Have you heard of this thing called Pinterest? If not, immediately pause from reading this blog post and join Pinterest now! You can follow me and all of the wonderful senior photographers who have been featured here.
For those of you who don’t know, Pinterest is an electronic bulletin board of sorts. It is a place to put all those wonderful photos you come across on the web. And it is where I came across the wonderful photography of Krysta Manthe! I immediately pinned a few of her sessions and sent her an email asking to feature one of her senior sessions. Lucky for me and for the readers of Seniorologie, she agreed!
Below is an interview about the shoot below. Be sure to check out more of Krysta’s work here. Thanks Krysta!
What was your inspiration for this photo shoot?
My inspiration for this shoot came from Emily and our urban surroundings. She had such style and grace and I wanted that to be a play off of the urban background. With all of my seniors, I don’t want them to have the typical “senior” photo so I’m constantly pushing myself to step outside the box and be different.
Where did this photo shoot take place?
The photo shoot took place in the Historic Third Ward of downtown Milwaukee.
What time of day did you shoot?
We shot a couple of hours before the sun set. My favorite way to shoot is with the sun so I was a happy girl when the sun presented itself between the tall urban buildings.
Did you collaborate with this senior on the look of this shoot and offer any advice on wardrobe? Can you share those with us?
I did ask Emily beforehand what type of clothing she would be wearing for the shoot. I do this with all seniors so I can get a sense of their style. She had a lot of clothing from Urban Outfitters along with a lot of fun accessories. I knew right then and there, we’d get along just fine. 🙂
What camera, lens or equipment was used during this shoot?
For this session, I shot with my Canon 5D Mark II and my 24-70 mm lens.
Can you share any post-processing techniques used when editing this shoot?
Before I do anything to the photos, I take out any blemish spots, smooth skin, and typically lighten the image as I underexpose my images a bit. After all of my “touch up” are done, I’ll run my action or actions over them for a bit of pop, sharpen, and viola! For these I used a combination of Eye Candy Actions and Childs Play Actions.
These photos have such a warm glow to them. Can you share with us how you accomplished that look as well as how you played with the sun to create such awesome light in these photos?
The warm glow comes partly from post processing as well as the time of day we shot. When the sun is near setting, it radiates a golden buttery glow. If I could shoot at that time of day every day I would be a happy girl. People often ask me how I manage to capture sun flare. I wish I had a step by step to say how I do it. I love shooting into the sun and really know no other way. I move with my camera a lot when shooting into the sun to capture different angles of reflecting light. I usually position my subject right in front of the sun’s glow and tell them to be patient with me while I get that perfect image. It’s second nature to me now.
What do you want these photos to convey about this senior and about your photography style?
I always want my photos to tell a story. I want them to be whimsy and dreamlike, but yet maintain that realness about who someone really is. Emily was artistic and had her own sense of style. I wanted her photos to be a reflection of that. As far as my personal style, I’m always pushing myself to step outside my comfort zone. Typically for my shoots, I’ll pick a location and we’ll just set out to explore. I get bored with shooting in the same location over and over again so rarely do you the same location or props in my work.
What is your favorite thing about photographing seniors?
I love photographing seniors because they’re always up for anything. They’re creative and have their own sense of what they’re looking for. I love collaborating with them and coming up with something unique and beautiful together.
Tell me a little about you…how did you get into photography? how long have you been in business? how long have you photographed seniors? where are you from? married? kids? etc! 🙂
I got into photography because of my father. He had a film camera I used to beg to use. When digital cameras started coming out, he bought me my first Olympus digital camera. I shot with that for almost ten years. I have been shooting since I was 16, but went into business full time three years ago and haven’t looked back. I feel blessed that every day I get to wake up and call this my “job”! I am originally from Minnesota, but currently live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I’m married and my husband, Brady, has been my biggest supporter. We have a 7 year old son and another baby boy due any day now! 🙂
Senior Inspiration – {Krysta Manthe}
heck, yes i do!
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These are great!
Pure awesomeness!
oh krysta! these are beautiful. jess told me to come see these and i am so glad i did..inspirational!!!
Love the sun flare shots and the one with the city in the background. My sisters live in Madison, WI, so woohoo for Wisconsin! (I’m across the pond in Michigan).