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

Birdee, appreciate you joining us today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I am happier than ever, having my own business doing photography, and being in control of my schedule. I am new to being a business owner (since 2020), so I’m still in that period of time where I pinch myself every day that I get to do this. Prior to doing photography full time, I did ultrasound for my day job for 15 years, Monday through Friday, clock in and clock out every day. I am so grateful I had that experience and know that skill. It’s something that I continue to keep up and always have as a backup if I ever need.. so I do kind of wonder about going back part-time sometimes. It’s a very rewarding job, being able to be a key player in diagnosing and helping others in the medical field. Currently, I’m busy enough and enjoying this new way of living so much, that I’m not sure when or if I’ll ever go back.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was always very creative when I was young. You could find me drawing, creating sculptures, making jewelry, and playing music a lot of my childhood. When asked about what I wanted to “be” when I grew up, I never had a clear answer. I might have said, to be a mother, or a musician. I didn’t end up going for either of those things, haha, at least not yet. When I was 18 I decided to go to college and get a degree in Diagnostic Medical Sonography…It is visual, reliable, and involves caring for others, all of which I felt excited about pursuing. After doing that for 15 years, I’ve gradually moved from caring for women in the medical field, to the creative field. In 2014 I started taking self portraits out of a need to connect deeper to myself. I had a pool at my house and took my self portraits underwater, and I fell in love with it. It became a ritual for me, a sort of practice to dive in and let my body speak. I was excited to share them on an anonymous Instagram I had created, “Bird.ee”. That was a place where I was meeting people who also spoke the same language in imagery, they understood depression, disconnect, loneliness, as well as hope, and healing with art. Soon I had others reaching out for similar portrait sessions. In 2020 I offered my first underwater portrait session and I haven’t looked back since, enough to make the official move to LA from Florida!
The immersive portrait sessions that I offer are often underwater, but I also love doing sessions in any element that resonates for that client. Sometimes we take to the desert, forest, or beach, and create space that day to be fully immersed and present in that element. It’s rare that we stop to take time to disrobe from life, from work, roles, and responsibilities. The shoot is a space for that, to be without a need to be anything other than your true self. Nature has a beautiful way to dance with that practice, from illuminating a childlike sense of playfulness to fanning a flame of grounded power and confidence.
I really love a friend’s observation of my work recently that I’ll share;
“It’s like a quiet, deeply feminist act of service, a gentle form of activism, if you will, that serves to liberate women by pulling them out of the shadow of their ingrained patriarchal ideology and into their wild true self.”

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Even though I feel passionate about making art and beautiful imagery that speaks, at the heart of what I do, and what drives me, is allowing someone to feel seen, liberated, beautiful, and more connected to their true self. There’s nothing quite like it, and I feel honored to be able to do this!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding part of this is being able to feel like I’m doing what I’m meant to do, and from that space things flow so much more easily. I have the energy to give to others more than when I was in my prior career.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bird.ee
• Instagram: bird.ee