Rangefinder Magazine
November 2005

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Profile: Kelly Johnson by Larry Brownstein
Smarter Then the Camera

It’s easy to see why children make great photo subjects—they are innocent, spontaneous and not self-conscious. And, it’s no wonder parents take so many pictures of their children. But, is photographing children any way for a professional photographer to make a living? Kelly Johnson certainly thinks so. While this married mother of two has a variety of photographic specialties, photographing children is her passion. She credits her mother with inspiring her passions for art and children. Kelly’s mother also gave her the courage to follow her dreams, which led Kelly from a newspaper job to running her own successful photo business.

Her interest in photography began when she was nine. She recalls playing with a camera her father had given her while he was watching a football game. She had been asking questions, but he was more interested in the football game. She persisted, saying, “I don’t know how to work it!” to which her father answered, “Well, be smarter than the camera, Kelly.” She credits a great deal of her success to this lesson in independence. She learned the camera, fell in love with it, and used it throughout her school years. She took an occasional photo class to learn more.

At 24, she got a job at The Oregonian as an assistant in the photo department. She started in sales, selling images taken for the paper to national and international publications. She soon got involved in the printing process, and not too long after that, began doing some shooting. She was there for seven years, which culminated in assignments photographing such luminaries as Bill Clinton and Michael Jordan.

“Bus Stop Photo”—Driving down the street with her daughter on a foggy morning, Johnson spotted this bus stop. She pulled over and asked her daughter to “do whatever you want to.” Johnson liked this unexpected expression and captured it.

Hearing her speak about photographing

Portraiture had always been her main interest. After seven years with the paper, she felt it was time to follow her dream and go into business for herself. She believes the newspaper work prepared her well to run her own business, as she feels confident that she can photograph anyone. She shoots weddings, special events and other assignments, but child portraiture is her main focus.

Johnson’s experience gives her interwwwesting insight into why children make great photo subjects: “With children, the camera doesn’t really bother them. Until they’re 12 or 13, they don’t worry about their best sides, their hair, etc. They don’t worry about you catching them at a bad angle. Children still they think every angle is good. And they’re usually right,” she says with a laugh, showing her affection for her subject.

“Beauty”—These two girls, whom Johnson knows and has photographed before, were sitting on a porch on a summer day when Johnson was driving by. Seeing a beautiful moment, she jumped out of the car and photographed them as they continued to sit on the porch. Their comfort with her enabled her to get close without disturbing the special moment she initially observed.

She usually photographs kids in their own environment so they are comfortable. A session may last from five minutes to an hour, and she doesn’t direct much. Her ability to get in touch with what kids are interested in and how they think helps build rapport: “I have always found it best to talk them about things they enjoy,” Johnson explains. “Popular TV, cartoon shows, electronic games, Gameboy, Playstation and school. Believe it or not, kids love to talk about school. I also let them shoot a few shots with the camera. This always goes over big! And then there are some kids that love to be photographed. I photographed a 10-year-old girl last year for my upcoming book. When I asked her if she was ready, she replied ‘Bring on the fame, baby!’ Now that’s what I call ready.”

Prospective clients find her either through word of mouth or by seeing her work in books, greeting cards, photo exhibits or fine art prints. Client meetings begin on the telephone. She asks what they would like to see from the photo shoot in terms of lighting, location, clothes, etc. Usually she photographs children in a park, their home, her home or in the kids’ own neighborhood. On occasion they will travel to a special location. She requires an advance of half the fee, and the rest is due upon delivery.

She has this to say about what she tries to accomplish when doing a photo shoot with kids: “I really try to make a memorable, lifetime connection with the kids. The parents, the children and I all reap the benefits of the connection. The greatest reward in life and photography is to give something back, so during the time I spend with them, I give myself. You might break, forget or lose a present, but hopefully they will always treasure the time they spent with me.” She recently ran into a college student she had photographed as a child. The student remembered her and commented on how much fun she’d had at the shoot!

“The Girls in the Tulips”—These girls had never seen such a sight as a large field of tulips, and they were genuinely excited. There was no direction here. Johnson just let her subjects go and reacted when she saw the excitement and emotion of the girls. While she does studio work, her preference is to work simply and naturally. She uses available light as much as possible. She has a variety of cameras including a digital camera but often will simply use her old trustworthy Nikon FM2 (manual, mechanical) camera with a 105mm lens.

Proofs are delivered in a black folio inside a sleek black box. She encloses complimentary images of her favorite photos, which always delights the family. She handles printing, ordering and delivery to ensure that everything is perfect. “I always let the customer know that it was an honor to work with them and their children,” Johnson says.

Johnson’s book Look at the Baby (available on Amazon.com and at Barnes & Noble bookstores) gives a good clue to her success. It wasn’t an easy task to get her work published—it was a combination of persistence and luck. First she designed a booklet to send to publishers. No one on the West Coast picked up on it, so she tried some of the New York publishers. Six or seven months after initial contact, one of the New York publishers had a need for a book like hers. It came out in 2002, and the book has led to people calling her and asking her to photograph their babies. People use the book like a reference, saying they want their baby photographed like a picture they saw in the book.

She signed a two book deal with the publisher. The next book is to be entitled Hair.

About Hair (scheduled for 2006) she says: “We girls have issues with our hair. We work on our hair. We have good hair days and bad hair days. Hair is important to us,” she says, with amusement. “These girls are very sophisticated about who they are and their identity. Each one is an individual.”

She has had six one-woman photographic exhibits and has participated in three group exhibits. She has a line of greeting cards. Prints of her work are sold through Haddad’s Fine Art. Johnson’s work is represented on the web by Getty Images. And the Kresge Art Museum in Michigan State University has recently accepted one of her child portraits for their collection.

I asked her if she had a message for young photographers. She answered, “Whatever it is you do in life, you have to be absolutely passionate about it. You have to really say ‘This is my dream,’ and you have to go out there and achieve it or at least try. Who wants to live to be 100 and never have really tried to achieve their dreams?”

No doubt clients come to Johnson for her ability to capture their children’s innate beauty. Little do they realize they are signing up for a memorable experience that may last a lifetime.

For more information about Kelly, visit kellyjohnsonphoto.com/.