Today we’d like to introduce you to Jamie Johnson.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
When I was a little girl my mother would buy The National Enquirer magazine. I would pick it up and comb over the famous faces and their outfits for hours. I’m quite sure that’s where my love for portraits began. In the seventh grade I was on the yearbook committee and enjoyed snapping pictures of everyone on campus. And much later in life I became a mother and began photographing my girls quite often. I’d show anyone who would look my prints in my little plastic photo book I carried in my purse. The more I photographed people, the more I wanted to shoot. Eventually friends asked me to photograph their children and families. We had a chocolate lab that was one of the most gorgeous creatures on earth and she made for a sweet subject to put in front of my camera. And from those images, the animal portraits came into existence.
Please tell us about your art.
I’m a natural light portrait photographer. Children, families, seniors, horses, bridals, engagements, and pets are some of my specialties. I also enjoy photographing outdoor events such as rodeos, polo matches, and tea parties. One of my absolute favorite venues to photograph are ranches. The smell of fresh hay, horses, and leather are some of life’s most delightful fragrances to the senses. Spider webs on fences, boots at the back door, and tack are details that never get overlooked. I photographed a cattle ranch once and after showing the owner his images, he said: “I look at that tree every day and I’ve never seen it look that beautiful before.” The sun was going down and the last bit of the sun’s majestic light was shining through its leaves.
Photography is about lighting and you can bend it, shape it, stream it, whatever you want to do with it in order to shape your image to create a work of art. It’s wonderful and powerful. The earth is my studio and for me there’s no need for flash when you have the sun as the most phenomenal light source in the world surrounding you. I am absolutely in love with back lighting and sun flare and consider them to be my signature looks in many of my portraits. The dynamic duo creates a look and feel like nothing else can and I’m astonished every time my subjects are encompassed in it. I believe that people are radiant beings and that their light and lives should shine as brightly as they were created to. Whether I photograph an event, portrait session, or ranch, details are key. And not just details of flowers or shoes or saddles but of moments. Moments that can never be created or set up again. Moments that in a blinking of an eye are gone forever but caught by my camera in the twinkling of my eye.
What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
The biggest challenge artists face is to not be true to themselves and doubt their creativity. There is a lot of comparing ourselves with others going on today. I shoot portraits in natural lighting and love simplicity and drama at the same time. It’s lethal to look around at a fellow photographer and see a person who shoots architecture or weddings and also have a totally different shooting and editing style than I do and begin to doubt my own calling, subjects, work, and creations. Morphing into someone else is not healthy nor is it being true to who I was created to be. We are individuals and have unique capabilities, visions, emotions, talents, and personalities that cannot be reproduced. Like a ray of light, we must all shine in our own matchless, individual way.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
My work is displayed on my Instagram account @jamiejohnsonphotographer and in the homes and offices of my beloved clients. The main way for people to support my art is to share it. When you like a portrait, share it on social media and give me photo credit. Most of my clients are word-of-mouth and they love their images and are eager to show their family and friends.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 832-527-6777
- Email: jamie@jamiejohnsonportraits.com
- Instagram: @jamiejohnsonphotographer
Image Credit:
Jamie Johnson
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