Meet Kristen Matthews | Photographer & Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kristen Matthews and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kristen, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The key driver of my success in my photography lies in remaining authentic to my own vision and perspective. It’s essential to distinguish yourself amidst a sea of photographers in the industry. Anyone can take a good photo, but it’s the commitment to your distinct viewpoint that truly sets you apart. Be different.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I believe what sets me apart from other creatives is my unique personality and aesthetic, which I integrate into my photography. I love powerful compositions, bold colors, and different subjects and locations off the beaten path. It’s very important to me to apply your personality into your work. I’ve been told I have a strong personality, and it’s either loved or it’s hated. But you know it.

What I am most proud of is that I am a self taught photographer and business woman. I went to college for something completely different than what I do now. My success comes from years for just pushing yourself through the doors and watching others. Watching others allowed me to learn how to make my business successful, but also not making the same mistakes they made. I have to say the biggest mistake made while learning was ego. There is a difference between ego and confidence. And this can be applied to any industry you go into. Confidence allows you to grow, take critique, and become better at what your want to achieve. Ego has never ended well. Don’t get me wrong though. I made many mistakes along the way. Failed numbers of times. Clients not happy. Retake an entire photoshoot. Missed deadlines. Your learn from the failures, get back up, and keep going.

How I got to where I am professionally was a rough road. Starting out, I didn’t really know who I wanted to be as a photographer. This showed through my work. I was taking photos based off of what others thought my work should be. Professionally, my photography took a few years to finally kick off. I was working another full time job while growing my photography business. So it took a bit. When it finally starting running, Pinterest was launched. The popularity of Pinterest and what clients wanted in there photos affected my work. I was getting hired to take photos to look like someone else’s work. It still happens today. And I did it for a while because that’s what was paying me. I was miserable. I was afraid to take the photos I wanted to take and apply my personality to them. I have to make a living, right? The question I asked was, “Is this going to be the right decision to continue to do photography professionally.” But I needed a restart. So I grabbed my camera and rebuilt my portfolio from the ground up. My mental health was more important at that moment. I stopped taking the photography jobs that were making me miserable.

There was a lesson I learned and it was during the pandemic. In 2020, I had to close my photography business. I lost my worth as an artist. And I felt like I failed because I couldn’t keep it up during lockdown. I ended up developing major Imposter Syndrome. I spent so many years proving to all that doubted that a self taught photographer could make a professional business and become successful for it just to fail like it did. The pandemic was hard on a lot of businesses. And I almost sold all of my camera equipment because of this toxic mindset I was in, but I didn’t (thankfully). Cut to 2 years later, I’m looking in my camera bag and my camera still had battery life. I was honestly shocked. By that point I haven’t touched a camera in that 2 years. I took that as a sign. I went for a walk and I was taking photos with that same passion I had before it was lost. It was like I never left it behind. It was time to get back to work and make my photography business successful again.

What I would like the world to know about me is I’m a self made, self taught woman-owned business and artist. I want my photography to encourage you to write the story you haven’t written yet. My brand and what I like to apply when I share my photography, especially on social media, is to inspire you to get creative and share yours. Take the photos you want to take, get creative with whatever medium you work with, and share with your community.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oh this is a good question. In 2019, my best friend and I went on a 3 and a half week trip to Europe. It was a very unique European trip that took months to plan. It was a bucket list trip I wanted to take since I was 12. To preface, my best friend and I are huge literature fans. So the trip we took started in London. We traveled the same route Jonathan Harker took to Castle Dracula in the book Dracula by Bram Stoker. And we used the book as the travel guide, which you can use today. Other than Castle Dracula itself, the cities and some of the places Jonathan Harker visited along the way are real. We even used a train, like he did for the majority of our travels in Europe, Highly recommend it. You will see so much traveling that way.

We started in London for a few days. That was fun and did the touristy stuff, but had a blast. So many Gin and Tonics were had. We then went to Munich with detour to Neuschwanstein Castle. Gorgeous Bavarian countryside. We then went from Munich and spent a few days in Vienna, Austria. We enjoyed the cafe scene and the Imperial Hapsburg Crypts. That was very cool to see. From Vienna, we went to Budapest, Hungary. Hungarian food is so good. Chicken Paprikash and Chimney cakes. Start there and you will not be disappointed. From Budapest, we traveled to Cluj-Napoca, Romania where we then traveled by car. The last stop before we got to “Castle Dracula” was Bistrița, Romania. We stayed in the same hotel Jonathan Harker stayed in. The hotel exists, the Grand Hotel Coroana. In the lobby of the hotel, they have a framed picture of Keanu Reeves as Jonathan Harker. I loved that. Our last stop on the Dracula journey was driving to the exact coordinates where Castle Dracula would be. It’s about 45 minutes outside of Bistrița, in the Transylvanian mountains. Where Castle Dracula should stand is a hotel, Hotel Castle Dracula. Romania, as a whole, is a beautiful country with the nicest people.

I knew when I was planning this trip, I was going to be traveling it with my best friend. It’s a trip we will never forget. We are planning a travel blog about it. It’s a trip no one takes, but should be taken if you are a fan of the book.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
We should all have that best friend that will support you no matter where they are in their life or in the world. The one that no matter what or how long you don’t speak to each other, can pick back up right where we left off like no time has passed. I’m fortunate to have that friend. Her name is Ashley Logan. We have been friends now for 14 years. She’s been the biggest supporter of my photography and encouraging me to pursue photography as a profession. She’s been a model when I needed to build a portfolio. She’s traveled around the world with me. She’s even assist in photoshoots when I needed help. Shout-out to her.

Instagram: @thegingergoon

Other: I’m also on Threads @thegingergoon

Image Credits
The images are mine. Copyright Kristen Matthews