We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Krystina Elder. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Krystina below.

Krystina, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

In July of 2023 I along with so many other Americans watched the movie “The Sound of Freedom.” That movie made me want to actively do something myself. With so much time, sweat, tears, I and several other independent business owners and people who want to make this world better, created a calendar that we sold to raise money to help support survivors of human trafficking. Since then I have joined a non profit that supports survivors and have volunteered time and work to several small independent businesses.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Krystina Elder and my business name is a play on that: KrysE Photography (Chris-ee Photography). Most kids and even some adults call me “Chris-ee” so coming up with a business name was really easy. Coming up with my vision for the business has not been as simple. Photography is a saturated art business, meaning there many of us. Because photography is an art I really think you can never have “too many”; that being said, looking at it from a business perspective, you have to make yourself stand out somehow. Having a niche and a style helps with that. My niche and style has developed over the past almost 4 years into a documentary, real lifestyle type. I love offering my clients glimpses into a memory. We have so much fun at our sessions and the images taken reflect that. And because real life is so important to me I donate so much of my time and skillset to the real world in an attempt to help make it actually better. 10% of all the profit made at KrysE Photography goes to the Save the Redwoods Project; I also consistently donate my time and skillset to a local non profit that supports survivors (men women and children) of human trafficking, and other local small independent businesses.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

I have received more clients through giving my clients positive experiences that they then share with their friends and family. It’s called word-of-mouth. Word-of-mouth is an oral communication describing an experience and it is the best free advertising, as long as you are giving your clients a good experience. When I had a career of jobs I was taught that people are 10 times more likely to talk about a bad experience than a good one, but a recent study showed that either way, good or bad, people are talking about their experiences 70-73% of the time. No doubt technology and social media has changed the scope on word of mouth. It’s so easy these days to say what you think with almost no consequences. If 70-73% of my clients are sharing their experiences with family, friends, social media and I’m using that information to earn free marketing, you better believe that I’m working 110% at every single session to give my clients one of the best memories. Does it work every time? No. Sometimes it’s not the right fit and that’s okay. But it will never be for lack of trying.

I would say that effort has payed off. I haven’t done any numbers, but I would venture to say at least 75% of my new clients are my new clients because a current or past client has recommended me.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

There is nothing better than getting a job done 100% correct in your client’s eyes. Typically when you are hired as an artist, you are hired for something special or important. In my case, I am often hired to capture what is one of the most important days in a person’s life: the day they get married. That is a very special position to be in and I take it seriously. There is nothing more rewarding than when you do take it seriously, and you give it your all and you deliver a gallery that is truly you, truly beautiful, and everything the client was hoping for.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.krysephotography.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krysephotography/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/krysephotography/