As students of higher education, we look to the future as motivations for our daily diligence of study. When we decided on our degree paths we had to consider the work available to us after we graduate. The truth of the matter is some careers are vague at best and often time need to be shadowed to fully understand the scope of career potential. As a student who is passionate about photography and was consistently told that the market was highly saturated, I wanted to follow up with local photographers in the area to get a true behind the scenes of photography in the greater Albany/Corvallis area.
Photo featured top right: Camera and lenses used by photographer Jennifer White during an outdoor photo session at Talking Waters Garden in Albany, Oregon November 15th, 2024. Camera Model is a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV , and the lenses used for the shoot are an EF 50mm , EF 24-70mm, and an EF 85mm. Though not required to maintain three lenses for a shoot many photographers choose different focal lengths to diversify the types of photos they can take. Often the “Nifty 50” is a strong choice for portrait photography.
Jennifer White of Jen White Photography extended an invitation to observe behind the scenes of a family portrait session at Talking Waters Garden in Albany, Oregon.
Jen was more than happy to answer the questions I had about her career in photography.
“I’ve known that I loved Photography for as long as I could remember. My parents got me my first little film camera when I was in the third grade with flash cubes. For years I photographed family and friends some of those shoots were weddings others were portrait sessions like the senior picture I took for my brother. I officially launched my photography business in 2011”
When asked what challenges she’s faced in running her photography business Jen said “It took me a lot of years of trial and error before I understood I needed to invest in business education, and that I needed to understand how to run a solid business.”
Part of running a photography is the business side of thing the other side is built on creativity. When talking about creativity and what inspires Jen she mentioned Seattle photographer Elena Blair as inspiration. That Elena’s work is emotive and gorgeous and does a fantastic job of capturing the relation ships people and families.
“I’m inspired by connection. I love seeing how families interact I love watching the dynamics. Outside of working with people, I love light and nature. Living in Oregon, there is always something beautiful to photograph. One of my favorite pictures I’ve ever taken is of my now 11-year-old when he was three. He was just sitting in the family room playing with one of his favorite toys while the light came in from the sliding glass door and highlighted him more than anything. the rest in the room. It brings me back to that moment in time. It helps me remember what it was like when he was a little boy. And that’s what I want to create for my clients. A snapshot in time to help them remember that connection and that time of life with their family.”
Wrapping up on the in-site from Jennifer White, We talked about what success meant to her in both Business and in Photography.
“ Growth and success in photography looks different to me than growth and success in my photography business, so I’ll answer for both. In photography, I’m always learning. I’m always taking classes. And I’m always trying to improve my art. I also try to challenge myself with new projects whether that be something that doesn’t have a human subject or a new location to shoot a family session, etc. In my business, growth and success looks like charging enough to have a sustainable income for my family. It looks like good customer service and fostering good client relationships. It’s running a real business rather than a hobby, which is what I did for a long time. Even after I had a business license.”
(Left) Sariah age 22, (Center, front) Trevin age 14,(Center, back) Melina age 20, (Right) Leneah age16.
Photograph of Siblings, taken at Talking Waters Garden, Albany Oregon. Family photos have become a yearly endeavor with photographer Jennifer White, for this family. This photo was a candid moment between attempts to recreate a photo taken a year prior, where the sisters gave their brother a kiss on the cheeks. Laughter ensues as siblings navigate the awkward moment of recreation. November 15th, 2024
When Jen needs to take her portraits inside during poor weather conditions she has worked with Studio Kalos of Corvallis Oregon. Studio Kalos is owned and operated by local photographer Irecia known on Instagram as Photographs by Reesh.
Studio Kalos opened to the public March 1st, 2024, the month prior to opening the doors to the public the space was redone with fresh paint, furnishings and all new floors. The idea was to provide a pace full of charchter and and warmth. The space was made to challenge the standard white wall baron studios of a bygone era.
The studio isn’t without its challanges to be ran, after a complaint from an individual in the community studio Kalos underwent a name change. This caused confusion for local photographers who thought that maybe the studio had gone out of business.
The goal for the studio right now is to pay for its self and provide a space for creatives, hosting events and education for photographers in the community hobbiests and professionals alike.
Photographer and Studio owner Reesh age 28, image represents the flexiblility of studio use, the tree has been mved to the forground as a demonstration of the choices being made in studio to capture the best creativity can inspire.
Holiday set for the studio, featuring second hand finds that help tell the stories being told this holiday season. 99% of items in the studio are thrifted finds giving the space a personalized and intentional feel, while keeping sustainability in mind. photo was taken November 23, 2024 in Corvallis, Oregon at Studio Kalos
After taking photos of the passion project that is Kalos Studio Reesh sat with me to answer the questions I had on her experience as a photographer and as someone who is creating a space for others to practice and share their creative works.
“ I’ve been building on my passion for photography for thirteen years now, I registered as a business in 2019 and have been doing photography full time for over two years now, It’s how I provide for my
family as a mom and a wife,” said reesh when asked about her background in photography and as a business owner.
It’s not uncommon that when entering an ocuppation that one would face any number of challenges . Therefore it’s important to seek out the photographer’s perspective on the personal challenges they face.
“ I had to learn how to overcome social awkwardness. I had to learn how to be intentional about who I have in my circle.I learned that support was essential as being a photographer can be an extreamly taxing job.I had to learn how to budget my finances and I had to learn how to find my voice in my art. These are the challenges I had to learn from,” said Reesh
photography by nature is a very creative endeavor. A photographer must balance their art with the expectations of the clients. Many clients come to a photographer with a vauge understanding or description of what they want in telling their personal story. As a photographer you provide guidence and perspective that the client might be completely unaware of.
“ I always prioritize my clients, it is part of my job to help them develop upon their inspiration.I help guide my clients to explore their own creativity as it is a collaboration between us that developes the final represation of their story.”
In continuing the discussion on photography as a creative endeavor it was mentioned where inspiration for photography can come from. “ I draw inspiration from many things! Movies, romance novels, textures, makeup, decor, antiques, clothing, colors, and my favorite - LIGHT! Light inspires me more than anything with photographs! I love working with unique lighting situations. I actually hate even lighting!”
The question that was asked of each photographer, was the one question that students seek answers to when choosing a path for their education and for their future carear. How competitive or highly saturated is the career choice being considered?
“ We live in the PNW, so absolutely photography is oversaturated, but it's for a good reason because it's such a beautiful place! Why wouldn't people want to be a photographer here?! I know that a lot of people see it as a competition, but I don't. We all have our own unique styles, areas of expertise, boundaries, client experience efforts, quality, years of experience, etc. There's a unique/specific/dream client out there for all of us and more than enough to go around! My ideal client is different from the next photographer's ideal client.”
As each photographer had their ideal client each photographer will have their own perspective on photography as a carear. When it comes time to make that choice of career persuits and passion endevors here are a few things to keep in mind as mentioned by reesh.
One, shoot all the time, get yourself a camera and shoot in manual, learn how to shoot lights using kelvin readings. Two, don’t charge for your work until after you’ve registered your business and have contracts to cover yourself and your clients. Three, invest time and money into your education and in metorships with a photographer or photographers you trust, working with people who’s work inspires you. lastly Find your creative voice.
As a community there is alot that we can learn from each other. Through collaboration there is still alot to be learned about what the photography community is like behind the scenes in Albany and in Corvallis Oregon.
Links for future Collaborations:
Jennifer White:
Photographs by Reesh:
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