Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathryn Caudle.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I grew up traveling a lot. My parents were divorced from the time I was three years old, and my mother remarried. My step-dad was in the Army and was stationed immediately in Germany, South Korea, Washington D.C., and finished his career in the military to retire permanently in his hometown of Kailua, Hawaii. All that time I spent traveling back and forth between my mom and where my dad lived, which was cross-country and overseas. I was able to learn about so many cultures and explore some beautiful places along the way. Before I even knew how to work a camera, I was drawn to the beauty of nature, architecture, and culture.
I was about 14 when my dad noticed I could take some interesting photos on my inexpensive handheld cameras. For Christmas, he asked me if I would like to start taking photos with a better camera, something expensive enough that I wouldn’t break but not so hi-tech that I would be afraid to learn how to use it. I said yes and he bought me a Sony a300, and I fell in love.
After I received my first DSLR, my friends and I would roam around the island of Oahu and have little photoshoots for fun. It wasn’t long after that, people I knew would see my photos on Facebook or social media and started telling me how good I was, especially for my age. Growing up in a tropical climate created some breathtaking views for me to capture, so landscape photography was a big part of my portfolio at this time. I was still able to travel a bit during high school and went to Europe twice, continued to visit my father here in San Diego, and visited a few different cities in the U.S. with him. I always took photos from interesting perspectives and liked documenting subjects that viewers weren’t typically looking at.
After I graduated I wasn’t really doing much with my time and found myself losing my creative touch. I went almost a year without taking any photos because I was too distracted by the thrill of being out of high school. Finally, the summer after I turned 19, my dad offered to let me come live with him in San Diego and go to school on a college fee waiver. I didn’t know if I truly wanted to, but I knew it would be better than whatever path I was going down, so I took the leap and left everything I had known for the past ten years in Hawaii.
My first few years here weren’t necessarily the easiest, I struggled with finding a good job I enjoyed, making quality friendships, and trying to get used to the whole idea of being an adult in a brand-new city. I fell into whatever jobs came my way, retail, childcare, food service, and hospitality. I felt like I had lost a lot of who I was, but I was changing and learning in a way that would not have happened had I not left my life in Hawaii. I started slowly at building a part-time freelance business with what I considered was my passion. I took headshots, family portraits, and continued to document life and nature when I was in the mood. I completed my Associate of Arts degree from Mesa College in the Spring of 2017 and shortly after began a PR and Marketing Internship with a local arts organization called Vanguard Culture. That was really when my creative world opened up here in San Diego. The Executive Director, Susanna Peredo Swap, has been such a crucial part of my growth as an artist. When I finally told her that I was ready to do photography and videography full-time, she was ecstatic. She took me in after finishing my internship and hired me to come on as Vanguard Culture’s Lead Documentarian. She has given me every opportunity she can to grow and learn as a business owner.
I quit my full-time job in February and haven’t looked back since. I started finding the balance I needed to work towards my own future, without feeling suffocated by the pressure of defining who I am. Now that I have a solid relationship with such a beautiful and creative organization, my freelance work has blossomed in a way I didn’t think would happen so quickly. I am in a place that requires a lot of learning, and a lot of attention to detail, but it’s such a breath of fresh air to finally do what I love and have nothing but support from those who surround me.
Has it been a smooth road?
After finishing up my internship, I still had freelance work coming my way, but I didn’t believe that I could handle doing it full-time. My previous job brought me nothing but stress and after searching for a new one for four months straight, I felt helpless and stuck. It wasn’t until my peers and loved ones told me to just do what I love because I am good at. “It’ll be worth the struggles that being a freelance artist brings” they said. It was a terrifying transition to be quite honest. I decided that I could either put my efforts into an industry that would give me purpose, or I could live my life always wondering “what if?”
My advice for young women who are starting their journey is to trust that they are going to be happier doing something they are truly passionate about versus forcing something that doesn’t come naturally. Obviously, there’s a lot to learn as a business owner, and it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. You have to know your own worth without abusing other people’s lack of knowledge, which in turn creates a conversation about money, time, and accountability. The truth is, if you choose to take the leap into a new career, despite being experienced, you cannot control everything. There’s ALWAYS something new to learn and there is never a bit of advice that is too mediocre to hear. I’ve been doing this for a long time, but not in the same way as I am now. So for that, I am proud of my growth but I’m mostly excited and willing to embrace the unknown of the future.
Please tell us more about what you do, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
At this time, I am focusing on portraiture, and commercial photography depicting food, beverage, products, and events. I work with individuals, organizations, and small businesses to help represent their products or spaces with the aesthetic of their choice. It depends on the specifications of the client as far as style goes, and I’m still learning what works and what doesn’t. There is not a genre of photography that I haven’t explored. My goal has never been to perfect one singular technique for the sake of it. I always enjoyed having the freedom to document whatever I was experiencing, because those moments can’t be repeated, but they can be remembered through my work.
I find it unpredictable what people will say when I tell them that I am a photographer. There always seems to be either a stigma towards it or an unwavering fascination. I like to tell people when they ask me what I take photos of, that I like to capture “the finer things.” I love being able to show people that I have accumulated a portfolio of my experiences. If they want to see more or know more, I am willing to tell the story behind the photograph, although I think they typically speak for themselves.
I feel that what sets me apart from other photographers is my ability to create a narrative that they may not have known existed until after the photo is taken. That can come with its own pros and cons. I create a very safe space for critique because at the end of the day I am still providing a service and there are still expectations involved. I want my clients to trust that they can give me feedback and we can work together to fix any issues they have, which in turn makes it easier to avoid mistakes in the first place.
Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well positioned for?
I am the first to admit that being a woman in the workplace isn’t always a walk in the park. There’s a lot going against us. I am a firm believer that we are in such an amazing time right now, and any hardships we face, we can face together. I don’t like to generalize and I enjoy being open-minded and not trying to assume anything is done to me based on me being a woman. I wouldn’t say I necessarily identify as a feminist, but I am proud to be a woman who knows her worth and I am not afraid to take control of a situation that I have every right to control.
It’s been an interesting ride growing up as a millennial in today’s society and seeing so much history being brought back up in a way that shows us how much has and hasn’t changed. I think women are powerhouses. They are fierce, and they are able to speak up in ways that never existed before. So for me, I support any woman who knows how to handle a situation differently and more successfully than expected. I think as long as we are moving forward and farther from discriminators, we are heading in the right direction. It’s not about punishing people for the past or even fighting others in the present, it’s about growing towards the future and creating a whole new narrative of what it means to be a woman.
Pricing:
- Headshots & Portraiture: $100 per hour
- Food & Beverage: $100 per hour
- Event & Product Photography: $150 per hour
Contact Info:
- Website: www.scratchkatshots.com
- Email: contactme@scratchkatshots.com
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/scratchkatshots
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ScratchkatshotsPhotography/?modal=admin_todo_tour
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