We recently connected with Kate Pannozzo and have shared our conversation below.

Kate, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I first started dabbling with photography in high school with a 35 mm Canon. I was trained in processing film and printing photos in a tiny darkroom along with maybe seven other classmates. I took some darkroom photography classes in college as well and then didn’t really pick up my camera consistently for another five or six years and when I did I transitioned to a DSLR. To learn digital I applied a lot of what I knew regarding using a SLR camera but when it came to Lightroom and Photoshop I was at a loss. I ended up going back to college and majoring in Photography. Through a lot of trial and error I slowly began to better understand my digital camera and new darkroom tools. I had a professor who equated Lightroom as my new darkroom and once I began to think of it that way it felt less daunting to learn. I think to have sped up my process I could have tried to learn sooner and not be as intimidated as I was when learning a new layer to the photography world. I think the fear of failing at something I was passionate about is as what really stood in the way of my learning more sooner. In regards to skills, no matter if you’re shouting with a SLR or DSLR camera KNOW YOUR SETTINGS. Understanding the dynamics between ISO, aperture, and shutter speed translate to any camera and understanding those three things is so important when learning photography! Another thing that I consider an essential skill, take risks. Try taking the shot from a weird angle, try putting paper or fabric over your lens, get creative, get weird!

Kate, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi, my name is Kate. I was born in Middlebury, Vermont and relocated with my family to Northern Virginia in my early teen years. From. an early age showed interests in the arts, but found out quickly I was not patient enough to become a painter or sculptor. I decided in high school to take Photography as an elective and instantly fell in love. I started off as taking photos of my then boyfriend’s band and quickly progressed to portraiture. I put photography off for many years and then later decided to pursue my education again and graduated in December 2020 with a Bachelor of Individualized study in Cultural Photography.

I currently reside in Northern Virginia and am mainly a wedding photographer! However, I am incredibly passionate about creating interesting story narratives though portraiture and branding and focus on mainly doing that type of work as well. I try to have my love of film translate into my work even though most of it is now done digitally. In addition to having a film like feel my work also often explores juxtapositions whether it be between nature and it’s subject or unexpected elements that you wouldn’t normally see in a setting such as a forest.

I really value making individuals feel comfortable in front of the camera as I understand how intimidating it can be. With this in mind I try to always understand as well as get to know who I will we be working with. I do by essentially “dating” them before and during our session (and a follow up or two post session together!). Feeling comfortable and your best self while posing for me while we create artfully curated moments in my ultimate goal. When we accomplish that together it truly is magical for me.

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

I would say the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is just how many different types of people I get to collaboratively create with. From clothing designers, to make up artists, to families, and other small businesses. More often than not when a client reaches out to me one of the first sentences I hear out of their mouths is “I’m not a creative person so I’ll need a lot of help from you”. This always makes me giggle because everyone IS creative just in different ways or in ways they haven’t tapped into yet. But hearing the joy from someone once we come up with a concept or idea that feels uniquely them and hearing the excitement in their voice when they realize that they contributed to that creative vision, that’s what I love and find so rewarding about being a creative.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

I truthfully have done very little investigative work into them. But. I don’t get it. I rather they not take over the creative world.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.forthedaisies.com
• Instagram: heyitskatep