January 23, 2024

I recently had the pleasure of connecting with Kristina Geddert, a talented family photographer based in Linda, California. Kristina is the creative force behind Kristina Geddert Photography, known for her captivating family portraits that beautifully capture cherished moments and emotions.

During our conversation, Kristina shared her passion for creating timeless and meaningful family photographs that clients can treasure for years to come. She emphasized the importance of building a relaxed and comfortable environment during photo sessions, allowing families to genuinely express their connections and personalities.

Kristina's dedication to her craft and her commitment to delivering exceptional photography experiences for her clients left a lasting impression. Her unique approach to family photography truly resonates with the values we uphold at Shooting Star Photography LLC.

Interview with Kristina:

Can you share some highlights from your portfolio that showcase your diverse range and style over the past decade?

My favorite images will always be high contrast with deep colors, and showcasing family connection and love between family members. 

How have you evolved your photography techniques and adapted to changing industry trends?

The photography market is more saturated than ever with so many photographers around. I have adapted by specializing and niching down and developing a fantastic photoshoot experience. I specialize in babies and toddlers, especially focusing on the 1-3 year old crowd. By showcasing many strategies and tricks to get fantastic photos of these young children, I continue to attract young families to book sessions with me, even when they are bombarded by dozens of photographers wanting to take their photos.

On the editing side, I have absolutely embraced Photoshop’s Generative Fill and Expand to more quickly and effectively edit photos than ever before.

What challenges have you encountered in the field, and how did you overcome them?

My main challenges center around SEO and ranking on Google, especially because the city that I serve (Sacramento California) is a particularly saturated market with so many skilled photographers. I continue to work on my website, but in the meantime have found a lot of success connecting with potential clients directly, either in person or on social media. While Google isn’t helping me find clients yet, I find them myself.

Can you discuss your process for capturing the essence of your subjects and creating compelling portraits?

Since I primarily work with young families and babies/toddlers, I have two important steps. One, is helping families be themselves and cuddle and play with one another. The other is being very engaging and fun behind the camera to get babies and toddlers to engage with me, and therefore my camera. The most important part of my process is a fanny pack (which my husband hates) in which I carry a variety of noise makers and toys to engage with during my photo sessions, with which I create authentic attention and giggles from the young crowd. For family connection, I do have prompts that I give that elicit wonderful touching moments (Nose to Nose is one of my favorites) but also find that being patient and stepping back is often the most important ingredient in helping families feel comfortable and be themselves. 

How do you approach and build a connection with your clients to understand their vision for the shoot?

Communication is definitely key! I establish a rapport with my clients long before our session by being very open in communicating leading up to the session. Checking in and asking for questions, and then being receptive and quick in responding is an important step in the process.

For children, I utilize a ShutterBuddy, which is a little monkey named Kiki that hangs out around my lens. I begin a session by first introducing the monkey to the children and letting them touch and high five her. This always breaks the ice and helps them feel more comfortable with the camera and with me. 

In what ways do you stay inspired and continue to push your creative boundaries after so many years in the industry?

I have done a lot of genre hopping over the years. I started in the portrait and wedding world and then actually switched to Sports Photography for 5 years, before ultimately coming back to doing just portraits. Even though I have been photographing for 15 years, I only started doing newborn and cake smash sessions within the last year. Learning something new definitely invigorates me and keeps the creative juices flowing. Right when I feel completely comfortable with a genre, I tend to mix things up and add something new.

Have you worked on any particularly challenging or unique projects that stand out in your career?

The most important and dearest project I do is called Mighty Hope Photography, which is a charity photography program I run which provides free family portrait sessions to families that have a medically complex baby or toddler. I specialize in doing newborn sessions for high-risk babies who are on oxygen but also work with all kinds of babies and toddlers with a wide variety of medical challenges from cancer to heart conditions to genetic conditions. I save the first Saturday of every month exclusively for these sessions and it is the most fulfilling important thing to me in my profession.

I started Mighty Hope because my own son was born at 28 weeks with very weak lungs. He had a 3 months NICU stay and then came home on oxygen for another 3 months. Working with his oxygen equipment gave me a lot of experience with medical equipment that I am able to use to help other families get great photos of their babies while feeling safe in the process.

You can read more about my program here: https://www.kristinageddertphotography.com/mighty-hope-photography

How do you handle difficult or uncooperative subjects during a shoot?

By going with the flow and finding activities that they want to do. It is very important to me that photo sessions are client-led, particularly for babies and toddlers, but also sometimes the dads :-) Nobody will look good in a photo if they are doing an activity they do not prefer, so the trick is to be patient, be flexible and find an activity that that subject wants to do. This can sometimes lead to unconventional photos but these are also often my favorites because they are truly representing that child or that family. I also often find that keeping photo sessions active works great for this as well. I incorporate a lot of running and jumping in my photo sessions which keeps children (and dads) engaged and having fun.

Can you share insights into your post-processing workflow and how it contributes to the final look of your portraits?

I am a bold and bright editor who loves high contrast images, and I use Lightroom for color editing and Photoshop for retouching. I utilize Lightroom Masking fairly heavily with both an exclusively Background mask and an exclusively Subject mask. Lowering the exposure and increasing blacks in my backgrounds, while upping the exposure and raising the shadows of my subject helps give me the high contrast images that I am looking for.

What advice would you give to aspiring portrait photographers based on your experiences in the industry?

My advice would be to get out in front of as many people as possible by talking to people both in person and online, and being personable and kind. Even now, I generate most of my new clients by being helpful in local Facebook groups. Not too salesy, simply being helpful. When I first started my photography career I started out way too passive, kind of waiting for clients to come to me…and they didn’t. Once I started becoming more active and vocal in what I was doing and what I was offering, the pieces really fell together and I quickly started having success. I would also give the advice of trying to niche down and specializing in a particular area quickly, as people are more likely to book you if they view you as an expert in their subgroup. I book far more clients advertising that I specifically focus on the 0-5 year old crowd, that I did when I tried to reach all families no matter their age.

Conclusion:

Kristina's commitment to her craft as a photographer is truly inspiring. Her passion for capturing moments and creating visual stories shines through in her work. With a keen eye for detail and an unwavering dedication to her art, Kristina consistently produces stunning photographs that resonate with viewers. Her ability to connect with her subjects and evoke genuine emotions is a testament to her talent and dedication. Through her unwavering dedication to her craft, Kristina continues to create captivating and enduring images that leave a lasting impact.

Go check out her work!

Happy Shooting, my friends!

Dee

Shooting Star Photography