Love Through a Lens

 

Love Through a Lens

Words: Nakita Ardern
Karyn Flett is truly captivating. Using the lens the Waikato-based photographer is serving her community by offering free sessions for terminally-ill children and their families.

Karyn came to photography in a ‘typical’ way … aspiring photographer in her youth, a subdued stint in an office for nearly a decade (all the while feeding her passion, taking photos of her growing brood) and finally throwing herself into it totally to learn everything she could.

“When I had the first two [children] I had a nice camera and always enjoyed taking pictures of them, but it wasn’t until a friend was getting married and didn’t have a photographer and I offered to take some pictures for her that I thought about making a go of this. I studied all these shots and planned out exactly what I was going to do and the photos didn’t turn out too bad at all.

“My interest became my addiction, as I slowly gained more knowledge and subjected my camera phobic kids to hours of practice.”

Friends and friends-of-friends quickly caught on to Karyn’s blossoming talent and before long bookings for her services were rolling in.

With very little planning and the encouragement of many admirers, Karyn transformed from snap happy amateur to professional photographer, although her dream career didn’t come without its share of road bumps.

“I didn’t go in with a proper business plan so was constantly overhauling my pricing to ensure I wasn’t working all these long hours at a loss. If I was to do it all again I would establish my prices from the outset instead of having the ‘build it and they’ll come’ mentality.”

For the past eight years ‘the girl no one thought would turn country’ has based herself and her business between Te Awamutu and Otorohanga with her dairy farmer husband, Craig and four children; Jacob, 15, Sophie, 12, Joshua, 7 and Blake, 4.

After the birth of her fourth child Karyn decided newborn photography would be her point of expertise.
“I love babies. I guess that’s why I’ve had four of them. If I wasn’t doing this I’d be a midwife.
“Having had four of my own I’ve acquired a skill for making children relaxed and naturally happy-looking for photos. I think it’s because that’s how I am. I’m extremely laid back. Patience is so important when working with children. “Seeing my kids grow up before my eyes made me realise how fast time goes and how important it is to capture it – after all, photographs have that magical ability to take you back to that exact time so you can almost feel what it was like to hold them when they were that little.

“I shot a wedding for a couple who had a wall of photos going right back to their grandparents as babies. Some of the photos were over 100-years-old. People will look at them for years because they’ll want to see similarities in themselves and in their children. What treasures!”

Karyn recently launched Cherished by Karyn Flett photography; the charitable side to her photography business where sessions are donated to terminally ill and sick children and their families.
“In 2008 my youngest son was admitted to hospital with a suspected brain tumour and my first thought, after the initial shock, was ‘Do I have enough photos of him?’

“I’m incredibly fortunate to have four beautiful healthy kids. If your child is sick and you are faced with the reality of losing them, all you are going to have to look back on is photos, and the last thing you can afford, especially when one parent gives up work to take care of their child, is to go out and get photos taken.
“When children come to me who are only two-years-old and have already been through 33 rounds of radiation and there is nothing more the doctors can do for them, I know the least I can do is provide this service.”

Now with a successful photography business, a charity and over 20 awards to her name Karyn, a member of the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photographers (NZIPP) is an advocate of perseverance, self-mastery and networking.
“Becoming a member of NZIPP is one of the best things I’ve done for my business. I used to think only the best of the best could be a part of NZIPP, but it is really for anyone running their own photography business. It’s a fantastic network.
“It pushes you to be better and see things in different ways. If you don’t push yourself to get better you stagnate and people pass you by!”
Nakita Ardern
www.karynflett.co.nz
 
Karyn’s tips for setting your focus on a successful photography career:

1. Find your own style. Regardless of who you admire or whose work you love, defining yourself through your own style will make you stand out as an individual.
2. Find an area of photography that you’re passionate about and fine tune your skills. You don’t need to have a finger in every pie to be successful.
3. Get to know other photographers and have practice sessions together. Sharing information is a great way to learn.
4. Remember that having a successful photography business is 80% desk work and 20% actually taking photos, so have a good business plan in place to enable you to make the best of that 80%. Don’t rush into being in business without making sure you’ve thought about that 80%.
5. Let your personality shine through your work, be yourself, and treat your clients like gold – after all they have picked you to capture a memory for their family and you want it to stand the test of time.

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