We recently connected with Christy Kosnic and have shared our conversation below.

Christy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I am often asked if I majored photography. Though I did take Photography 101 my last semester in college, the majority of what I do on a daily basis I learned through online tutorials. I have also invested in in-person educational conferences where you are able to make great connections and learn from the best in my field.

I don’t know if I could have sped up my learning process per se when as a wife and mom, I was running a household and had two little ones when I started my business. Looking back, however, I think I could have been more disciplined and dedicated at least a small amount of time on a daily basis to learning new techniques. With so many free online videos it’s really easy to do.

The two skills that are most essential for me as a photographer is understanding how light will play a role in the scene and finding the best composition of what you are photographing. Sometimes, natural light is enough to light a scene but more often than not you need to bring in some sort of flash to really direct the lights and darks in a photograph. Composing according to the directionality of the light is what can really take your photography to the next level.

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 Christy Kosnic and I am an architectural photographer. I serve designers, architects and contractors by photographing their design projects so that they can market themselves. My role is to really showcase my clients work in its best light so that they can continue to get new jobs. These design projects cost a tremendous amount of money and take months if not years to complete. It’s imperative for my clients to have a visual record of their work for their portfolio.

I start each job with a conversation with my client so that I can understand what their specific needs are on a project and how I can best serve them. On set, I usually start with a shot showing the entire project and then I drill down, breaking the scene into smaller vignettes. I imagine how my client will be using the shots to sell their services to their future clients. I want to make sure that I am capturing any design features that are special to the specific project but I also want to explore potential viewpoints that they may not have considered.

Something that I offer that sets me apart are behind-the-scenes shots that I capture with my cell phone that both myself and my client can use on social media. I send these over within a day or two of the shoot. This allows for a nice variety of fun on-the-go shots as well as fully produced imagery to be utilized from our session. My clients are normally small businesses and as anyone who runs a small business knows, you have a lot to do. The more that I can do to assist with marketing for my clients, the better.

I take pride in not only offering a great product by producing beautiful imagery but I also work hard to deliver superior service. I make sure that I quickly respond to emails and phone calls and my delivery time for finished edits is usually within two weeks.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I am currently ‘pivoting’. I had a very successful business in the Washington DC area but my husband and I decided to move to Southeast Florida. This is very exciting but also daunting as I have to find new clientele. I have several work trips to the Washington DC area planned for 2023 which is great but obviously I want to find clients that are local to me in the Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples area. As I reach out to local designers and architects, I am also expanding what I offer such as real estate photography and personal branding. I really love serving other small business professionals by giving them great photography that they can use to market themselves!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been social media. When design professionals see my name in the credit line in a social media post, they reach out to me — which I love. It’s great getting to know more awesome creatives!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.christykosnic.com/
• Instagram: @christykosnicphotography
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristyKosnicPhotography