Today we’d like to introduce you to Krysten Sarkissian.
Krysten, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My love for photography started when I was just a little girl. I constantly had a camera with me wherever I went. I grew up with so many camera options like the Polaroid 600 (the one where the camera spit the photo out and you shook it till it developed), the Polaroid iZone (the other camera that spit out photos but they were on a long, skinny rectangular strip, often of multiple colors), and many, many disposable cameras. I had album upon album of developed photos in my room, just stacked on top of each other. The left corner of my room was like the Facebook album section of the 90’s. Then as I entered high-school, I learned how to develop my own film and develop my own photos in the darkroom. My teacher at the time helped me enter contests around the area and I won a few awards for my photography! That’s when I knew that I wanted to make this a career, to make my love of photography become something huge in my life.
College was interesting. Freshmen year, we dabbled with many different mediums such as painting, drawing, sculpture and ceramic work but not photography. Photography came into play sophomore year and even though I was anxious to get to sophomore year, I did my best to get through freshman year so I could continue my passion! Sophomore through senior year, I worked with amazing professors of many different photography backgrounds and had the most state of the art equipment to perfect my skills and continue to grow my love for photography.
When it came time to graduate, that was the moment when I decided that it was time to make my business official! I opened Still Memory Photography in 2010 by word of mouth but it was really 2012 when business started to pick up. Living in Oswego, NY at the time, family and friends were my go-to clients. What really helped get me out there was their word of mouth and recommendations! I continued to photograph family and friends over the years and then I started to photograph their family, their friends and so on. Eventually, I hired a second photographer, and we began photographing weddings. Weddings quickly became a love of mine because each one was completely different than the other. Each bride and groom all had their own stories. Each one was so personal and emotional and I think that’s what got me. I was always extremely honored to be there and capture their precious memories to cherish forever!
Fast forward to today. My husband and I decided that we needed a change of scenery (we dislike the cold weather very much) and he discovered a job opening here in Arizona. He was immediately loved and long story short, we moved to Arizona in January 2019! Aside from being away from family and friends, we’ve loved every step of our journey here and we just keep falling in love with Arizona over and over again! I am more of a natural light, outdoorsy photographer so I currently do not have a physical studio in my home. I just love to be outside and have fun!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There have been some bumps in the road such as making sure there was always income coming in. It’s hard to advertise when marketing can be so expensive sometimes so I try the best I could to market myself the freeway through Facebook and word of mouth!
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Still Memory Photography – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I am owner and professional photographer of my company, Still Memory Photography. I am a natural light, raw, candid, portrait and wedding photographer based in Surprise, Arizona! I love to be outdoors as much as possible and making my client feel comfortable as much as possible when they are with me is my goal! I like to call my portrait sessions little adventures because we usually take 100s of photos just goofing around and it makes the session so much more fun and candid.
I am known to be very personable, to have a bubbly and fun personality and I am great with kids! I think kids are one of my most favorite subjects to photograph because they are so candid and genuine. At weddings, a lot of my best candid photos are of the kids that attend! They always seem to be smiling and having a wonderful time!
Being apart of these photography sessions, whether it’s a portrait session or a wedding, is what makes me proud the most. Being accepted to come into a person’s life or a families life and catch them at some of their most vulnerable moments makes me feel completely humbled and honored to be there to capture each and every moment so they can remember it and cherish it forever.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
No big changes coming my way at the moment. I followed another one of my life dreams and became a certified yoga instructor when I moved here last year. Now my schedule consists of teaching my students and photographing families and that’s really all I have time for! I am now finding that I am drawn to the small, more intimate weddings that people are now calling “Elopements” which I completely support!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.stillmemoryphotography.com
- Phone: 607-215-3779
- Email: kpaulino17@gmail.com
Image Credit:
Krysten Sarkissian
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