We were lucky to catch up with Kara Zylstra recently and have shared our conversation below.
Kara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?
My hope is not for me to have a legacy. I hope I am leaving the clients that I photograph with proof of their legacy, their family. What I do isn’t about me, it’s about capturing someones memories they don’t want to forget, wether that is a big day in their life like their wedding day, the birth of their child, their brand new baby. Or something that seems less big, like a 6 month old baby or family photos. Everyday and every moment is a big deal, it is a moment you won’t get back and being able to look back on those moments you won’t get back is priceless. That is the legacy I want to leave, their legacy.
Kara, 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?
Hey there! My name is Kara, I own Kara Zylstra Photography. I specialize in family, newborn, baby, fresh 48, and birth story sessions. I also do a few wedding and senior sessions a year. I LOVE capturing your love stories, my favorite is being able to capture all of your moments, from your wedding day, to your baby to your growing family.
I got started when my daughter was born and I photographed her, which turned into photographing friends and 12 years later here I am. Ahead of all the business stuff I am a wife and Mom. My husband is a beef & crop farmer and we have 5 awesome kiddos. One thing unique to my business is that I do most of my outdoor sessions at our farm. When you book an outdoor sunset sessions chances are it will be at the farm, we will take a side by side ride out to the hay field and play in the sunlight, this is where the magic happens. Before they leave we visit the cows, during the session you will probably meet my husband who is working somewhere in the farm or see my kids playing.
My studio is just 10 minutes away in town and that is where the studio sessions happen. I have a wardrobe for maternity sessions as well as a large prop closet filled with all the things in all the colors needed for newborn and milestone sessions.
I am most proud of my newborn and family sessions. I try to provide a relaxing, easy newborn experience where my clients can come to my studio and relax while I take care of everything & they get priceless images. The same for family sessions, We get to hang out in a sun drenched field with no distractions, let the kids play and have fun and eventually because of the low stress nature of my sessions I get the real smiles and the love for each other shows through.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
The biggest thing as far as social media goes is consistency. You have to post often. To someone just starting, post, share and ask others to share. Just keep going, someday you will see it all pay off.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding thing is when my clients like and share my work. It seriously makes my day when they make one of my images their profile photo. Or when they share an image of printed images hanging in their home. There’s nothing better.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.karazylstraphotography.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/karazylstraphotography
- Facebook: facebook.com/karazylstraphotography
Image Credits
Kara Zylstra Photography – Kara Zylstra