When I was asked to join the ranks of Small Monsterz and had to think of other artists to talk about, Kristen was one of, if not the first to come to my mind. Not only is she an incredibly talented photographer, but she’s one of my favorite people. I’ve had the privilege of working along side Kristen for over two years now and she has never disappointed. While the overhead still lifes trending in photography often extracts an eye roll from me (I love me some depth), Kristen’s are a breath of fresh air. She does them right. She has a way of making them her own with her distinct style. Her lighting is always pristine and she’s the expert at making things absolutely beautiful while still playful. Her compositions are flawlessly detailed and jaunty with angles that move the eye exactly where they want to go. She has mastered the use of her frame and negative space, leaving in just the right details. Kristen is a photographer that I will always respect and look up to and I feel privileged to be able to work along side her. She was even kind enough to answer a few question for me. Now we can all get to know the brain behind the eyes a little bit better. Also, check out more of her work here.

When did you first decide to be a photographer? What drew you to it?
I have loved photography for as long as I can remember. I got my first camera when I was in grade school and I took it with me everywhere. It was my grandpa that first got me interested in photography. I spent most all of my school breaks with my grandparents, and it is on those breaks, hiking with my grandpa, that I learned how to shoot.

When deciding my career path in high school and college, I had a hard time deciding between a career in the sciences and a career in the arts as a photographer. I ended up transferring to an art college, Columbus College of Art & Design (in my hometown, Columbus, OH), at the end of my freshman year, to pursue a BA in photography.

I was drawn to photography, because I wanted a career where I could be creative — and not be stuck in a sunless cubical (instead, now I’m stuck in a sunless studio, haha 🙂 ). My parents didn’t get to realize their career dreams, and never loved what they did for a living, so they were always very encouraging of me pursuing a career in the arts.

What’s your favorite thing to shoot and why?
When I was younger, those grade school days, I loved shooting landscapes, plants, and animals, aspiring to be a National Geographic Photographer. But, as I was learning commercial photography in college, learning how to create beautiful light instead of finding it in nature, I discovered food photography. I grew up around a German family where all gatherings centered around food. Combining my love of cooking and baking, and photography, was a perfect combination. And even today, this is still my favorite subject to shoot.

How did you get in to this particular field of photography?
My food photography led me to product photography. I always knew that I wanted to work in the commercial photography industry, so right out of college I worked with the Nationwide Photography studio, to get my first taste of working with a commercial studio on big production shoots. On the side, I was freelancing for restaurants, small business, and magazines, mostly shooting food and other product. My fiance and I are both photographers, and we both always wanted to move to the west coast. So, a few years after college, we moved to Seattle where I started working as a product photographer for Zulily and he started working in the Nordstrom product photography studio.

So here I am, at the zu 🙂

What’s your dream job/client/shoot?
My dream client is Bon Appetit, or some other high-end food magazine. I think the ultimate shoot would be getting to do a cover image for them.

Where would you like to see your career in photography go? Or is it something you want to keep in your future?
To be honest, I still think of the sciences, that second career choice that I abandoned for photography. I am planning on going back to school, to eventually transition my career back to the sciences. I would like to work in conservation and environmental sciences. Photography will always be a part of my life, I plan on shooting freelance projects off and on, and shooting personal work.