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

Kelly , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I have been obsessed with cameras since I was a kid. I used to take my parent’s cameras and make my own mini vlogs when I was as young as six years old. My parents eventually got me my own small camera when I got into middle school and I would take photos of anything in front of me and try to create a story with the images. Around the time that Youtube began to grow in popularity, I saw a video of someone making a stop motion music video out of photos and immediately decided I had to make one myself. I spent days making these videos and learning how to edit them on my own. This passion led me to what I would end up studying in college, not only for my undergrad degree but for my master’s as well. I moved to LA when I was 17 years old and began studying film. During this time, I found portrait photography, and I started taking photos of my friends whenever I could. Since that day, I have created my own photography business Photosbykellg, and I have been exploring all forms of photography. So overall I would say learning about your craft never ends, every day there’s something new to learn.

I would say the largest obstacle I had to tackle was doubt, not only from myself but others. Most of my friends or people who lived where I grew up were very book smart, wanting to become lawyers or doctors, and although I find those to be incredible careers, I knew I could not follow that path. Not everyone believes that art can create a successful career, so being able to prove those people wrong was a large obstacle in my mind.

I would say the most essential skill I learned throughout my education and my business is being able to understand and work with others. Photography is not only about the photographer themselves but the person having to pose in front of the camera as well. My goal is for people to always feel comfortable and leave our photoshoots with a sense of self-love. Learning how to talk to people and helping them pose in a way that would make them feel best is one of the most essential parts of my career.

Kelly , 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?

I got into my career after taking a photography class in my undergraduate degree and taking photos for an assignment. I remember the excitement I felt after capturing the image I had been hoping to get in just a few minutes of searching. After this assignment, I began taking photos of my friends, and this led to other people reaching out and wanting to shoot with me. Luckily for me, a lot of the people I got to shoot with were creatives like myself, so there was no lack of experimentation. This was one of the most crucial parts of my career because I got to find my own style within these photo shoots. I would test out all different aspects, from fashion photography to portrait photography to wedding photography etc.

Today my services are mainly portraits, engagements, weddings, and graduation photos. As well as photography, I also create my own presets that people can use on their own photos, I got into this after realizing how much I love the editing process and how much easier it would be for people to be able to just use one preset and be able to upload their images after just a few adjustments.

I am most proud of the fact that my clients always leave feeling a sense of self-love and joy after our shoot. I always say my greatest hope is that my clients see the beauty in themselves that everyone else can see.

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

I love being able to tell a story with a lens. There is so much that can be said within one photo, and a lot of the time, the meaning is up for interpretation. I enjoy this aspect with landscapes and candids because although there is no posed storytelling, the natural elements can do that for themselves, whether that be a worn-down tree in the middle of a field or a group of people laughing together. There are never-ending stories with photos.

: Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My end goal is to be able to do what I love for the rest of my life! Not much to it but that, and I feels so lucky that this far into life I have been able to do so, and I would love for that to continue.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.photosbykellg.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photosbykellg/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyguedess/
• Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@photosbykellg

Image Credits
Kelly Guedes