We Are Photographers (CreativeLive)

Jasmine Star is a photographer and business strategist who empowers entrepreneurs to build a brand, market it on social media, and create a life they love. After quitting law school, she picked up a camera, built an internationally recognized business, and teaches others how to do the same. In this episode we talk about Jasmine’s mission to help people believe they can turn impossibilities into possibilities. She explains why she left being a wedding photographer after 12 years and the path to building new businesses including Social Curator. Jasmine describes her imaginative childhood: growing up home-schooled as a first-generation Latina, science experiments in the park, her mom dumpster diving for textbooks, and turning into an avid reader after not learning to read until age 11. Hear how her mom surviving cancer led to Jasmine becoming resolute to live life on her own terms, and how she turned her mental soundtrack of self-loathing into one of self-love. This is We Are Photographers with Jasmine Star and this is her story.

Jesús Ramirez is a digital graphics expert, international conference speaker, and educator specializing in Adobe Photoshop. As a professional designer he’s worked with clients such as Adobe, Microsoft, Motorola, and Conde Nast. Jesús is best known as the founder of the Photoshop Training Channel, one of the most popular Photoshop YouTube channels in the world with nearly 1MM subscribers. In our conversation you’ll find out who in his early life and early career influenced Jesús’ work ethic and how his competitive spirit in sports relates to his success in business. Learn how he fuels his creativity for both himself and as an inspiration for his addicting tutorials.

This is We Are Photographers with Jesús Ramirez and this is his story.

Connect with Jesús Ramirez online: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Gavin Hoey is a freelance photographer, Olympus UK ambassador and trainer of all things photographic. Primarily focusing on photography education, Gavin was an early YouTube adopter and created a popular photography training channel before joining forces with Adorama in 2012. He’s now the most watched presenter on AdoramaTV where his videos focus on the art of lighting and portraits. Gavin is still creating at least one video tutorial for AdoramaTV every other week and the channel has grown to 1 million subscribers.

In this episode Gavin shares tips to overcoming creative blocks when developing new content on a regular cadence. Gavin was an early tech adopter, always fascinated with how things work. Before becoming a content creator, hear Gavin’s journey from studying optometry to writing for photography magazines before making the switch to recording video tutorials for magazine cover discs. Like so many of us creatives, we touch on anxiety, confidence and being your own worst critic. Beloved for his cheerful and easy to understand style, find out what Gavin himself loves most about his community of learners. 

This is We Are Photographers with Gavin Hoey and this is his story.

Connect with Guest: gavtrain.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1600 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Natalie Amrossi, a.k.a. Misshattan on all things social, is known for hanging out of helicopters creating dynamic aerial images of the cities below. Her extensive client list includes brands such as Nike, Jaguar, Apple, and Jordan. She’s been featured in the press including the New York Times, New York Post, Buzzfeed and more. In this episode Natalie talks about the rewards that come with taking big life risks. In her early 20s she left investment banking to become a professional photographer. She recently gave up her Manhattan apartment to travel & work full time from the road. Natalie shares the challenges and opportunities of being a solo female traveler, how she connects with locals over a shared love of photography when arriving in a new country, and stories from filming a documentary in Bhutan for AdoramaTV. This is We Are Photographers with Natalie Amrossi and this is her story.

John Greengo is a travel, landscape, and wildlife photographer. He’s one of the most prolific educators on CreativeLive, best known for his must-see Fundamentals of Photography class. He’s the author of two books, including The Enthusiast’s Guide to Exposure & 50 Things Photographers Need Know About Focus. John leads photography tours globally to destinations such as Kenya, Tanzania, Cuba, Morocco, Jordan, Antarctica and more. In this episode John describes his most epic moments - both exciting and scary - when photographing in remote corners of the world, including while working on the TV series Travels to the Edge. He shares life lessons learned as a professional foosball player, and he claims to be the only person to play foosball on all seven continents. We talk about what it means to “win” at photography and what he loves most about preparing his world renowned presentations for his classes that make learning both easy and fun. This is We Are Photographers with John Greengo and this is his story.

Roberto Valenzuela is a photographer, author, educator and a Canon Explorer of Light.  He was recently commissioned by Canon to shoot global campaigns for the new Canon EOS R5, EOS R6 and PRO-300. Roberto’s book trilogy Picture Perfect Practice, Picture Perfect Posing, and Picture Perfect Lighting have become staples in the photography industry. His new book series Wedding Storyteller Vol. 1 and 2 are the top selling wedding photography books in history. Roberto has been nominated by his peers as one of the ten most influential photographers and educators in the world. He developed his unique teaching style by following the same rigorous regimen he developed as a professional concert classical guitarist and educator before becoming a photographer. 

Growing up in Mexico City and moving to the U.S. under challenging circumstances, learn about Roberto's early life as an immigrant. Hear how Roberto defied the odds winning one of the fiercest competitions for the top politically-savvy students in Arizona state and then the country - Boys State and Boys Nation. Find out what motivated Roberto to overcome adversity every step of the way in his life and career. 

This is We Are Photographers with Roberto Valenzuela and this is his story.

Connect with Roberto Valenzuela: robertovalenzuela.com | thephotocreators.com | Instagram | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs, including Roberto Valenzuela himself.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review  We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Peter Read Miller is a legend in sports photography. He worked as both a staff and contract photographer for Sports Illustrated for more than 35 years and his images have appeared on over 100 Sports Illustrated covers. He’s photographed 41 Super Bowls, 9 Olympics and 14 NBA Finals. He photographs for The Associated Press and numerous other publications and commercial clients. He has been teaching Sports Photography Workshops for over 20 years. He hosts the YouTube channel On Sports Photography with Peter Read Miller offering tips for both the craft and business. Peter has been a Canon Explorer of Light since the program started 25 years ago.

In this episode, Peter and I discuss how he got his start photographing with the NFL, how he stays calm within the frenetic energy of photographing Super Bowls and the Olympics. We talk about staying grounded both when he gets “the winning shot” and when he doesn’t. We explore the tight relationship between sports photographer and editor, and how he connects with famous athletes to create their portrait in a short amount of time. We hear the stories behind some of his best known images.

This is We Are Photographers with Peter Read Miller and this is his story.

Connect with Peter Read Miller on peterreadmiller.com, YouTube, and IG @peterreadmiller.

Find all the We Are Photographers episodes on CreativeLive and subscribe anywhere you listen to podcasts!

Miguel Quiles is a portrait photographer and content creator based out of Florida. He’s taught photographers how to improve their work by teaching helpful tips on platforms like CreativeLive, WPPI, Photo Plus, and Shutterfest. Miguel is proud to represent brands like Sony & Profoto as an ambassador and currently releases weekly content via his YouTube channel.

In this episode find out what invaluable life lessons Miguel learned from his early gaming days as a Magic The Gathering semi-pro and a master at Street Fighter. Hear the joy Miguel gains from creating his YouTube channel to educate photographers all over the globe. Miguel explores how his childhood influenced his personality, why Toastmasters has been critical to his success, and overcoming the imposter syndrome that so many creatives experience. Get inspired by Miguel's philosophy that there is always something to learn as the best way to approach a life full of curiosity.

This is We Are Photographers with Miguel Quiles and this is his story.

Connect with Miguel Quiles: miguelquiles.com | IG: @miguelquilesjr | Facebook | YouTube | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Parker J. Pfister is an artist, a teacher and a mentor. He creates stories using photography and film as his translators. He’s an avant-garde director of photography and photographer based out of Asheville, NC, and you’ll often find him traveling around the country in his Sprinter van named Homer after his grandfather. After decades working as a wedding photographer, Parker now focuses his time creating fine art images and leading workshops that transform his attendees far beyond their photography. He and his partner Elizabeth Alina create spaces and experiences for people to get out of their comfort zone, identify blocks, break through those blocks, and use that heightened emotion create images full of feeling. 

In this episode Parker explores his current life transition after photographing his last wedding and being okay with feeling scattered. Find out why he values experiences over money, the freedom of ditching the society formula and influence of his father and grandfather who were both inventors. Parker explains the theory behind his transformational Voice Lessons for the Photographer workshops and why he considers photography to be his first language. 

This is We Are Photographers with Parker J. Pfister and this is his story.

Connect with Parker J. Pfister online: parkerpfister.com | Facebook | Instagram | Vimeo

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Melissa Groo is a wildlife photographer, writer, speaker, and educator. She's a contributing editor to Audubon magazine, a bimonthly columnist on wildlife photography for Outdoor Photographer magazine, an Associate Fellow with the International League of Conservation Photographers and an Ambassador for Project Coyote. She speaks and writes extensively on issues of ethics and conservation in wildlife photography, and leads workshops in the U.S. and abroad. Melissa’s work has been published in numerous books and magazines, such as Smithsonian, Audubon, National Wildlife, and Natural History. Her work is represented by National Geographic Image Collection. 

In this episode we talk about Melissa’s love and empathy for wild animals from an early age. She poetically describes swimming with humpback whales, studying acoustic communications of forest elephants, and the moment she created her favorite image of all time. She explains why she’s dedicated to conservation photography and how you too can create stories that impact the causes you care about most.

This is We Are Photographers with Melissa Groo and this is her story.

Peter Hurley is a portrait & headshot photographer known as “The Headshot King.” He’s a coach, educator, TEDx speaker and the Founder of the Headshot Crew - the world's largest network of portrait and headshot photographers with over 16,000 supportive members. Peter is a Canon Explorer of Light and author of the best-seller, The Headshot. 

In this episode Peter shares the history of both his trademarked “squinch” and legendary “sha-bang.” He talks about the importance that goal setting has made on his life and career and how repetition is the key to confidence and mastery. Find out why Peter believes the human face is the most intriguing thing on the planet and the power of an emotional connection between photographer and subject. 

This is We Are Photographers with Peter Hurley and this is his story.

Connect with Peter Hurley online: peterhurley.com | headshotcrew.com | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Tobi “Tobi Shinobi” Shonibare is an award winning international multifaceted photographer and videographer based between London and Chicago. His work extends from high profile events, product photography, architecture, interviews. Best known for his work on social media, he has an excess of 190,000 combined followers. On these online platforms, he mainly displays his specialization in finding beauty in often gritty urban landscapes. His distinctive focus on detail, perspective, geometry, and symmetry allows for appreciation for architecture. His passion to push creative boundaries has led to many world renowned collaborations with Audi, Adobe, Sony and recently Samsung. Tobi is a Sony Global Imaging Ambassador, an Adobe Lightroom Ambassador and a Senior Content Creator in an award-winning, fully integrated, creative agency. There, Tobi provides social strategies for an array of digital content from video to photos for brands. His love for creating and storytelling has led to his starring in an award winning documentary, “I Take Photos”.

In this episode Tobi takes us on a journey from being unhappy as a lawyer to self-taught freelance photographer, Instagram influencer and agency creative director. We explore the importance of community and how both law and photography were an opportunity for Tobi to challenge himself, help other people and make money doing so. Tobi talks about developing mood and signature style in architectural photography. If you've ever struggled with the downsides of perfectionism in photography, work or life - you'll relate to Tobi's personal story and learn tips for how to overcome this while still maintaining high standards.

This is We Are Photographers with Tobi Shinobi and this is his story.

Connect with Tobi Shinobi: tobishinobi.com | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Ian Shive is an award-winning filmmaker and photographer whose work documents some of the world’s most pristine environments and brings to the public important conservation stories from around the globe. In 2015, he led a team of filmmakers and scientists on a groundbreaking mission in Cuba for Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” and over the past few years he has launched several expeditions to document for the first time some of the Pacific Ocean’s most remote marine national monuments for two films, Midway: Edge of Tomorrow and Hidden Pacific. Ian is the founder of Tandem Stills + Motion, a leading outdoor photography and film production company.

In this episode, Ian takes us on an exploration from filming great white sharks in Cuba to albatross on Midway Island to the vibrant underwater life surrounding several protected atolls in the Pacific. In a time of extreme environmental threats to our planet, Ian explains why he’s chosen to primarily focus on stories of hope. We go back to 8-year old inquisitive Ian who felt connected to nature from a young age and how the immersive experience of viewing Hidden Pacific in IMAX theaters will hopefully gift youth across the world that same connection to nature. Hear about partnering with organizations such as the Nature Conservancy, the Sierra Club, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and all about the latest inspiring work of Tandem Stills + Motion.

This is We Are Photographers with Ian Shive and this is his story.

Annemie Tonken is a family photographer and the host of This Can't Be That Hard, a podcast dedicated to helping photographers run profitable, sustainable businesses they love. She is also a speaker, educator, and the co-founder of The Family Narrative, an annual boutique conference now in its fifth year. She lives in Chapel Hill, NC with her two sons.

In this episode you’ll learn how Annemie devised an automated online sales system that freed up her time to take on lots of additional clients without sacrificing her sales averages or her clients' experiences. She’s been in business for ten years earning a comfortable income as a family photographer, despite some pretty major hiccups along the way. We talk about her career and personal evolution over the past nine years since we first met Annemie as a CreativeLive studio audience member. Hers is a success story you don’t want to miss!

This is We Are Photographers with Annemie Tonken and this is her story.

Connect with Annemie Tonken:  thiscantbethathard.com | megapixie.com | thefamilynarrative.com | Instagram: @thiscantbethat - @megapixie

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Aundre Larrow is a Jamaican-born photographer based in Brooklyn, NY. From his work as an Adobe Creative Resident exploring stories across the country to working on the set of W. Kamau Bell’s United Shades, Aundre seeks to see the truth in each human being. In seeking the fundamental good in every person, Aundre is passionate about helping younger creatives achieve their full potential in art and business. Just as he received a Minolta from his high school drama teacher at 15, he wants to pay it forward with all the knowledge he has.

In this episode Aundre recommends how to stay creative and connected during these times. Hear how best to prepare for celebrity shoots when you only have a few minutes and how Aundre approaches photographing on the film set of United Shades. He shares how he quickly connects with the people he's photographing to make them comfortable. We talk about the importance of reducing stigmas of mental health and his work with the organization To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA). Travel across the country with Aundre for his Stories From Here project during his Adobe Creative Residency. Learn Aundre's tips on photographing and post-processing darker skin tones for accurate representation. 

This is We Are Photographers with Aundre Larrow and this is his story.

Connect with Guest: aundrelarrow.com | Instagram | Twitter | Behance | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Corey Rich has built a life and career around his passions for travel, adventure, and telling stories with his camera. With a background in rock climbing and photojournalism, Corey’s work spans a range of genres, from iconic still imagery for leading editorial publications, to television spots and films, to directing high-production-value commercial projects for Fortune 100 companies. Outside of shooting photographs and directing films, Corey spends a significant portion of his time teaching, speaking, and sharing knowledge with the next generation of storytellers.

In this episode, Corey takes us behind the scenes on the making of his new book, Stories Behind the Images: Lessons from a Life in Adventure Photography. He shares what he learned about himself in writing the book and the through line of what he’s learned from the peak performance athletes whose stories he tells. We hear why Corey is most comfortable when he puts himself in uncomfortable opportunities. Find out why Corey always says yes when his daughter asks him to tell a story, and why he finds just as much joy in those everyday moments with his family as when hanging off a cliff on the other side of the world.

This is We Are Photographers with Corey Rich and this is his story.

Connect with Corey Rich: coreyrich.com | IG @coreyrichproductions | TW @coreyrich | FB @corey.rich.productions

Connect with the CreativeLive community: creativelive.com  |  Instagram @creativelive  |  Twitter @creativelive  |  YouTube @creativelive  | Facebook @creativelive

Daniel J. Gregory is a fine art photographer, mentor, and photo educator. He teaches fine art printing, color concepts and theory, portfolio creation, Photoshop, Lightroom, and a variety of analog photography courses. Daniel has always been interested in how photography helps us see, listen, and experience the world. His work explores the importance of developing meaningful connections to a place, person, or environment. With over 300 episodes, Daniel is the host of the Perceptive Photographer podcast that focuses on the creative aspect and internal struggles photographers face creating meaningful work.

In this episode Daniel shares the elements of making meaningful work - voice, vision, signature and style. You'll find out how and why creativity is at the core of everything Daniel spends his time doing. We discuss the difference between living a life of photography and living as a photographer. We explore Dorthea Lange's wise words, "the camera teaches me to see" and how large format, alternative processes, and the darkroom allow an exploration of time. Daniel explains that when photography works, it puts us in the present - out of the regret of the past or fear of the future. You may begin to recognize a photograph as a relationship, something that is given to you not taken by you.

This is We Are Photographers with Daniel J. Gregory and this is his story.

Connect with Daniel J. Gregory: danieljgregory.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Podcast

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Seth Miranda's career in photography has been as unique as his images. In addition to his own YouTube channel featuring live demos and product reviews, you may know him from his numerous series for AdoramaTV including LiveView, Rewind (weekly industry news in review), and AdoramaXP on Twitch. Seth loves to share knowledge and as you’ll hear, is full of life and passion for everything he sets his mind to. For over 15 years Seth has specialized in photographing SFX, collaborating with Special Effects Makeup artists for MakeUp Designory, MakeUp Artist Magazine and many more facets of the industry. In this episode, Seth takes us along for a wild ride of his life’s journey, from a teenage BMX skater already getting images published to the wins and struggles of being a creative freelancer to his work today as non-stop content creator for AdoramaTV. 

This is We Are Photographers with Seth Miranda and this is his story.

Chris McGinnis is a graphic designer and macro photography enthusiast with a passion for photographing anthropods. He currently works as the Senior Manager of Creative Services at Olympus America where he oversees all phases of Olympus’ graphic design, photography, and video production. We recorded this episode when Chris was here filming his Macro Photography class for the Step Outside conference - an Olympus + CreativeLive partnership. Chris takes us back to catching lightning bugs in the summertime as a child and why he thinks so many people are scared of bugs. He shares how easy it is to find macro subjects in your daily life, whether that’s in your backyard or balcony at work, and how best to slowly approach them before they fly or run away. You'll learn why face-to-face portraits of insects might be the trickiest, but are also the most rewarding. By the end of the episode you’ll have a much greater appreciation for insects, spiders, all things creepy crawly and their place in the world.

This is We Are Photographers with Chris McGinnis and this is his story.

Follow Chris McGinnis on Instagram at @innis2winnis.

Find all the We Are Photographers episodes on CreativeLive and subscribe anywhere you listen to podcasts!

Karen Okonkwo and Joshua Kissi are the co-founders of TONL, a company turning stock photography into culturally radiant stories. Karen is a Nigerian-American social entrepreneur, speaker and educator. Joshua is a Ghanaian-American photographer and creative entrepreneur who co-founded the NY creative agency Street Etiquette. In 2018 Karen & Joshua were named on Inc’s list of 30 Under 30 Rising Stars when TONL was less than a year old. In this episode we explore why Karen & Joshua partnered to humanize stock photography and how TONL images showcase what the world actually looks like using diversity, inclusion, community and real narratives of real people.

This is We Are Photographers with Karen Okonkwo and Joshua Kissi of TONL and this is their story.

Matthew Jordan Smith is an American photographer based in Tokyo, Japan and working between Tokyo, New York City and Los Angeles. He has photographed some of the world's most famous celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Queen Latifah, Aretha Franklin, Tyra Banks and more. His advertising clients include Olay, Pantene, Revlon, Showtime and HBO. In his spare time Matthew focuses on personal projects, photo exhibits and book projects. To date, Matthew has published three books, Sepia Dreams, Lost & Found, and Future American President. He has received numerous awards including the Vision Award and the George Eastman Power of Image award. Matthew is an international speaker, educator, a Nikon Ambassador and the host of the Master Your Lens photography podcast. 

In this episode hear how moving to Tokyo has changed Matthew's perception of beauty and how he expresses himself as a photographer. Matthew brings us joyful stories of photographing Aretha Franklin and the book he's creating. Get a teaser about a new art form he's been working on for a decade that he hasn't yet announced to the world. We have a heartfelt conversation about his book Future American President, the importance of taking risks, his daily affirmations and the power of photography. 

This is We Are Photographers with Matthew Jordan Smith and this is his story.

Connect with Matthew Jordan Smith online:  matthewjordansmith.com |  | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Ami Vitale is an award-winning National Geographic contract photographer, documentary filmmaker and a Nikon Ambassador. Ami has traveled to over 100 countries and focused her early career covering conflict and violence. She’s shifted her work to today’s most compelling wildlife and environmental stories. Ami recently published a best-selling book, Panda Love, on the secret lives of pandas. She lectures for the National Geographic LIVE series, and gives workshops throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia. Her photographs have been commissioned by nearly every international publication and exhibited around the world in museums and galleries.

In this episode, Ami takes us behind the scenes on some of her long term projects with elephants in Northern Kenya and last of the world’s northern white rhinos. She explains why she believes the indigenous communities she’s worked with hold the keys to saving what’s left. We talk about how photography helps us understand humanity, the natural world, our environment and universal truths. Ami tells us about being deported from a country where she had been working for five years on a National Geographic story and how what we may call failures can lead to our greatest transformations. We learn about her work with Ripple Effects Images helping tell stories about women who are being impacted by climate change. Ami encourages us to fall in love with the world around us, find long-term stories in our own backyards and that all of us need to use our voice to make a difference.

This is We Are Photographers with Ami Vitale and this is her story.

Kirk Mastin is the founder and CEO of Mastin Labs and the photography app, Filmborn. He has shot for The New York Times, LA Times, and had photos featured in National Geographic Adventure and Time magazine. Before founding Mastin Labs in 2013, Kirk shot weddings on digital and film as a hybrid photographer with his company Mastin Studio. Mastin Labs creates film emulation presets for Lightroom, ACR, and Capture One.

In this episode, Kirk and I dive deep into what it means to be a human being having a human experience at this moment in time. From fishing as a child to surfing and sailing, we learn why he spends so much time on the sea. We explore his photojournalism background and the joy of documenting everyday moments simply as they are. Hear what images Kirk has made on the edge of danger, and why his ability to both see and feel color has led to what Mastin Labs is today. 

This is We Are Photographers with Kirk Mastin and this is his story.

Connect with Kirk Mastin and all things Mastin Labs: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube

Join the CreativeLive community and connect with us on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter. Subscribe to the We Are Photographers podcast wherever you listen to podcasts!

Kiliii Yüyan is an award-winning Documentary Photographer and contributor to National Geographic Magazine and other major publications. Informed by ancestry that is both Nanai/Hèzhé and Chinese-American, much of his work explores the human relationship to the natural world from different cultural perspectives. Kiliii is one of PDN's 30 Under 30 Photographers (2019), a National Geographic Explorer, and a member of Indigenous Photograph and Diversify Photo. In addition to being a photographer, Kiliii builds traditional kayaks professionally, has mad primitive survival skills and most of the year can be found working on stories in the circumpolar Arctic. 

As a creator, working in remote parts of the world often requires building relationships with people who rarely interact with outsiders. Cultural norms you are accustomed to won’t necessarily apply. In this episode, Kiliii shares his experience working in the arctic and offers a number of insights to help you build genuine relationships with collaborators, and ultimately, a better finished project. 

This is We Are Photographers with Kiliii Yüyan and this is his story.

Connect with Kiliii Yüyan: kiliii.com | Instagram

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Erica Robinson is a photographer, educator, tour leader, adventurer, and a National Technical Rep with Tamron USA. Photography has taken her to 11 countries, all 50 states, and as she says too many cities to count. Her career spans multiple facets of the photo industry - from being a photographer for a major cruise line, assisting Boston’s top wedding photographers, and building her technical chops working retail sales at her local camera store. When not attached at the hip to her camera, you can find Erica lifting heavy things, running, hiking, writing, or simply enjoying the world.

In this episode Erica takes us on the road with her to various corners of the country and then abroad to Italy, Israel and Cuba. We talk about life as a female road warrior in the photography industry and why teaching photography brings her so much joy. We explore the why behind personal projects including The Faces of the Uniform, portraits of women in military around the globe. 

This is We Are Photographers with Erica Robinson and this is her story.

Connect with guest online: ericarobinsonphoto.com | Facebook | Instagram

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Paul Ninson is a freelance photographer based in Ghana with passion for portraits, visual storytelling and documenting humanitarian and environmental stories. His current personal projects include the Masai tribes in Kenya, the lower Omo Valley of Ethiopia, and documenting the lives of women in Umoja for his Village with No Men project. In this episode, Paul talks about the life-changing experience of meeting Brandon Stanton in Ghana, being featured on Humans of New York and gaining 30k followers from around the world in one day. Paul attributes his photography education to CreativeLive where he spends most of his non-working hours learning from as many classes as he can. He talks about getting his first camera and how he’s been growing his business and portfolio of personal work ever since. Paul is the definition of taking risks, nonstop hard work, nurturing a supportive community and sharing knowledge and inspiration in return. This is We Are Photographers with Paul Ninson and this is his story.

Pye Jirsa is the founder and partner of SLR Lounge and Lin & Jirsa Photography, a premier boutique photography and videography studio in Southern California. The Lin & Jirsa team photographs over 300 weddings each year, with nearly 1,000 yearly client commissions. Pye is the creator behind the workshops and resources inside the SLR Lounge library which has nearly a million monthly readers. He’s also a prolific instructor on CreativeLive with classes on everything from lighting mastery to business systems to engagement & wedding photography.

In this episode Pye explores how he had to lose everything to gain happiness. He shares personal stories of loss and love, fear and growth. He describes what being raised by a single immigrant father who moved him from Iran to Utah taught him about fear as a child. Pye stopped creating art for a decade after his high school art teacher told him to quit because he wasn’t good enough. We talk about mental health and finding the source of stability. He shares his daily routine that helps him stay present and why discomfort became his compass.

This is We Are Photographers with Pye Jirsa, and this is his story.

Lucas Jackson is an award-winning Senior Photographer at Reuters. For over a decade he’s worked as a staff photographer covering every aspect of the news and feature stories in New York as well as the red carpet, concerts, natural disasters, politics and wars. As a staff photographer he has to be ready to photograph any scene at any time under any circumstance. In this episode we talk about the work ethic he learned growing up on a cattle ranch and being a commercial fisherman in Alaska to pay for a photography education. Lucas describes his career path to becoming a staff photographer at Reuters and what that role actually looks like, from photographing the courthouse steps one day to filming a 4-mile long glacier calving in Greenland the next. This is We Are Photographers with Lucas Jackson and this is his story.

Jessica Kobeissi is an Arab-American portrait and fashion photographer from Detroit, Michigan. With over 140+ million views, she is the #1 female photographer on YouTube and has created several popular viral photography series such as “4 Photographers Shoot The Same Model” and “Taking Pictures of Strangers”. Her photography has appeared in NBC News, BBC, CNN, Cosmopolitan, The Sun, Buzzfeed, DailyMail, and The Mirror. 

Fear of the unknown can be so overwhelming that it keeps us in a place where we don’t want to be. In this episode, Jessica talks about overcoming her fears and finding the courage to pursue her dream of being a full-time photographer. She also talks about her work as a Youtuber, how she deals with criticism, why she loves test-shoots and the difference between agency and freelance models. While facing many challenges and risks on her journey, Jessica is still a firm believer in collaboration over competition and is working hard to create a welcoming environment for other photographers. 

This is We Are Photographers with Jessica Kobeissi and this is her story.

Connect with Jessica Kobeissi: jessicakobeissi.com | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Yagazie Emezi is a Nigerian artist and self-taught photojournalist focused on stories surrounding African women and their health, sexuality, education and human rights. Having worked extensively across Africa, Yagazie also covers stories on identity and culture, social justice, climate change and migration. Yagazie is a recipient of the 2018 inaugural Creative Bursary Award from Getty Images. In 2019, she became the first black African woman to photograph for National Geographic Magazine and is a National Geographic Explorer Grantee. She’s worked with Al-Jazeera, New York Times, Vogue, Newsweek, TIME, Washington Post, National Geographic, New York Times Magazine and several not-for-profit organizations. Yagazi has also been featured by British Journal of Photography, Huffington Post, Vogue, CNN and The Washington Post.

In this episode Yagazie takes us back to being a storyteller as an imaginative child in a small town and how returning to Nigeria after studying in the U.S. impacted her ability to see and photograph with new eyes. Her personal and professional growth took off when she moved to Liberia to work as a photographer for a non-profit and began doing personal projects. Whether in Yagazie’s work or her life, we explore topics of confidence, dignity, beauty, self-consciousness, age and humanity.  

This is We Are Photographers with Yagazie Emezi and this is her story.

Connect with Yagazie Emezi: yagazieemezi.com | Instagram | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Alexis Hunley is a self-taught freelance photographer based in Los Angeles. Visual storytelling, a love of color and connection can be seen throughout her commercial, documentary and editorial work. Alexis’ work is featured on a recent cover of Essence magazine. Her clients include The New York Times, NY Magazine, Rolling Stone, The Verge, Men’s Health, Airbnb to name a handful. With a background in psychology, she consistently seeks out ways to combine her love for art with her desire to better understand the human condition. 

In this episode Alexis shares how she’s fast-tracked her photography career in three years. Landing portfolio reviews with editors and improving her work based on that feedback ultimately led to her first magazine cover for Essence. She describes how creating images allows her to process her feelings and emotions of life experiences. Go behind the scenes of Alexis’ coverage of the Black Lives Matter movement - both personal and for clients - and why she focuses on capturing the little moments of connection and intimacy across her body of work.

This is We Are Photographers with Alexis Hunley and this is her story.

Connect with Alexis Hunley: alexishunley.com | Instagram | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Grace Chon is a commercial and editorial animal photographer, acclaimed for her highly expressive portraits of animals and authentic photos of people and their pets. Her clients include ad agencies, pet brands, magazines, publishing companies, celebrities, and TV shows. Grace is also the author of 2 dog photography books - Waggish: Dogs Smiling for Dog Reasons and Puppy Styled: Japanese Dog Grooming Before and After. 

In this episode Grace shares the secret to being an amazing animal photographer. We talk about the making of her book Puppy Styled after a series of images that will make you laugh and smile went viral. Grace explores her mission for her podcast Creativity School and why people thought she was crazy (including herself) when she left the advertising world as an award-winning creative director to be a pet photographer. Graces takes us on her journey learning to see fear as an opportunity for growth. She explains how she built a name for herself as an LA celebrity pet photographer and gives us a sneak peek of her new portrait series exploring the healing power of dogs. 

This is We Are Photographers with Grace Chon and this is her story.

Connect with Grace at www.gracechon.com, on IG @thegracechon and subscribe to her podcast Creativity School.

Listen to all of our We Are Photographers podcast episodes and find show notes on CreativeLive. Subscribe, rate & review us wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. Thanks for listening!

Daniella Zalcman is a Vietnamese-American documentary photographer based between Paris and New York. She is a multiple grantee of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, a fellow with the International Women's Media Foundation, a National Geographic Society grantee, and the founder of Women Photograph, an initiative working to elevate the voices of women and non-binary visual journalists. 

Her work tends to focus on the legacies of western colonization, from the rise of homophobia in East Africa to the forced assimilation education of indigenous children in North America. Her ongoing project, Signs of Your Identity, is the recipient of the Arnold Newman Prize, a Robert F Kennedy Journalism Award, the FotoEvidence Book Award, the Magnum Foundation's Inge Morath Award, and part of Open Society Foundation's Moving Walls 24. 

Daniella is also a proud member of the Authority Collective and Diversify Photo, one of the co-authors of the Photo Bill of Rights, and a member of the board of trustees of the W. Eugene Smith Memorial Fund and the board of directors of the ACOS Alliance. 

This is We Are Photographers with Daniella Zalcman and this is her story.

Connect with Daniella Zalcman: dan.iella.net - Instagram - Twitter | Women Photograph - Instagram - Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Amanda Lucidon is an award-winning documentarian, filmmaker, public speaker and New York Times best-selling author. She served as an Official White House photographer responsible for documenting First Lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama from 2013 to 2017 and is one of only a few female White House photographers in history. Amanda is the author of Chasing Light: Through the Lens of a White House Photographer and Reach Higher: An Inspring Photo Celebration of First Lady Michelle Obama.

In this episode, Amanda describes what it actually means to be responsible for documenting the daily life of the Obamas for history, both inside the White House and around the world, and how she remains ready to photograph anything at any moment. She reveals how growing up as one of ten children allowed her imagination and creativity to blossom, and the beauty of imperfection. Amanda takes us behind the scenes on some of her most recognizable images and tells us what she learned from Mrs. Obama. She talks about the power of personal projects, bringing arts into underserved communities as a Kennedy Center Turnaround Artist and her latest work bringing arts and mindfulness to a Memphis juvenile detention center.

This is We Are Photographers with Amanda Lucidon, and this is her story.

Ajani Charles is a photographer, director, producer, mental health advocate, and a Canon Canada ambassador based in Toronto. He’s the founder of The Visionaries — a Toronto-based photography and cinematography non-profit and educational program, providing mentoring to youth. His photographic documentary “Project T Dot” is a visual chronicle of the city’s hip-hop culture. Ajani’s clients include H&M, Universal Music Group, Bridgestone, Christian Dior, Calm, and the UFC. His work has been featured in publications such as Complex, Jay-Z’s Life + Times, and Vogue. 

In this episode Ajani explains what mindfulness is, the research-based science behind it, and his personal journey becoming a mental health advocate. You’ll learn about the many ways a mindfulness practice can benefit your creativity, career, relationships and life. We discuss how being a workaholic or perfectionist can actually be socially acceptable coping mechanisms for anxiety and fear. He shares his favorite apps, actions and tools that can help anyone come out on the other side of burnout. You’ll be inspired by Ajani’s life-long grit and perseverance to navigate uncertainty and thrive.

This is We Are Photographers with Ajani Charles and this is his story.

Connect with Ajani: www.ajani.ca | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review  We Are Photographers  wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Omar Z. Robles is an NYC based photographer born and raised in Puerto Rico. His interest in storytelling began with one man: Marcel Marceau. The legendary mime actor taught him how to interpret the world through subtle but riveting movements. But before juxtaposing the clean lines of dancers against rugged city landscapes, Omar was shooting celebrities, athletes, artists, politicians and city dwellers for The Chicago Tribune’s Hoy, Metro San Juan, and Latino Leaders. With over 300k followers, his social media acumen has made him an influencer for Leica, Adobe Lightroom, Peak Design, Jaguar, Gap, Esquire Magazine and more.

In this episode Omar talks about the origin of his IG Live series Conversations with Dancers. He takes us back to how being a gymnast, dancer, performer and mime influences his photography and the ability to communicate without words. Learn Omar’s approach to street and client photography and the importance of problem solving. We explore Omar’s Puerto Rican heritage and the benefits of photographing with film.

This is We Are Photographers with Omar Z. Robles and this is his story.

Connect with Omar Z. Robles: omarzrobles.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Dave Krugman is a street photographer based in NYC. He’s a member of the Sony Alpha Collective and a Manfrotto Global Ambassador. He believes anyone can learn the craft of photography with no camera at all, especially on the streets of NYC. In this episode, Dave talks about the similarities between the creative elements that make up both photography and music. We hear about the beautiful intersection of old and new when combining his grandfather’s old analog lenses with the latest Sony mirrorless technology. Dave believes anyone can learn the craft of photography with no camera at all, especially on the streets of NYC.

This is We Are Photographers with Dave Krugman, and this is his story.

Frederick Van Johnson is a passionate entrepreneur, marketer, and the founder and Editor-in-Chief of The TWiP Network. He also produces Skylum Software’s podcast - Behind the Seen. A professional photographer for several decades, Frederick began his career as a Combat Photojournalist in the US Air Force, where he served for 8 years, and was decorated many times for his exemplary work in the field. An alum at Apple and Adobe Systems, Frederick was a key player in the development of iPhoto and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom.

In this episode we talk about the joys and challenges of building an authentic community. A true entrepreneur, Frederick shares what it takes to continually test and learn as you iterate on growing your business. Hear how Frederick spearheaded the onboarding and daily use of digital imaging processes and DSLR camera equipment in the US armed forces. Find out the true definition of amateur and why Frederick loves creating unprofessionally. Get a preview of the new cinematic multi-media universes that Frederick has up his sleeve.

This is We Are Photographers with Frederick Van Johnson and this is his story.

Connect with Frederick Van Johnson: thisweekinphoto.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1600+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Andrew Scrivani is a photographer, director, writer, educator and producer who has worked on editorial, publishing, advertising, documentary, and feature film projects. One of the most prolific food photographers in the industry, Andrew has been a contributor to The New York Times for over 17 years. His images have been featured in over a dozen cookbooks and his first book, That Photo Makes Me Hungry, is available for pre-order and will be released in the Fall of 2019. He’s an Executive Producer for the film company Boro Five Pictures, the co-founder of Big Machine Films.

In this episode Andrew explores the throughlines of his multifaceted career. We learn how being a competitive baseball catcher evolved into his leadership skills as a film producer and director. We talk about creative ruts and reinvention and the most surprising part of writing his first book. Andrew reveals how he got his break at the NYTimes and describes what it was like to create food photography for a daily column in the health section, Monday-Friday, for over seven years.

This is We Are Photographers with Andrew Scrivani and this is his story.

Follow Andrew Scrivani: andrewscrivani.com, IG @andrewscrivani, FB @ascrivani, TW @andrewscrivani

Find all the We Are Photographers episodes on CreativeLive and subscribe anywhere you listen to podcasts!

Felix Kunze is a portrait photographer and studio lighting educator living in New York City. Born in East Germany and raised in England, he now spends his time highlighting the grace, strength, enthusiasm, and beauty of people through his impeccably lit photographs. His recent projects are centered around scientists, explorers, and environmentalists, to elevate their standing in society through photographs. 

In this episode, we discuss why Felix is focusing his photography on issues that will have more of an impact in fifty years than they do now. He tells the story of what it took to get a portrait of Greta Thunberg with direct eye contact and why access is the biggest challenge for any photographer. Felix shares what it felt like to photograph an image of eight of the surviving Apollo astronauts at The Explorers Club. We journey to the remote Gobi desert in Mongolia on an expedition of geologists to study a mass extinction from 365 million years ago and he reveals his formula for getting paid work through personal projects. 

This is We Are Photographers with Felix Kunze and this is his story.

Polly Irungu is a multimedia journalist, digital editor and photographer and is the founder of Black Women Photographers, a new community and online database of Black women photographers. Polly is a Digital Content Editor at New York Public Radio (WYNC) for ‘The Takeaway’, a national NPR show with over 2 million listeners. As a photographer, Polly’s work has been published by NPR, The Washington Post, CNN, HuffPost, OkayAfrica. She was named one of Okay Africa’s 100 African Women to Know in 2020. Polly has spoken about social media, branding, podcasting, media diversity, COVID-19, and photojournalism on panels for Twitter, NBC News, and National Association of Black Journalists.

In this episode we celebrate the launch day of Black Women Photographers discussing why Polly created the site and its mission. Born in Kenya, hear Polly’s story of growing up in a traditional African household in both Kansas and Oregon. She shares how photography helped her rise out of depression, offers advice for young journalists and talks about the critical need for more diversity and representation in the journalism industry. Go behind the scenes on her role at WNYC for The Takeaway and how living a life full of intention in everything she does is her key to success.

This is We Are Photographers with Polly Irungu and this is her story.

Connect with Polly Irungu: pollyirungu.com  |  blackwomenphotographers.com | Instagram @pollyirungu  @photosbypolly  @blackwomenphotographers | Twitter @pollyirungu  @BlkWomenPhoto

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Jermaine Horton is a wedding and portrait photographer, a Sony Artisan of Imagery and a Westcott Top Pro ambassador. He enjoys a borderline unhealthy love of the Chicago Bears, and creating dynamic images via Off Camera Flash and natural light. Jermaine is the President and Founder of The Art Of Confidence Project, which empowers and restores the confidence of our youth and was featured on The Grio, CNN, BET, CBS, ABC, NBC, People & more. He’s an ambassador for Stella Pro Lighting, Fundy Design and SLR Lounge. 

In this episode Jermaine explains the origins and powerful mission of The Art of Confidence Project, as well as the impact it’s made on the lives of the youth he’s photographed and their communities. Learn how Jermaine built a business with loyal clients who rally behind his #YourFavoritePhotographer brand and mastered his craft to now partner with major brands. Be inspired by his relentless go-getter attitude, vulnerability and determination to lift up everyone around him.

This is We Are Photographers with Jermaine Horton and this is his story.

Connect with Jermaine: JermaineHorton.com  theartofconfidence.org | IG: @jermainehortonphotography  @jermainehortonportraits @theartofconfidenceproject  | FB: The Art of Confidence | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Carly Romeo is a photographer, feminist, and serial project-starter. She founded her wedding photography company, Carly Romeo & Co, in 2015 and since then she (and her growing team) have shot over 100 celebrations of love and partnership. Her current projects include running a boutique conference for college-aged feminists called Feminist Camp, she is a co-founder and hype woman for Catalyst Wedding Company, and hosts photographer workshops like Feminist Photo Vaycay through her new endeavor, Here Now Magic.

In this episode, we talk about what it means to be a wedding photographer at this point in time when the majority of weddings are being postponed. We explore the origins of her business serving couples having non-traditional weddings seeking a photographer who will affirm and embrace their priorities. We go back to her childhood feminist roots, find out what she learned while working for Gloria Steinem and discover why portrait photographers are energy workers

This is We Are Photographers with Carly Romeo and this is her story.

Connect with Carly Romeo online: carlyromeo.com | herenowmagic.com | FB @carlyromeoandco | IG @carlyromeoandco | IG @herenowmagic

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Kesha Lambert is an international wedding and portrait photographer, Sony Artisan, speaker and educator based in New York. A “recovering” lawyer, Kesha’s fascination with photography inspired a career change and a focus in weddings. She has been published by People Magazine, New York Times, Essence, Inside Weddings, MunaLuchi Bride, Huffington Post, Black Bride Magazine and many more. Kesha has a way of telling stories with images that are epic, while being intimate and emotional at the same time. 

In this episode, Kesha takes us on her journey from being a lawyer to running a successful wedding photography business with associates. She describes the aha moment when she realized she had the power to define her own success while doing something that she loves. Kesha takes us back to her childhood as both a book worm and a creative daydreamer. Hear how being an empath and introvert has served her well on wedding days, and how learning to hold true to her signature style has led to Kesha's longevity as an entrepreneur.

This is We Are Photographers with Kesha Lambert and this is her story.

Connect with Kesha Lambert: keshalambert.com | Instagram |  Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Steven John Irby (a.k.a. Steve Sweatpants) is a photographer and co-owner, co-founder & director of Street Dreams Magazine. Street Dreams is print and digital publication showcasing up-and-coming photographers, a full-service creative studio, and hosts gallery shows and events. Steve has a new radio show Live at the Bodega on Street Dreams Radio on Mixcloud. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens, Steve’s photography is derived from the endless source of inspiration found on his home turf along with images from travels around the world. His images have been published in the New Yorker, GQ and he’s a contributor to Yahoo News. He’s an ambassador for Sony, a Moab master, a TEDx speaker and a CreativeLive instructor. What I love about @steveweatpants' IG posts is Steve's ability to capture decisive moments, mostly B&W, paired with wise words that infuse a love of life no matter how serious the subject matter.

This is We Are Photographers with Steven John Irby and this is his story.

Connect with Steve Sweatpants: streetdreams.co | IG @stevesweatpants @streetdreamsmag | TW @stevesweatpants @streetdreamsnyc

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Filipe DeAndrade is a Brazilian born, Cleveland raised, filmmaker who has a passion for wildlife and freely admits he is addicted to adventure. He’s a 10x Emmy award winning wildlife filmmaker and conservationist. Filipe started a production house with his friends called Comfort Theory and in 2015 won National Geographic’s ‘Wild to Inspire’ short film competition at the Sun Valley Film Festival. Nat Geo WILD then invited Filipe to work on several documentary projects and he is currently producing and hosting the series Untamed for Nat Geo WILD. 

In this episode Filipe takes us into the mindset of the animal he feared the most as a child - a jaguar. We learn how throughout Filipe's life he's turned fears into opportunity and he encourages us all to do the same. Hear how hugging his idol Jane Goodall motivated him to pay it forward to the next generation of conservationists. Filipe explains why he feels lucky to be raised by a single mother. Be inspired to embrace your camera as your own voice hearing Filipe's stories behind his show ‘Untamed’ plus films Adapt and The River and The Wall.

This is We Are Photographers with Filipe DeAndrade and this is his story.

Connect with guest online: Untamed on Nat Geo WILD | Facebook | Instagram

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review  We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Brooke Shaden shares how she accidentally became a photographer even though she didn’t feel a connection to the medium. We explore self-doubt, letting go of pride, and the fear of declaring herself a writer. If creativity doesn’t come easily for you, Brooke shares how she’s discovered her own style. We find out what her tattoo says that’s based on the book she’s most obsessed with.

Brooke Shaden is an award-winning self-portrait artist, motivational speaker & educator, a Sony Artisan of Imagery and a writer. She created the Promoting Passion Convention, and co-founded The Light Space, a photography school for survivors of human trafficking and gender based violence in India and Thailand.

This is We Are Photographers with Brooke Shaden, and this is her story.

Vanessa Joy has been photographing couples and educating pros worldwide since 2002. She focuses her business in the NJ and NYC area, and alongside her partnerships with Canon and Adorama she helps pros take their businesses to the next level. Her hit show Breathe Your Passion on AdoramaTV covers everything from photography skills, marketing, workflow and how to live and breathe your passion. 

Vanessa is the ultimate life-long learner and life-long teacher. In this episode we learn how she falls in love with photography over and over again to not get burned out. We hear why she has the coolest dad in the world who taught her a strong work ethic. Find out what motivated Vanessa to write her first book, The Off-Camera Flash Handbook. We discuss learning to walk away from the expectations of others and of herself as she continually pivots her career, including what she has in store for us all in 2020. 

This is We Are Photographers with Vanessa Joy and this is her story.

Sheila Pree Bright is an acclaimed International Photographic Artist, speaker and author. She is known for her series #1960Now, Young Americans, Plastic Bodies, and Suburbia. Sheila is the author of #1960Now: Photographs of Civil Rights Activists and Black Lives Matter Protests which was also a feature in the New York Times. She was featured in the 2016 feature-length documentary film Election Day: Lens Across America. Sheila is a contributor & ambassador for The Leica 10 - a collective of artists who tell stories with pictures using music, poetry, movies and other artforms as inspiration. Her work is included in numerous private and public collections; to name a few, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, The Library of Congress, National Center for Civil and Human Rights.

In this episode Sheila takes you behind the scenes on her #1960Now body of work and discusses the impact that art can have as a tool for activism. She explores her early days photographing Hip Hop culture and how her empathy and lack of fear has influenced her ability to be welcomed into the communities she photographs. Find out why Sheila believes if one door closes another will open.

This is We Are Photographers with Sheila Pree Bright and this is her story.

Connect with Sheila Pree Bright: sheilapreebright.com | Instagram @shepreebright @1960now

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Valérie Jardin is a visual storyteller recognized internationally for her street photography. She is the author of several books and teaches street photography workshops all over the world. She also hosts the podcast 'Hit the Streets with Valérie Jardin' and is an official Fujifilm X-Photographer. In this episode we talk about the importance of street photography, how her approach to storytelling includes both following the light and following her heart when photographing on the street. Valérie explains her love for Fujifilm mirrorless cameras and prime lenses, the power of limitations and the joy of educating others to find the beauty in everyday life. This is We Are Photographers with Valérie Jardin, and this is her story.

Melina Hammer is an award-winning food photographer, book author, stylist, chef, and mastermind behind Catbird Cottage. After years working with the New York Times, Eating Well, Blue Apron, and others, she now curates and prepares seasonal menus for guests at the destination bed & breakfast she runs with her husband, located in New York’s Hudson Valley. At the Catbird, she grows an heirloom kitchen garden and forages wild foods, curating of-the-moment seasonal menus for guests. Her first cookbook, KID CHEF is an Amazon bestseller, and she is working on her new cookbook due out spring 2022.

In this episode, Melina shares her extensive process of writing a cookbook including framing the narrative, creating the recipes, styling, cooking, testing and photographing. Hear about her first career as a metalsmith and evolution into food photography. Melina gives you tips on transforming foods that aren’t naturally visually appealing into gorgeous drool-worthy images that will make your audience hungry. Explore her early experiences working with the NYTimes, learning by doing in a trial-by-fire way. We dive into trusting both the creative and entrepreneurial process that will leave you inspired.

This is We Are Photographers with Melina Hammer and this is her story.

Connect with Melina Hammer: melinaphotos.com | IG @melinahammer| catbirdcottage.com 

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Rafael "RC" Concepcion is an award winning photographer, podcast host, educator, storyteller and the author of 8 best-selling books on Photoshop, Lightroom, HDR, and how to get your images on the web. RC is now known as Professor Concepcion at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School. He is a highly sought after public speaker, lecturing at seminars and workshops around the world, including right here on CreativeLive.

In this episode we talk about what it takes to continually reinvent yourself and life’s epiphanies that often arise when unexpected. RC takes us on a journey from growing up in the South Bronx to the lavish life working in tech during the .com boom to the lows of working out of a U-Haul 10x10 storage unit and back up to being a Photoshop guru whose face and voice are known all over the world. RC’s passion for teaching is not just about the tools of Photoshop and Lightroom, but at heart about how to get what’s inside of you out through creativity. We discuss being a Latino industry leader and coming full circle to doing projects with the Bronx Documentary Center.

This is We Are Photographers with RC Concepcion and this is his story.

Kate Woodman is a commercial and editorial photographer with a client list including Airbnb, Nike, Harman Kardon, Marie Claire and British Vogue. Kate is an educator, teaching workshops around the world focusing on color theory and storytelling. A structural engineer by training, Kate developed her love of photography in 2011 while investigating earthquake damage in New Zealand. What began as a compulsion to document the environment expanded into a fascination for narrative storytelling, with a conceptual twist.

Finding your own style as a photographer is challenging - discovering what interests you, translating that visually, and simultaneously putting your work out into the world. In this episode, Kate shares her creative process and the evolution of her cinematic, narrative style. Kate also explains the importance of pre-production, color, and where she finds inspiration. She reflects on her journey and shares advice on how to continue to evolve and grow as an artist.

This is We Are Photographers with Kate Woodman and this is her story.

Connect with Kate Woodman: katewoodman.com | thebackdropstudio.com | Instagram | Twitter | Behance

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Cheriss May is a visual storyteller and adjunct professor at Howard University, her alma mater, in Washington D.C. She was selected by Adobe in 2019 as an education leader for her commitment to creativity in the classroom, and she trains and speaks to educators across the country. Cheriss is passionate about visual storytelling and is an advocate for diversity and inclusion in the media industry, often commissioned to speak, and advise on diversification initiatives. She is the president of Women Photojournalists of Washington (WPOW), and co-chair of the photography committee at The National Press Club.

Cheriss has been published in O Magazine, Essence, Time, The White House Historical Association, The New York Times, Bloomberg, ESPN, and other international publications. Her work is featured in a permanent exhibit: MFON’s “In Conversation: Visual Meditations on Black Masculinity”, at the African American Museum in Philadelphia. Originally from Kansas City, Mo., Cheriss is an independent photographer based in Washington, D.C. Her passion radiates through her aptitude to connect to the soul of those she photographs.

This is We Are Photographers with Cheriss May and this is her story.

Connect with Cheriss May: cherissmay.com | Instagram | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Saunak Shah is the Founder and Creative Director of Pursuit of Portraits, a global creative collective and community of portrait-lovers. What started as an Instagram account to showcase portrait photography, @pursuitofportraits has grown into a movement connecting hundreds of thousands of creatives around the world. We recorded this episode while Saunak was in Brazil as part of his one-year Global Pursuit, where he traveled to 5 continents, 21 countries and held over 50 photography meetups, often traveling to places where resources and opportunities are limited. Over 500 people showed up in Nairobi for the 1-day #pursuitofportraits event. He reminds us that while there is no substitute for hard work, we can all dare to dream. This is We Are Photographers with Saunak Shah and this is his story.

Natalie Franke is the Founder of the Rising Tide Society and Head of Community at HoneyBook. She’s also a photographer, entrepreneur, writer and educator. In this episode Natalie talks about communityship, what #communityovercompetition actually means to the 75,000+ members of the Rising Tide Society. There are over 400 local chapters who meet in person monthly to connect with other creatives and learn from industry peers. Natalie opens up and shares what the concept of success looks like to her both before and after surgery to remove a brain tumor. We talk about creativity, chronic illness and that feeling that so many of us struggle with of not doing enough or not being enough. This episode will especially resonate with you if you’re a creative solopreneur who at times feels isolated and not always sure where to go for help. Natalie has answers - know that you are not alone. This is We Are Photographers with Natalie Franke and this is her story.

Chris Weston became a professional wildlife photographer in 2001, changing his career to follow instead his passion for what he describes as “the extraordinary behavior of animals”. He's written over 20 books on photography and his credits include the BBC, Daily Telegraph, Outdoor Photography, Practical Photography and Digital Photography magazines. He is an ambassador for Fujifilm and is a renowned speaker and teacher, leading multiple safaris, workshops and seminars around the world.

In this episode we talk about his hand-eye-heart approach to photography inspired by Japanese philosophies of mindfulness. Chris describes what it feels like to photograph tigers and other mammals in the water with them. He explains why his favorite lens for photographing wildlife is 50mm (not long telephotos like you’d expect), which means he patiently waits with an energy of calmness for the animals to come to him. We discuss our mutual fascination with quantum physics and what book has been both of our favorites since we were young.

This is We Are Photographers with Chris Weston and this is his story.

Lisa Carney is a high end retoucher and photoshop artist who has spent over two decades working with the most dynamic players in the print, motion picture, and television industries including Disney, Netflix, Sony, Universal, ABC, ESPN and more. Besides being a regular presenter at the Adobe MAX conference, her teaching roster runs the gamut from beginners to professional retouchers, and includes universities, design & movie studios, private students and of course, CreativeLive. In this episode Lisa explores the balance of creativity for work as a commercial retoucher and photography for self-expression. She describes how moving to France at the peak of her career led to some of her hardest life lessons. Lisa talks about how her dad dying at age 18 impacted the direction of her life, how being a mother has influenced her art and why allowing yourself to show up and feel uncomfortable is a secret to success.

This is We Are Photographers with Lisa Carney and this is her story.

Yasmeen Turayhi is a first generation Iraqi American who has spent the vast majority of her life caught in between two worlds—one as an American, and one as an Iraqi. She also lives two lives simultaneously as a filmmaker and runs a product marketing advisory service Modern Product with diverse experience in finance, energy, fintech, healthtech, adtech and more. She’s the author of Product Marketing Debunked and serves on the Board of Directors of TechWadi, helping create bridges for entrepreneurs between the greater Middle East and Silicon Valley.

In this episode Yasmeen explains why she was driven to create her short and feature film projects including A Star in the Desert and The Day Everything Changed—to share an under-represented perspective from the Middle East, from families who are on the receiving end of war & conflict, and expand perspectives and global consciousness. We hear about running a 122% funded Kickstarter, what she learned about financing short films while on crutches for four months and the dedication of a group of 30+ people who believed in her mission.

This is We Are Photographers with Yasmeen Turayhi and this is her story.

Be sure to subscribe, rate and review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! 

Mecca Gamble McConnell is a sought-after brand photographer who creates strategic, compelling images for service-based entrepreneurs that help them tell their stories and communicate their expertise. She enjoys helping other photographers gain confidence, clarity, and build community through her 1:1 instruction, group coaching program Picture Yourself Profitable™, and hosting an annual retreat-style workshop, Porter Street. Her bold personality, style, and worth ethic have allowed her to stand out in her market and have her work published by popular mediums such as ESSENCE, Upscale, XoNecole, and The Knot.

In this episode you’ll discover why photography is a ministry for Mecca and what led her to serve others as a life priority. Learn how brand photography can be an essential strategic asset for you and your clients. Mecca shares the importance of community to keep going through challenging times. With business and branding, she explains how it often takes getting it wrong multiple times before you get it right. Mecca explores the importance of forgiveness for personal growth and how consistent authenticity breeds trust.

This is We Are Photographers with Mecca Gamble McConnell and this is her story.

Connect with Mecca Gamble McConnell: meccagamble.com | Instagram: @meccagamble @meccagamblephoto

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review  We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Mariangela Abeo is a photographer, producer, writer and public speaker. She’s the creator of Faces of Fortitude, a movement in portraits that strives to lay a foundation for healing for those affected by suicide. Faces of Fortitude provides a safe, stigma-free space, virtually through social media, and in-person with appearances and gallery events, for mental health and suicide to be discussed. Mariangela recently stood on the TEDx stage for the first time in Youngstown, Ohio to deliver her talk entitled Celebrate the Survivor: Creating a Safe Space around Suicide. Her goal is to combat the mental health stigma at a grassroots level, where it all begins.

In this episode Mariangela returns to the CreativeLive studios where Faces of Fortitude was conceived and describes the moment when the lightbulb went off during a class by Stacy Pearsall. We talk about her personal transformation in the past two years since she began Faces as a personal project on the weekends. Being self-taught, she explains what it took to push through imposter syndrome and call herself a photographer. We talk about how words that are whispered can create shame and she gives us a sneak peek into writing her next TEDx talk. 

This is We Are Photographers with Mariangela Abeo and this is her story.

Katie Orlinsky has photographed all over the world documenting everything from conflict and social issues to wildlife and sports. Katie’s work has focused on climate change, exploring the transforming relationship between people, animals and the land in the Arctic. Katie is a contributing photographer with National Geographic and her work is frequently published in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and Smithsonian Magazine. In 2019 she was awarded the Alexia Foundation Professional Grant for her story Chasing Winter.

In this episode, Katie shares how an assignment to cover the Yukon Quest - The 1000 Mile International Dog Sled Race in 2014 introduced her to life in the Arctic firsthand. Learn about Newtok, Alaska whose residents will be the first Americans to be relocated because of the effects of climate change. We discuss finding hope in difficult stories and Katie’s project teaching youth mobile photography so that they can tell their own stories in the Arctic. Katie takes us back to her documentary work with a women’s prison in Juarez, Mexico as much of her earlier work was covering Latin America.

This is We Are Photographers with Katie Orlinsky and this is her story.

Connect with Katie Orlinsky: katieorlinskyphoto.com | IG: @katieorlinsky | Facebook | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Elise Swopes is a Chicago-bred, Brooklyn-based photographer, graphic designer, videographer, and public speaker. When she first joined Instagram in 2011, she couldn’t have imagined that she’d one day be featured on billboards, in commercials, and on mood boards at agencies across the globe. She just knew that the phone in her hand held an incredible power, one that would allow her to inspire others while showcasing her unique vision. Since then, the self-taught creative has used her business savvy to spin influencer marketing on Instagram into a full-fledged career. Don’t miss Elise’s inspirational TEDx talk and subscribe to her podcast Swopes So Dope.

In this episode Elise explores topics of personal growth, mindfulness, mental health and creativity. She talks about how her childhood influenced her emotional life in both challenging and beautiful ways. Elise shares how she discovered her mission to push accessibility, education and encourage people to not hold themselves back. Learn the morning rituals that set up her day and give her space to write and publish her daily inspiring Reminders. From college dropout to entrepreneur with 280k+ followers on IG working with 100+ brands, Elise’s positivity has influenced her ability to release her own limiting beliefs. 

This is We Are Photographers with Elise Swopes and this is her story.

Connect with Elise Swopes: swopes.info | Instagram |  Twitter | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Jo-Anne McArthur is an award-winning photojournalist, sought-after speaker, and the founder of We Animals Media. She’s been documenting the plight of animals on all seven continents for almost two decades. She is the author of two books & her forthcoming third book - Hidden: Animals in the Anthropocene - will be published Fall 2020. Jo-Anne was the subject of the acclaimed documentary, The Ghosts in Our Machine. Her photography and writing has been published in National Geographic, The Washington Post, VICE, the LA Times, Canadian Geographic, Huffington Post, and Outdoor Photography. Jo-Anne speaks internationally at schools, universities, and conferences on the subjects of photography, the human-animal relationship, social change, and empathy.

In this episode, we explore the genre of animal photojournalism and influences of conflict, humanitarian and conservation photography. Jo-Anne talks about animal sentience, ethology and women being at the forefront of animal activism. Hear about the making-of her upcoming book Hidden and how the We Animals Archive of images and film is being used globally. We discuss the topics of PTSD, the current pandemic, storytelling, policy change, and how empathy and compassion led her to action.

This is We Are Photographers with Jo-Anne McArthur and this is her story.

Connect with Jo-Anne McArthur: weanimalsmedia.org | Instagram |  Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Jen Rozenbaum is a boudoir photographer who has dedicated herself to helping women discover their femininity and celebrate it shamelessly. She runs a boutique boudoir studio in New York and is a Nikon Ambassador and on Westcott’s Top Pro Team. She’s an educator, speaker, podcaster and author that helps other photographers build their business and their life.

In this episode, we talk about Jen’s mission for her clients as a boudoir photographer and what it means to be Shamelessly Feminine. Jen shares her journey healing from breast cancer and how cancer changed her life and relationship with fear. We travel to a hole in the ground in Peru where Jen experienced the fertility goddess Pachamama and her tips for setting healthy boundaries in life. We explore her challenges and self-discovery while writing and then rewriting a book about fear, body positivity, shame, loving yourself and relationships. We discuss meditation, trauma and the brain and how Jen has learned to have a lot more grace for herself.

This is We Are Photographers with Jen Rozenbaum and this is her story.

Connect with Jen Rozenbaum on jenrozenbaum.com and @jenrozenbaum on IG, FB, TW and YouTube.

Listen to all We Are Photographers episodes on CreativeLive and subscribe anywhere you get your podcasts!

Chris Orwig is a portrait photographer, best-selling author and an educator at heart. He is a Sony Artisan, has written six books and authored over 100 online courses. His work has been seen in publications like Rolling Stone, Esquire Magazine and the NY Times. His clients include Google, Patagonia, Adobe and The Nature Conservancy. Chris is on a mission to connect with creatives who are like-minded, amplify goodness and make more of it.

In this episode, we learn why Chris’ ultimate goal in portraiture isn’t actually the pictures. Chris opens up about what he did when he realized that he’d completely lost interest in portraiture. We go behind the scenes of writing his new book Authentic Portraits: Searching for Soul, Significance, and Depth. Chris explains the similarities of being in flow with both surfing and photography and explains how we all can learn to see our weaknesses as our strengths.

This is We Are Photographers with Chris Orwig and this is his story. 

Idara Ekpoh is a Nigerian-American Portrait Photographer whose art is centered around celebrating Black women and their stories. She focuses on creating captivating visual experiences through her dreamlike & cinematic portraits. She has been able to utilize photography as a medium to not only tell her own story through self-portraiture, but to empower and bring visibility to the voices and stories of those within her community. 

As photographers we often don’t like to be on the “other” side of the camera. Idara inspires us with her 30+ week Self Portrait Sunday series that took off during the pandemic. Find out how the vulnerability of making self portraits can not only get your creativity flowing but also heal and build self confidence. Idara shares her process in both capturing the true essence of her subjects, as well as honing her post-processing style. We talk about storytelling - whether that’s through a still of an individual’s face or through the moments you can edit together with cinematography. Idara is a brilliant example of how passion projects create space for paid opportunities.

This is We Are Photographers with Idara Ekpoh and this is her story.

Connect with Idara Ekpoh: IdaraEkpoh.com | Instagram | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Elena S. Blair is a Seattle-based photographer, mother of three, and owns a thriving lifestyle family and newborn photography business. She is also passionate about building community and encouraging other photographers to find depth and purpose in their work and business through both online and in-person education.  

In this episode, Elena and I talk about her photography and life journey over the past eleven years since she followed her intuition and against all logic bought a camera with insurance money after her house was broken into. We explore how she’s boldly turned traumatic life experiences into opportunity. Hear how being vulnerable allowed her to build a community and give people a space to express and share their own struggles. Find out where Elena repeatedly heard the phrase as a child, ‘Be careful what you wish for.’ You’ll learn why an abundance mindset isn’t just about money.

This is We Are Photographers with Elena S. Blair and this is her story. 

Ben Willmore has taught over 100,000 Adobe Photoshop users in person on six continents, not to mention the hundreds of thousands he's taught online. A senior engineer from NASA once said that this man gave the best technical seminar he ever attended. Ben has an uncanny ability to connect with users of every level and mindset; whether it’s first-timers taking their first sniff of Photoshop, or razor-sharp nerds and nerdettes who are on the fast track to technical illumination. The common echo that Ben leaves in his wake seems to be “Aha! I finally GET Photoshop!”

In this episode Ben takes us on the road along with his wife Karen, whether that is sailing around the world for 2-3 months at a time or driving their 40-foot vintage bus called Creative Cruiser around the U.S. We learn what first peaked Ben’s interest in both photography and design. Find out how Ben approaches learning something new and why he developed the teaching style that eventually led him to the Photoshop Hall of Fame.

This is We Are Photographers with Ben Willmore and this is his story.

Connect with Ben Willmore: digitalmastery.com | Instagram: @theworldismyyogamat | @vintagegas | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Pinterest 

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with the CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | Instagram @creativelive | Twitter @creativelive | YouTube @creativelive | Facebook @creativelive

Cielo de la Paz is a photographer and mobile filmmaker whose work was featured for several years in Apple’s Shot on iPhone Billboard and TV Commercial campaign. Her work has won the Gold Cannes Lions Award and honors at Mobile Photography Awards and iPhone Photography Awards. Cielo loves to teach others to make their own mobile videos and regularly teaches at Stanford, Google and CreativeLive. When not not traveling the world to teach and speak about smartphone videography, Cielo vlogs on her Youtube channel and provides resources for her TheStoryographist.com. 

If you’ve ever feared putting imperfect creative work out into the world, this episode will resonate with you. Cielo shares key insights from creating a video a day for the year of 2020. Learn how she develops content even when feeling uninspired. Cielo explores the art of storytelling including all the different ways to tell stories - from structure to visuals to voice. Find out Cielo’s go-to gear for mobile filmmaking and the exciting long-term projects she is in the process of creating. 

This is We Are Photographers with Cielo de la Paz and this is her story.

Connect with Cielo de la Paz: Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook |YouTube 

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Audrey Woulard is a portrait photographer and a Nikon Ambassador. She's been a full time professional photographer for the last 17 years photographing teens and their families. In addition to her portrait work, she also photographs select commercial assignments for brands such as Iams Pet Food, and Pottery Barn. Audrey has been a regular instructor for Imaging, and WPPI for over a decade. Her work has been featured on the cover twice for Professional Photography Magazine. She's been featured in magazines such as Rangefinder, InStyle, People, and US Weekly. Audrey is the creator of AW Teaches - a website dedicated to providing education to photographers. 

In this episode hear how Audrey's intuition helps her read clients' needs and adjust to meet those. We explore how to be memorable to inspire word of mouth referrals and the importance of her connections with the kids she photographs year after year. Find out where her strong convictions were born and why confidence can be a learned skill. Audrey shares her path to becoming a Nikon Ambassador despite doubting she could achieve this goal. Audrey's final words of advice about nurturing relationships will set you up for success in your business and life.

This is We Are Photographers with Audrey Woulard and this is her story.

Connect with Audrey Woulard: katcteens.com | awteaches.com | Instagram | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1600+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Fashion photographer Lindsay Adler has risen to the top of her industry as both a photographer and educator. Based in New York City, her fashion editorials have appeared in numerous fashion and photography publications including Marie Claire, Elle Magazine, Harper's Bazaar, L'Officiel, and dozens more. As a photographic educator, she is one of the most sought after speakers internationally, teaching on the industry's largest platforms and most prestigious events, having been named one of the top 10 best fashion photographers in the world. Lindsay has worked with some of the top brands in the photographic and related industries such as Canon, Adobe, Grey, Edelman, A&E, NBC, and Microsoft. A clean, bold, and graphic style has become the hallmark of her work, whether shooting advertising campaigns, designer look books, jewelry, hair campaigns, fashion editorials, or professional athletes. Lindsay is renowned for her creativity and collaborating with designers and stylists in order to create fresh looks. An author of five books, she is always working on new ways to share her passions and knowledge with others.

In this very special 100th episode of the podcast, Lindsay and I talk about evolution as photographers, educators, artists and humans. Lindsay shares how as a recovering perfectionist she creates with purpose versus producing for producing’s sake. Lindsay shares why she loves to teach and what she learns from her students. Find out what photographers inspire Lindsay, the importance of collaboration, slowing down to appreciate the little things and the importance of creative restraints.

This is We Are Photographers with Lindsay Adler and this is her story.

Connect with Lindsay Adler: Website | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1600+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

David duChemin is a driven artist, creative professional, entrepreneur and life-long adventurer. David educates and inspires through stunning visuals and hilarious travel stories, and insights, from a life spent outside and abroad. When on assignment his goal is to create powerful images that convey the hope and dignity of children, the vulnerable and oppressed for the international NGO community. Past clients include World Vision, Save the Children, and the BOMA Project. David’s books about the craft and art of photography, many of them best-sellers, have been translated into a dozen languages.

In this episode David explores the premise of his new book Start Ugly and how to overcome creative paralysis that arises from a desire for perfection. Find out the value of the sketch image in your photographic process. David explains how photography is a tool to be present and more engaged with the world. Learn how to make your photography subjects feel more seen and heard and why David believes gear is good, vision is better. David examines flow theory and gives you a taste of his podcast A Beautiful Anarchy. Hear why falling off a 30-feet wall was a life-changing gift.

This is We Are Photographers with David duChemin and this is his story.

Connect with David duChemin: davidduchemin.com |  startuglybook.com | Instagram | Facebook | A Beautiful Anarchy Podcast

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Deanne Fitzmaurice is a Pulitzer Prize winning photojournalist, a Nikon Ambassador, represented by National Geographic Creative, a teacher and the co-founder of Think Tank Photo. In this episode we talk about the power of visual storytelling to affect change, what she’s learned about her own process through teaching photography to writers, and how photojournalism can be your passport to the world. Deanne shares how she builds trust with her subjects and how she protects herself mentally when photographing challenging situations in order to humanize stories for the rest of us. This is We Are Photographers with Deanne Fitzmaurice and this is her story.

Cristina Mittermeier is a marine biologist, conservationist, Sony Artisan of Imagery and National Geographic photographer. She founded the International League of Conservation Photographers and more recently co-founded SeaLegacy.org with her partner Paul Nicklen. Her new book Amaze explores our relationship to the earth and ocean, and draws attention to the beauty and the plight of our planet through her extraordinary imagery.

Cristina Mittermeier takes us to remote corners of the globe, including below the thin blue line to swim with, and photograph the largest animal on the planet. She explains how social media has changed everything for conservation organizations. Even though Cristina has almost a million followers on Instagram, find out why and how she too deals with imposter syndrome. Cristina’s words and her images encourage us all to “create the planet that you want to live in.” This is We Are Photographers with Cristina Mittermeier, and this is her story.

Andy To is a photographer and filmmaker based in NYC. Along with his partner in life and business Joycelyn Linh, he travels nonstop creating content for brands including Adobe, Sony, Adorama, Apple, major airlines, and tourism boards globally. Andy says he’s dedicated his life to filmmaking and spreading positivity. He also loves to give back by teaching his craft to others. In this episode we talk with Andy about growing up in Oakland, the influence both his grandmother and high school teacher Mr. Jackson have had on his life, being selected as one of two travel videographers for Beautiful Destinations out of the 50,000 applicants. This is We Are Photographers with Andy To and this is his story.

Rashida Zagon is a photographer, creative director & storyteller based in New York City. Specializing in portrait photography she captures natural movement bringing to life the most authentic energy of each subject. Through human connection Rashida brings intimacy and light to still shots, exposing the simple joys of everyday life by capturing those behind the scenes moments. Her intention is to make great connections with people and brands, treating each of her clients with specialized attention to bring their vision to life. 

Born in Antigua with entrepreneurial parents and a creative flair, Rashida moved to Maine at 8 years old and used her first camera to start a business in high school taking senior portraits. She moved to NYC after high school, assisted other photographers and found her superpower in holding space and connecting with subjects. That comfort level allows people to truly be seen for who they are in her portrait shoots. We explore her recent series Protected that went viral and what that’s meant for her personally, her community and career. Find out about the inspiring photography empowerment program she is creating for kids in Brooklyn.

This is We Are Photographers with Rashida Zagon and this is her story.

Connect with Rashida Zagon: rashidaz.com | Instagram | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1900 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

World renowned child photographers, Kahran and Regis Bethencourt are a husband and wife duo and the imaginative forces behind CreativeSoul Photography. The pair gained global recognition with their AfroArt series. The collection, which showcases the beauty and versatility of afro hair, was conceived as a way to empower kids of color around the world. The images went viral after celebrities like Will Smith, Jada Pinkett, Taraji P. Henson, Alicia Keys, Common and more praised the collection on social media. Regis and Kahran's new coffee table book Glory: Magical Visions of Black Beauty became an instant New York Times Best Seller. Their holistic approach to capturing one-of-a-kind moments has allowed their work to be featured on BBC News, CNN, CBS National News, Teen Vogue, Glamour Brazil, BET and more.

In this episode follow Kahran and Regis on their paths bonding over a love of graphic design to running a photography business together. Find out how they stayed true to their own style and brand identity when entering the world of children’s fashion photography. The stories of the making of their visually stunning book Glory and the children they photograph will inspire. Get career advice for budding photographers and hear what being named Canon Explorers of Light means for them on their personal and career journeys.

This is We Are Photographers with Kahran and Regis Bethencourt and this is their story.

Connect with Guest: creativesoulphoto.com/ | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1600+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Amy Sacka is a documentary photographer based in Detroit, Michigan, who is passionate about celebrating the beauty of people and culture, particularly in Detroit and the Midwest. Her work has been featured in National Geographic, TOPIC, LensCulture, the Guardian and many more. She’s a National Geographic Explorer and a Top 50 Critical Mass photographer. Amy's photography has been exhibited internationally, including at Photoville in Brooklyn, Cortona on the Move in Italy, Brighton Biennial UK, and Arles France just to name a few.

If you’ve ever dreamed of being published by National Geographic, this episode is for you. Amy talks about how a quest to know her father eventually led to two grants. She describes why she drove 10,000 miles around Michigan to meet and photograph ice anglers. We talk about her move back to Detroit to discover what place, home and belonging mean to her, and the surprising reaction to her ‘Roommates After 40’ project. I’m enamored with her month-long 250-mile NYC slow walk, where she photographed along every block from 1st Street to 110th Street on Manhattan’s east side.

This is We Are Photographers with Amy Sacka and this is her story.

Ibarionex Perello is a photographer, writer, educator, and host of The Candid Frame podcast. He’s worked in the photography industry for over 25 years and is the author or coauthor of six books, including his new book Making Photographs: Developing a Personal Visual Workflow. In this episode, we discuss the difference between taking and making photographs, a young Ibarionex learning photography at the Boys Club of Hollywood, and the importance of representation in the photography community. Ibarionex talks about stuttering as a kid to building a successful podcast for 13 years with over 450 episodes. He describes the why behind the documentary project he started after his ailing 86-year-old mother-in-law moved in. Finally, he takes us into his new book, sharing a visual vocabulary of light & shadow, line & shape, a color & gesture that are the bones of a good photograph. This is We Are Photographers with Ibarionex Perello and this is his story.

Victoria Will began her career in the photography industry as a photojournalist and has since transitioned her focus to celebrity portraiture, editorial, and commercial assignments. Her characteristically authentic portraiture has appeared in the pages of Vogue, New York Times, Rolling Stone, ESPN and W Magazine with commercial campaigns for brands such as Levis, Netflix, Hulu, Bose and Ralph Lauren. Victoria’s first monograph, Borne Back, is a collection of tintype portraits.

In this episode, Victoria explores the evolution of her career starting as an intern at the NY Post. We learn about falling in love with the tintype process and why her body of work of intimate portraits of celebrities for her book is still emotional. Find out what challenges have become important life lessons, how perfectionism can get in the way and how Victoria's definition of success has changed over time. We talk about the power of therapeutic horseback riding and what she has learned about being human from her brother with down syndrome.

This is We Are Photographers with Victoria Will and this is her story.

Connect with Victoria Will: victoriawill.com | IG @victoriawill

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs, including Victoria Will.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | Instagram @creativelive | Twitter @creativelive | YouTube @creativelive | Facebook @creativelive

Michelle Valberg is a renowned explorer, adventurer and wildlife photographer. She is a Nikon Ambassador Canada, a fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and was the first ever Canadian Geographic Photographer-in-Residence. She’s an author, a speaker and guides photography expeditions to extreme destinations. In this episode Michelle talks about photographing everything from narwhals to ice bears to snowy owls to a field of 10,000 walrus. She describes her first time making eye to eye contact with a polar bear and how photographing wildlife involves using all of your senses to anticipate the decisive moment. This is We Are Photographers with Michelle Valberg and this is her story.

Roger Fishman is a world-renowned aerial and wildlife photographer, filmmaker, adventurer and activist. In pursuit of his mission to document the intersection of art, science and climate change, Roger has literally travelled to the ends of the earth. He’s braved whiteouts and negative 40 degree temperatures to camp with penguins in Antarctica, sailed through the infamous Drake Passage twice, crawled toward a mother cheetah and her cubs in Kenya and waded in rushing rivers with grizzly bears in Alaska. 

In this episode we talk about Roger’s current focus on the transformative power of water and ice and the impact of climate change on our natural landscapes. He takes us to the skies in helicopters circumnavigating Greenland and Iceland, filming and photographing the evolution of earth's icebergs and waterways. Learn how his beautiful work is also being used to aid climate research by scientists from MIT, Columbia, Brown and UCLA.​​ Get a new perspective through Roger’s soulful and poetic stories. 

This is We Are Photographers with Roger Fishman and this is his story.

Connect with Roger Fishman: rogerfishman.com | Instagram @rogerfishman

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Taylor Rees is a filmmaker, photojournalist, Sony Artisan and avid explorer. She’s driven by an insatiable curiosity to explore and tell the stories beneath the surface. She infuses her passion for adventure into her work around environmental and humanitarian issues, bringing new perspectives and deeper public understanding to the complexities of climate change, conservation, indigenous rights, environmental justice and extractive industries. She's shot and directed pieces for clients including National Geographic, The North Face and the United Nations. 

In this episode Taylor shares insights on the making-of a number of her recent films, including From Kurils With Love. Her short documentary film Ashes to Ashes became Oscar qualified after winning 18 film festival awards on its circuit. She is currently working on a feature documentary about the impacts of green technology and lithium mining in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. We discuss the importance of co-creating narratives with the people and communities who are the subjects or may be impacted by her films. Find out what the role of director actually entails and hear stories from expeditions all over the world. 

This is We Are Photographers with Taylor Rees and this is her story.

Connect with Taylor Rees: taylorfreesolorees.com | IG @taylorfreesolo

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you. 

Colby Brown is a photographer, photo educator, entrepreneur and author. Specializing in landscape, travel and wildlife photography, his body of work spans the four corners of the globe, 80+ countries and covers all 7 continents. He is also the founder of the humanitarian photo organization The Giving Lens, which blends the art form of photography with the focus and purpose of giving back to those in need around the world.

If you’ve ever dreamed of a career combining travel and photography, Colby shares the reality of both the joys and the challenges. He describes the euphoric feeling of intimate encounters with silverback gorillas and chimpanzees in Uganda. Learn how Colby’s overcome the often one-sided nature of photographing people while traveling. Hear what important life lessons he’s learned from Mongolian eagle hunters and his son at age 3. We discuss the dichotomy of empathy and apathy, as well as contentment and complacency.

This is We Are Photographers with Colby Brown and this is his story.

Connect with Colby Brown: colbybrownphotography.com | thegivinglens.com | Instagram: @colbybrownphotography | @thegivinglens | Facebook | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs, including Colby Brown himself.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | Instagram @creativelive | Twitter @creativelive | YouTube @creativelive | Facebook @creativelive

Joshua Coombes is the founder of the movement #DoSomethingForNothing. Josh is a British hair stylist who began offering haircuts to people he met on the streets experiencing homelessness. He found that listening to people’s stories and connecting through a haircut, along with showing people a photo of themselves before & after, made a far bigger impact than he ever could have imagined. He’s now amplifying his mission by collaborating with brands such as TOMS and touring an art exhibit Light Noise Art around the globe to encourage all of us to Do Something For Nothing in our own way. This is We Are Photographers with Joshua Coombes and this is his story.

Sandra Coan is an award-winning film photographer who specializes her client work in newborns, families and classic portraiture. Her mission as an educator is to teach others how to change their lives by building successful, profitable businesses they love. Whether it’s through improving posing and workflow, learning how to create natural looking light with strobes and flash, or through one-on-one mentoring and coaching, Sandra teaches photographers to live to their full potential in craft and business. 

In this episode we go behind the scenes on the making of her new book Crafting the Natural Light Look. Sandra shares how photographing her clients only with 3-4 rolls of medium format analog film per session keeps the joy of photography alive for her. We explore the challenges she’s overcome of being a teacher and author with dyslexia and she reveals how certain childhood experiences framed her outlook on life today. 

This is We Are Photographers with Sandra Coan and this is her story.

Connect with Sandra Coan: sandracoan.com | sandracoaneducation.com | IG @sandracoan | FB sandracoanphotography | PIN @sandracoan | YouTube | CreativeLive Classes

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, the subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

TY Bello is a Lagos, Nigeria based portrait photographer, singer/songwriter, and philanthropist who is helping educate and mentor a new wave of Nigerian photographers. In this episode, TY describes how young Nigerians are only now beginning to find their creative voice through photography, which had essentially been silenced under the country’s former dictatorship. She shares the challenges of making work that is both beautiful and powerful at the same time of subjects from orphaned babies to soldiers. TY compares the similarities of composing a photograph and composing music. Don’t miss her must-follow list of Nigerian photographers who are making waves not only in Nigeria but the world at large.

This is We Are Photographers with TY Bello, and this is her story.

Lynsey Addario is an American photojournalist who has been covering conflict and humanitarian crises around the Middle East and Africa on assignment for The New York Times, National Geographic Magazine, and Time Magazine for over two decades. She has covered conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Lebanon, Darfur, South Sudan, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2015, American Photo Magazine named Lynsey as one of five most influential photographers of the past 25 years, saying she changed the way we saw the world's conflicts. She is a Nikon Ambassador and the recipient of numerous awards, including a MacArthur fellowship, a Pulitzer prize, and two Emmy nominations. In 2015, Lynsey wrote a New York Times Bestselling memoir, "It's What I Do," which chronicles her personal and professional life as a photojournalist coming of age in the post-9/11 world. In October 2018, she released her first solo collection of photography, “Of Love and War.”

In this episode Lynsey describes the challenges of photographing her recent stories about the impact of Covid-19 on assignment for the New York Times and National Geographic. Lynsey shares what she learned about herself creating her latest book “Of Love and War” and why she’s been drawn to cover injustices with several long-term projects. Hear about the influence of her family’s work ethic, from being a child of two hairdressers to her 107-year old Italian grandmother.

This is We Are Photographers with Lynsey Addario and this is her story.

Connect with Lynsey Addario: lynseyaddario.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 2000 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Jared Platt is an international wedding, lifestyle and portrait photographer and photographic lecturer. Jared began his studies in photography in documentary and landscapes, but today you will find his images are a perfect blend of the three genres. You can catch him teaching photography, lighting and photo editing at the B&H Event Space, on CreativeLive, on Profoto’s YouTube light shaping series "What's the Difference”, at the Canon Live Learning Center and at international photo conferences around the globe. Jared has been teaching photography for 20 years and has been a working photographer for the last quarter century. 

In this episode, Jared explores how growing up in a sleepy one horse town shaped his creativity as a musician and a photographer. Instead of becoming the professional musical theater actor/rock star he thought he wanted to be, find out how Jared integrated performing into a career as both a photographer and an educator. We learn about the correlation between excelling at individual sports and as a solopreneur, and what Jared learned about himself from Pauly Shore.

This is We Are Photographers with Jared Platt and this is his story.

Connect with Jared Platt: jaredplatt.com | IG: @jaredplatt | Facebook | Twitter

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Multidisciplinary artist Temi Coker was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria and now resides in Dallas, Texas. He’s an Adobe Creative Resident Alumni and currently co-runs Coker Studios with his wife Afritina. His mix of vibrant colors and textures come from his upbringing in Nigeria as well as his love for the African Diaspora. His style focuses on evoking emotion through color, patterns and storytelling.

In this episode, hear why Temi’s goal is to create art he’s proud of that will also make people stop and think. Explore the evolution of his artistic style layering graphic design and photography in celebration of Black beauty. Temi shares why he compares his present self to his past self versus comparing to other people. Learn about his 3D and augmented reality work made during his recent Adobe Aero residency. We talk about legacy, the Profit First method and the importance of building Black wealth as an entrepreneur.

This is We Are Photographers with Temi Coker and this is his story.

Connect with Temi Coker: temicoker.co | coker.studio | Instagram | Twitter |  Behance

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

In this premiere episode of CreativeLive's new weekly photography podcast We Are Photographers, host Kenna Klosterman records a live conversation with author, food stylist and photographer, Aran Goyoaga during CreativeLive's Podcasting Week 2018 Conference. Aran is the author of "Small Plates & Sweet Treats: My Family's Journey to Gluten-Free Cooking" and the award-willing Cannelle et Vanille blog. Her work has been featured in many publications including The New York Times, Food & Wine and Conde Nast Traveler. Join the 280,000+ creatives following Aran's images and recipes on IG at @cannellevanille

Simon Jackson is a storyteller, photographer, filmmaker, speaker, author, and advocate for wildlife and nature. Both a movie and a children’s book have been made based on Simon’s story. At 13 he had a passion for bears and belief that he could change the world. For two decades Simon built the six million-strong Spirit Bear Youth Coalition to help save Canada’s rare Kermode or spirit bear and helped create the largest land protection measure in North American history. Together with his wife Jill Cooper, Simon continues to promote nature literacy among young people through the non-profit Ghost Bear Institute and their latest initiative Nature Labs.

I recorded this episode sitting at a picnic table with Simon in the stunning Mt. Robson Provincial Park in Canada. Simon and Jill lived there in a tent for months as they patiently and meticulously created multimedia content for Nature Labs - a virtual high school textbook for science, art, social studies and English curriculum using nature as a lens. We talk about how Simon became passionate about bears at age seven and why he believes you can’t teach without telling a story. Simon takes us behind the scenes of documenting Mt. Robson’s dominant grizzly bear named Chocolate, who is Nature Labs’ main character and in fact a metaphor for what we have and what we stand to lose.

This is We Are Photographers with Simon Jackson and this is his story.

Gary Hughes is a photographer, educator, podcaster and entrepreneur at heart. In 2008 he and his wife, Julie, founded Hughes Fioretti Photography, which is now THE place for headshots in Central Florida. Through both his photography and education, Gary’s mission is to empower photographers and entrepreneurs of all types to create the type of business that sets them free to live the life they want. His work has been featured in Professional Photographer magazine and he has been a speaker for IUSA, CreativeLive, and has written articles on photography for the Huffington Post.

In this episode, Gary explores how he tried his hardest not to follow in the footsteps of his photographer parents, from touring in a van as a musician to owning construction and IT companies before buying a $300 Canon Rebel. You’ll find out Gary’s definition of creativity and the curious history of creative hobbies of his male ancestors. Learn why photographing 5000 people a year doing volume headshot photography brings him joy and is a perfect fit for his personality. Gary shares why reaching out and talking to others about mental health is critical to normalizing depression and anxiety as a human experience. 

This is We Are Photographers with Gary Hughes and this is his story.

Connect with Gary Hughes: hughesfioretti.com | photobombpodcast.com | IG @garyhughesofficial + @hughesfioretti | TW @garyhughes | FB Hughes Fioretti Photography

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with the CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | Instagram @creativelive | Twitter @creativelive | YouTube @creativelive | Facebook @creativelive

Josué Rivas (Mexica and Otomi) is a creative director, multidisciplinary visual storyteller, and educator working at the intersection of art, journalism, and social justice. His work aims to challenge the mainstream narrative about Indigenous peoples, build awareness about issues affecting Native communities across Turtle Island, and be a visual messenger for those in the shadows of our society. He is a 2020 Catchlight Leadership Fellow, Magnum Foundation Photography and Social Justice Fellow, founder of the Standing Strong Project, co-founder of Natives Photograph and winner of the 2018 FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo. His work has appeared in National Geographic, The Guardian,The New York Times, Apple and Nike N7 amongst others. He is available for photo assignments, film projects and exhibitions. Josué is based in Portland, OR.

In this episode Josué explores why he believes the future is Indigenous. We discuss the colonial mindset existing the language of photography, how the process of image making has evolved and Indigenous narratives are being reclaimed. Josué explains the why and how of his Standing Strong project and the impact it's made on his collaborators and community. Hear who has influenced Josué’s work and which emerging photographers he has his eyes on.

This is We Are Photographers with Josué Rivas and this is his story.

Connect with Josué Rivas: josuerivasfoto.com | nativesphotograph.com | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you anytime on demand access to 1500+ classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you.

Mark Edward Harris is an editorial, commercial, travel and documentary photographer whose assignments have taken him to more than 100 countries on six continents. His editorial work has appeared in publications such as Vanity Fair, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time Magazine, Conde Nast Traveler, Architectural Digest, The Los Angeles Times Magazine, and The London Sunday Times Travel Magazine as well as all the major photography and in-flight magazines. Among his numerous accolades are CLIO, ACE, Aurora Gold, and IPA awards. His books include Faces of the Twentieth Century: Master Photographers and Their Work, The Way of the Japanese Bath, Wanderlust, North Korea, South Korea, Inside Iran and his latest The Travel Photo Essay: Describing A Journey Through Images.

In this episode Mark takes you behind the scenes of his new Outdoor Photographer magazine cover image of orangutans in Borneo. Hear stories about Kangaroo Island after devastating fires in Australia. Explore the history of his Japan book, what he learned about humanity from 10 trips to North Korea, honing in on a particular story to tell about a place, developing long-term projects, and why Mark believes “If you always succeed, you’re not trying hard enough.”

This is We Are Photographers with Mark Edeward Harris and this is his story.

Connect with guest online: markedwardharris.com | IG @MarkEdwardHarrisPhoto

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

We originally recorded this episode live on CreativeLive TV - our new live stream to inspire, entertain & connect us all during these quarantine times, coming from the living rooms, kitchens and home studios from the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs. Check out what’s playing now on creativelive.com/tv.

Todd Owyoung is a music photographer specializing in music lifestyle, musician/celebrity portraits, and concert photography and is a Nikon Ambassador. His clients range from bands and festivals to magazines, lifestyle brands and ad agencies. His blog ishootshows.com features over a thousand posts, ranging from articles on technique for concert photography to gear recommendations to advice on breaking into music photography.

We recorded this episode while Todd was in Seattle filming his Getting Started in Music Photography workshop in partnership with Red Bull Photography & CreativeLive. Todd takes us along his journey building a portfolio in St. Louis, moving to NYC to follow the dream, and becoming a Nikon Ambassador. He describes that electrifying feeling of being in the photo pit chasing the iconic image. We talk through the pain points of making money as a music photographer and tips on where to start. He tells us about the one show that changed everything for him. Todd encourages everyone, no matter what genre, to make the images that only you can uniquely make.

This is We Are Photographers with Todd Owyoung and this is his story.

Follow Todd Owyoung on IG: @toddowyoung, FB: Todd.Owyoung, TW: @toddowyoung

Find all the We Are Photographers episodes on CreativeLive and subscribe anywhere you listen to podcasts!

Steve Brazill, also known as Razz on the air at KCAL FM, is a Southern California based Live Music Photographer. He’s a radio personality, an emcee and a voice actor. He’s the host of various shows for local TV, including “In Studio” where he interviews people from the local music scene. He’s the host of the Behind the Shot - a video and audio podcast where he gets inside the mind of photographers by taking a closer look at one of their shots. I’ve been fortunate to be a guest on Behind the Shot, and now I’m excited to bring you Steve’s story.

In this episode we talk about the exhilarating experiences of both being in the pit photographing concerts with tens of thousands of people at your back, as well as the joy of being behind the mic alone in a studio while feeling the energy of all the listeners over the radio waves. Steve shares what he’s learned about himself and life from his years practicing martial arts, and we discuss the through line of what it takes to live a creative life based on hundreds of interviews with both musicians and photographers.

This is We Are Photographers with Steve Brazill and this is his story.

Connect with Steve Brazill online: stevebrazill.com | behindtheshot.tv | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

At CreativeLive we believe there is a creator in all of us. If you’re looking to get fresh perspectives, inspiration or skills to boost your hobbies, business or life head over to creativelive.com and check out both 24/7 free classes and The Creator Pass, our subscription that gives you on anytime demand access to over 1500 classes taught by the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

Connect with your CreativeLive community: creativelive.com | IG @creativelive | TW @creativelive | YT @creativelive | FB @creativelive

Connect with your host Kenna Klosterman: IG @kennaklosterman | FB @kennaklo | TW @kennakphoto

Subscribe, rate & review We Are Photographers wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! We’d love to hear from you!

Erin Sullivan is a travel photographer, writer and speaker who focuses on stories of culture, wildlife, and conservation. You may know her as @erinoutdoors from her social media channels. She is the host of the new REI mini-series In Our Nature and a member of the Sony alpha Imaging Collective. In this episode Erin shares what she’s learned about topics from plastics to forest preschools while filming In Our Nature. She gives us a sneak peek into her recent TED talk and why she kept silent about it until it was done. Erin shares her personal experiences with burn out, depression and anxiety. We talk about letting go of perfectionism, knowing when to put her camera down, and what big changes she made for both her work and her life to be more intentional and fulfilling.

This is We Are Photographers with Erin Sullivan and this is her story.

Chase Jarvis is an award-winning artist, entrepreneur, and named one of the most influential photographers of the past decade. His commercial campaigns included clients such as Apple, Nike, and Red Bull just to name a few. He created Best Camera – the first photo app to share images to social networks. On his podcast Chase Jarvis Live, Chase digs into what makes some of the world’s top creative entrepreneurs, artists, and authors tick. He’s the Founder & CEO of CreativeLive, where more than 10 million of you around the globe learn photography, video, design, music and business from the world’s top creators and entrepreneurs.

In this episode we explore Chase’s personal evolution as a creative and entrepreneur culminating in writing his new book Creative Calling. We follow the through line of what he’s learned about the value of creativity from the thousands of leaders and experts he’s spoken with all over the world. Hear what his 2nd grade teacher Ms. Kelly said that jolted his creative identity, and the tragic loss that brought him back to it. We discuss what happens when you begin making decisions with your intuition or gut instead of your rational brain and what Chase means by action over intelligence. Learn about his IDEA framework for the creative process, why the A ‘Amplify’ step is the least understood, and why participating in community, no matter big or small, is the key to success. Chase explains life’s two arcs of acquisition and contribution and we find out why CreativeLive indeed exists.

This is We Are Photographers with Chase Jarvis and this is his story.

Follow all things Chase Jarvis:
chasejarvis.com | creativecalling.com | Chase Jarvis Live Podcast
@chasejarvis on IG TW FB YT

Listen to all We Are Photographers podcast episodes on CreativeLive or anywhere you subscribe to your favorite podcasts!