy… and to give my couples tangible evidence of their love.

4. Define your photography style

My style is classic, emotional, unfettered, elegant, and fabulous. I’d like to think that Audrey Hepburn would have wanted me as her personal photographer.

5. What does photography mean to you? Is it a passion? A Freedom?

Everyone aims to live life to its fullest. We create incredible memories along the way, and as time goes by, we have to rely on our memories to relive those moments. At the end of the day, what we treasure most are the memories we’ve made with our loved ones. Photographs allow you to better hold on to the moments that have flown by, and that is the most incredible gift anyone can give.

You should see me dance around my house when I am excited by an image or an album I’ve created. I am still very new to this business and I am thrilled when I create something I love and know my clients will love. It’s a high I never found in other fields of work. I am thankful to have found a passion I can pursue that allows me the freedom to lay my own path.

6. If you could photograph any one person or place, who/what would it be?

I would love to shoot a wedding in Croatia. Google Croatia and look at the images that pop up. Then tell me it is not the most beautiful place. Croatia is currently the destination at the top of our “travel to” list. We got the travel bug in May when we shot our first wedding in Moscow, Russia. It was a once in a lifetime experience that we are hoping will begin a lifetime of experiences.

7.    What is in your camera bag?

Nikon D700 with my 50mm f1.4 and 70-200mm f2.8

My husband, Brad, recently got his own D700 and the 24-70mm f2.8

8.    What is your MUST HAVE camera gear at the moment?

I need to get some pocket wizards for my reception lighting. I try to use my flash as little as possible but it is sometimes unavoidable. We’ve just begun to play with off-camera lighting and I think it will help us create the lighting setup I have dreamt up in my head.

9.    If money was not an object, what camera gear would you purchase right now?

85mm f1.4 (It’s a fantastic portrait lens that gives incredible skin tones) or the 24mm f1.4 lens (wonderful for wedding receptions to get all the dancing action). I prefer prime lenses. I like the sharp images they can produce and the interaction it gives you with your clients. Without a zoom, you are the zoom. You are constantly forced to move to get the shot you want.

10.  Please share 3 of your favorite images that you have captured and state why they are your favorite

Choosing favorites is a difficult task for me. However, I have selected three that best represent my style.

I love this image because of the backlighting from the setting sun. We snuck out of the reception to capitalize on the last few minutes of sunlight. I am glad that we did because the series of shots from those five minutes turned out to be some of my favorites of the day.

This image (from the same wedding as above) is the reaction of the father of the bride when he first saw his daughter in her dress. He was such an expressive father and their connection was evident throughout the day.

Family photography is very different from wedding photography, but when I decided to shoot this gorgeous family, I chose to approach it the same way I would with a couple. Essentially, my goal was to capture love. This was my favorite image of the day because you can get a sense of calm from the interaction between this mother and son. To this day, it’s still one of my favorite images. I hope to have something similar of me with my future children.

I am throwing in a fourth image because I couldn’t pass up this opportunity to share! The effortless beauty of this couple shines through in this image. If I was a commercial photographer I would have removed the cars that line the street and turned this into a perfume or Ralph Lauren advertisement.

11.  Anything else you want to share with us?

Just a couple random fun facts:

-I met my husband when I was almost ten years old. His parents live three houses down from mine.

-I love to hear life stories. Everyone has a story to tell and I wish I could sit down and listen to all of them. If you like to share stories, e-mail me and we’ll chat about life.

-If I chose a different profession, I would open a wine bar.

-My favorite slogan of the moment is from Game Show Network : The world needs more winners.

-Similarly, I love all game shows and have it on my bucket list to be on Wheel of Fortune. Though I’d make lots more money on Deal or No Deal

-We are considering getting a dog. We will likely get a miniature dachshund because we don’t have a yard and the only other dog breed we can agree upon is the pit bull. Yes, we are that random.

-Despite not making the playoffs (again), I want to give a shout out to the loves of my life… the Redskins!