Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sid Patten. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Sid thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

Ever since I was little my parents told me I could do whatever I wanted when I grew up. They were so supportive when in 5th grade I announced I was going to be president of the United States. As I got older they watched me find my peace while holding a camera. My dad would drive me to take pictures for my friends and let me use his car to lazily store my equipment when I didn’t feel like carrying it inside. When I announced my acceptance into art school they were just as happy as I was.
Offhandily, one time, I complained about my dad’s photos being framed on the wall, but none of mine were. By next week, one of my favorite pictures was hung up proudly in my family’s living room. It’s still there today.
There was a week before I started my first photography class when I explained my worry about not being good enough and they sat with me for hours explaining why I was overthinking and why I was going to do great.
My parent’s support kept me going through this dream I had of photography. I don’t think I’d be where I am today without them.

Sid, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Sid Patten, I am currently a photography student at SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design). I have had a love for photography for a little over five years now and really found my swing with it during my senior year of high school. I do a little bit of all different types of photography but I love catching candids of people. My favorite thing is capturing happiness, and making someone see how other people see them, beautiful. I’m very passionate about my work and I think it really shines through with my photos. I mostly take portraits and enjoy cosplay photos. I think being younger I have a different eye on photography than some other photographers. I don’t want to just take boring pictures that leave people feeling nothing. I love giving my photos feelings, no matter what that feeling may be.

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

For me, I think the most rewarding thing is seeing the pure happiness people see when I give my pictures back to them. I’ll never forget the first time I took professional pictures of my friend and once I had given them back they told me. “Going out and getting these pictures done, I could focus on just having fun and not the things that have changed about my appearance, and when I took at them [the photos], I don’t see my sickness, I just see me.” I truly think that is when it hit me that this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I wanted people to see themselves through the lens of beauty. There is no better reward than watching someone love themself because of your work.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I’ve realized a lot of people not in the know of photography think it’s some easy thing, that it’s just pressing the shoot button on a camera. They don’t understand how much effort goes into getting good photos with meaning. Taking photos on a phone camera will never be the same as taking and editing camera pictures. Not just with quality but with feeling, a camera can always collect more data than a phone, in turn, it can capture more of the raw human feelings. I think even if you don’t fully understand you should always be respectful to photographers, their craft is just as much art as painters.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: sid.chrr
• Other: email: [email protected]