February 5, 2025 ā¢ 34 mins
Evolving Through Photography and Identity with Kris Connor
Have you ever wondered how your personal experiences shape who you are as a creative? In this episode of Savory Shot, we dive deep into the journey of Kris Connor, an award-winning New York-based celebrity chef and restaurant photographer. With over 30 years behind the camera, Kris shares his unique perspective on how his life experiences have influenced his photography career.
Meet Kris ConnorKris Connor is a well-known name in the world of food photography. He's worked with renowned chefs like Carla Hall, Wolfgang Puck, and Bobby Flay, and brands like Food Network and Casamigos Tequila have featured his work. But Kris's journey is far from ordinary. Born with achondroplasia, he underwent multiple limb-lengthening operations that gave him a unique outlook on life. This outlook is evident in his photography, as he seeks to highlight the beauty and craftsmanship in both food and the people who prepare it.
In this episode, Kris opens up about his personal and professional journey, sharing valuable insights and experiences. He discusses his transition from photojournalism to food photography, the importance of personal branding, and the challenges of staying true to oneself in a constantly evolving industry. Kris also shares his thoughts on the importance of giving back to the photography community and the need for more inclusive and diverse representation in the field.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Mica (00:00):
Welcome to the 61st episode of the Savory Shot.
(00:06):
A podcast about the art and soulof working in food photography.
Y'all know who I be, I'm yourhost with the most, Mica McCook.
I'm a food and beverage photographerbased out of Austin, Texas.
First and always, I'd like to startthis show off by thanking y'all, the
(00:27):
listeners, for continuing to showup and show out for the Savory Shot.
I've said this once, I've said it twice,and I'll say it every single time.
This show wouldn't exist withouty'all, the guests, the listeners.
Y'all keep me going.
So thank you for beinghere again and again.
(00:48):
And if this is your first timejoining us on The Savory Shot,
welcome to the Hot Mess Express.
I hope you like it here, butlet's talk about today's episode.
Today's guest is someone I'mexcited to introduce to y'all.
We made an instant connection andI'm thrilled that we crossed paths.
(01:10):
So without further ado, furtherdelay, further roadblock, I'd like
to introduce y'all to Kris Connor.
Kris is an award winning NewYork based celebrity chef
and restaurant photographer.
Who has been behind the camerafor over 30 years, y'all.
(01:30):
He seamlessly merges artistryand culinary storytelling in
collaborations with chefs like CarlaHall, Wolfgang Puck, and Bobby Flay.
You've seen his work on brands likeFood Network and Casamigos Tequila.
Born with achondroplasia, he underwentmultiple limb lengthening operations
(01:52):
that gave him a unique outlook on life.
This distinct viewpoint is evidentin his photography as he seeks to
highlight the beauty and craftsmanshipand both food and those who prepare it.
Whether it's for a campaign, editorialor a special project, he is excited to
(02:14):
collaborate with y'all and showcase theart of food and the chefs behind it.
Y'all, I hope you enjoy thisepisode as much as I did.
I love meeting and talking withphotographers who have been in the
industry for as long as Kris has.
(02:34):
He's truly seen the photography industrygrow and change and evolve over the years.
I feel like his insights andperspective are one that every growing
photographer should take heed to.
I'm not going to getinto a rant about that.
So grab your coffee, kickback, and let's start the show.
(03:32):
Kris, I just want to say thank youso much for being on the Savory Shot.
I'm excited for this conversation.
I want to start by asking youabout the beard because I need
to know the story behind it.
It's part of your branding and your logo.
When did this luscious,gorgeous beard of yours begin?
Kris (03:55):
The beard start actually winter of 2011.
I always kind of have had facialhair for most of my adult life.
I used to have like little chinpatch in my 20s and then for a
long time I did a scruffy face.
And winter in Thailand didn't shavefor a while, but it was like hot.
So I'm like, all right, I'llshave and then when I got back to
US, it was winter time with DC.
(04:16):
So i'm like, all rightperfect time to grow it.
It used to be clean and thenover time it got longer it's been
about the length it's been now,but yeah, it's been really funny.
I noticed definitelyin the DC dating area.
I was single.
And just started online dating LikeHinge, I felt like it helped me stand out.
It definitely helped me set apart.
(04:37):
DC is a very clean shaven, I would sayVineyard Vines ad, Abcrombie Fish ad type
of town And so it helped me step apartfrom my competition and then it just grew.
I started Twitter for it that alot of my clients like, and I've
done some social media with it.
In 2022, I went through a rebrandand had this designer Kirby Rouse,
(04:58):
he created one with a beard.
The joking thing I say is I can'tcut the man bun or the beard or
have to go through another logo.
Uh, but I mean i've had it for 13 years.
I don't think it's going anywhere.
Mica (05:10):
No, and nor should it.
What kind of maintenance goesinto maintaining it and keeping
it looking like it's gorgeous.
Kris (05:19):
I know I need to create a little fan club for it.
The daily maintenance is not too bad.
I wash it two or three times a week.
Brush it.
Put some beard balm or beard oil in it.
About once a month , I'llgo with a barber.
When I'm in D. C. visiting,I go Help on barber.
And when I'm back in New York, I goKramp's Barber in Bronxville and have a
barber do, because it's too long for meto do it, trying to look in the mirror.
(05:39):
I have even a beard straightener.
So it's definitely, I have myown little bag of beard products,
brushes, combs and, a straightener.
So it does have its own thing.
Because it'll get, likehoney gets stuck in there.
It's definitely its ownliving element in a sense.
Mica (05:54):
You were talking earlier about how you went through the rebrand.
The challenge as a commercialphotographer is how do you present
yourself professionally, butstill keep that personal touch?
They have all these differenttips and advice about what
your website should look like.
How do you put out your personalstory in a photo or in a logo?
(06:19):
I feel like your logo with your beardlike that just says, Okay, this is
something that really stands out.
Was that intentional whenhe presented that logo?
Kris (06:30):
As we went through, we tried different logos and
went through different rounds.
We started to see that kindof morphed into its own thing.
He even sent me mock ups ofwhat it would look like in a
backpack or a hoodie or a beanie.
My brother, his girlfriend worksin the coffee industry and I'm like
maybe do small batch coffee with it.
It's kind of morphed into a thing that canrun off if I want to create other avenues.
(06:53):
I see so many photographersuse the aperture ring.
Then you're stuck only using thatfor photography where I want a
logo that more about my personalityand who I am also could transcribe
across other genres of businessthat it wasn't just stuck in this.
Cause, they say once you builda brand versus commodity.
Then, it's endless.
(07:14):
I've thought about getting a stamp.
I said, badges is on my email headers.
On my signature is my Instagram profile.
We also worked with acolor palette as well.
We have a teal and then a plumcolor and then the gold color.
The font I use is called Corn Dog.
Mica (07:30):
Oh, I love that.
font.
Kris (07:32):
Yeah, so there's like a bubble, like, he's an amazing designer.
Unfortunately he's gone staffed somewhere,so he's left the freelance world.
Everything from the envelope, toemail signature, letterhead I can put
on packages, I can put on a t shirt.
So it just really hasbecome its own thing.
I've, I've seen very positive.
(07:53):
Um, there's, I mean, there arealso some other consultants that
I've come across that are like,Oh, maybe you change it, you know?
So you're always going toget different opinions.
It matches well in therestaurant chef world.
The last couple of yearsnarrowed down into that genre,
I definitely see it fits better.
And now I'm starting to color grademy images to see about matching it.
(08:14):
I noticed like my food portfolio,had a lot of warm images.
I'm not like, when I was like foodphotographers, I see like a lot of bright
color, like mine more like homey, warmso it kind of just really fits in well
and shapes the way I shoot and tonemy photos playing with the presets and
stuff and kind of create around it.
So it was a reallycoherent body all around.
Mica (08:35):
I like that you said the logo and branding you've created,
can go across multiple industries.
That's super important.
I actually just went through myown rebrand, my website debuted,
and it was probably, one ofthe most difficult experiences.
The first time I did a brand, itwas under the name Austin Food
(08:58):
Guide, I started Austin Food Guideto practice my food photography.
I mostly worked with restaurants.
Most of these restaurants that wouldreach out to me, hadn't realized they
were already following me on Instagram.
When I finished school, it feltnatural to continue under Austin Food
Guide and make it more of official.
(09:19):
But then, pandemic hit, allmy restaurant shoots just meh.
And then I got into commercialstudio and there was that disconnect.
Which is why I decidedto rebrand under my name.
And it was difficult because AustinFood Guide felt so personal to me.
But I'm not hiding behindAustin Food Guide anymore.
(09:43):
It took a lot of being brave enough toembrace that and being okay with that.
And then trusting the process.
And trusting that the peoplethat I'm paying to do this for
me know what they're doing.
You have a really interestingbackground on how you made your
way towards food photography, youstarted in photojournalism, you
(10:04):
covered politics got into portraits.
So I'm curious to hear aboutwhat inspired your move from
photojournalism, portraitureto eventually food photography.
Kris (10:17):
I've had a very long history with it.
Actually the other day on my Facebookmemories was me holding the last
physical copy of the Washington PostExpress, which is a newspaper that
the Washington Post produced thatthey gave out at Metro Stops in DC.
I got my start about early 09, shootingtheir weekend edition, doing restaurant
(10:39):
reviews and food reviews for them.
DC food scene wasn't closeto what it was a day.
And then fell out for a while.
It was more shootingthe entertainment world.
I work in the spectrum wherecelebrity and entertainment meet food.
Started doing a lot of brandingshoots for like Pepsi and Bud Light.
(10:59):
2016, I became one of thehouse photographers for New
York Wine and Food Festival.
Shooting dinners where theybring in celebrity chefs like
Michael Ortega and John George.
People pay tickets to eat dinnersare cooked by these people.
Also cooking workshops from 2017 to 2022.
I did a column with Judy Ju inOK Magazine where she interviewed
(11:22):
her celebrity chef friends.
Over the last couple of years,I've been doing my rebrand.
We narrowed it down to celebrityportraiture, corporate portraiture, food.
I took 2023 off for some physicalreasons and to have some surgery.
As I come out, I'm like, all right,I want to narrow it down even more.
So I'm like, you have this bigbody of work with celebrity chefs,
(11:43):
which, I shot for Food Networkto Beat Bobby Flay and Unwrapped.
So narrowed down to, celebrity chef,hospitality, restaurant section.
That's really my thing.
I'm either comfortable on a TV set, orin a busy Michelin star restaurant.
Which incorporates a lot ofthe photojournalism that we're
(12:04):
doing when I was shooting forNew York Wine and Food Festival.
I was shooting a lot behindthe scenes while they're in a
kitchen, preparing and making.
I actually just did aphoto therapy session.
This consultant named Stacy.
Mica (12:16):
Think it's Dipper, Switt, Switter, Switterski.
Swiderski, Stacey, I'm gonna, I'mgonna invite you to the show so you
can tell us and the world how toproperly pronounce your last name.
Kris (12:31):
It made me look back she's like, what do you want to do though?
I'm like, I really want to go food.
I've been doing some headshot work, butthe avenue I'm not really interested in.
It made me take a step back.
Now kind of doing anaudit of my body of work.
For example, in 2012, I did ajob, a chef actions network.
Some of the top chef judges were onCapitol Hill lobbying for programs.
(12:55):
Now I'm trying to seethis political connection.
I'm like, all right, what other times?
Like I've done workwith Save the Children.
I'm trying to see more of thelobbying and political side connection
to food, because that's a bigtopic right now in this election.
Food cause, childcareand all these things.
And it's really connection with humanity.
So it's now taking all this andseeing how going back to branding.
(13:19):
How's my body work different?
I think in this day and age, yougotta know what you want to do.
And we try to overthink things.
In the food and restaurant genre hasreally helped me a lot to deal with
people and get a chef in front of mewho doesn't want to be photographed,
but be able to break down that barrier.
Mica (13:38):
Oh man you hit something on the nail about chefs and there not
being enough portraitures of them.
What's been your experience withthat, though, with reaching out
and connecting with chefs andbuilding relationships with them?
Kris (13:52):
It's a slow process.
They work a lot.
Five, six days a week, seven hours.
So you gotta be flexible.
You hear our parents storieswhere our dads ask our moms out 10
times and they finally said, yes.
I think it's really lettingthese relationships marinate,
going by where they work, andjust have a beer or have a meal.
I met Chester that way.
There's a little restaurant in cityIsland, I met the chef on a Saturday
(14:15):
afternoon in between their busy times.
I found out he worked for John George.
We've been in communication.
There's a photographer, JimmySullivan, he came from the chef's
side and he talks about it.
Just really letting these relationshipsmarinate and realize this is a
marathon and not a sprint, right?
I think so many people are like,all right, you need to build,
definitely with social media.
(14:35):
With social media is the part thatturns that we feel like we got always
be producing content we always gotto be showing something so it's like
you're not willing to let things likeprojects marinate and take their time.
Mica (14:48):
Oh, the word you're saying, marinate, like that.
Not to be corny about it, but chef's kiss.
The pressure to constantly post, here'ssomething new, here's something new.
When I was feeling pressured topost on Instagram three times a
week, it killed my creativity.
Kris (15:09):
National food days.
Like you're like strappedand you're you're like, oh
my god, like and you're like.
Mica (15:13):
Gotta find a burger.
Kris (15:15):
I like what burger and you're like, and, you know, there was a
time where I'm like, all right, eventhough it's not the greatest picture.
Now I'm like, is this reallygoing to bring new business?
Mica (15:25):
That brings me to a question.
It's hard for some photographersto be objective about their work.
Do you have like a checklistor checkpoints of what you
determine to be share worthy?
And if so, what are some of those things?
Is it intuition?
How do you know when you havesomething really worthy of sharing
(15:45):
and how do you accept when you don't?
Kris (15:50):
Gotten a lot better at accepting that I don't.
I've never gotten older, just comes withbeing in the business for a long time.
There's been many times I've doneprojects that I thought were amazing.
This happens a lot in the entertainmenttelevision world where you'll
work on a project, definitely ina commercial advertising world.
And it just gets scrapped.
Those pictures will neversee the light of day.
(16:11):
And I've done products that weremonths long and it just done.
Deciding what to post, I think thenumber one question I said, ask
myself is, does this fit my brand?
Does this fit the work I want to go for?
I shoot a lot with my X100 but alot of my client work is I use our,
(16:31):
strobes and stuff and I'm trying tofind, how do I find this balance that
looks like a coherent body of work?
Today actually came up on Facebookmemories where I did a premiere with
Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones for AdArtar, maybe in about like space in 2019.
I'm like, Oh, this is really cool.
But does this fit who I wantto get hired by and for, and
(16:54):
does this fit my buyer work?
And I'm finding that, I was actuallyjust thinking that this morning,
I feel like about 90 percent ofwhat I've shot, if I took it, would
not see the light of day today.
Just cause that's not where my work is.
It might mean a lot to me, but,will that translate to the audience?
When I used to do portfolio reviews fora couple of colleges, you get these young
kids, and they're like, I spent eighthours on this photo, I love this photo.
(17:18):
I'm like, okay, if you wantto keep it, great, but keep
it in your print portfolio.
There's work in my print portfolio,and there's work on my website.
Social media.
You have to think when youpost that photo to Instagram,
how would the audience see it?
Do they see as important?
Do they see as a good image?
Do they see it as, thisis a Kris Conner image.
I strive to get the point that ifsomebody looks at one of my photos,
(17:40):
they go, all right, that's Kris Conner.
I saw a local magazine and I knowsome photographers, I couldn't
already say who that photographer was.
Mica (17:49):
Just based on the photo?
Kris (17:51):
On the photo, the lighting, I'm like, that's Scott.
We meet for coffee and talk about that.
Don't be afraid because you did thisreally great job for Nike or Applebee's.
There's a way to let people knowthat you have the client, but if
it doesn't fit your body of work,then maybe doing the tear sheets.
That's what tear sheetsections are great for.
I look at some photographersyou go to their tear sheet.
(18:12):
section and it looks totallydifferent than their portraits.
I think the third one, ishow often am I posting?
Have I posted something similar recently?
So it doesn't become repetitive.
Mica (18:24):
Those are good questions to ask yourself.
You mentioned earlier that youdid portfolio reviews, that you
gave portfolio reviews to otherphotographers, and you're part of
different Facebook groups and forums.
I love that you are giving backto the photography community.
Why is this important to you to dothese portfolio views and to be part of
(18:45):
these groups and to share the knowledgethat you've gained over the years?
Kris (18:49):
One reason is learn from my mistakes.
Learn from what I made wrong.
What I've noticed is photographersare coming in because it's so easy.
They're not going the traditional routelike school or through organizations.
I've had, when I was part of ASMP, it wasAmerican Society of Media Photographers,
and they do magazine editorial.
We're part of that, and then wedid APA, Advertising Photographers
(19:11):
of America, and now they'reAmerican Photographic Association.
But the point I was getting to is, I seeso many photographers in these groups that
don't even know they own the copyright.
I remember years ago, I was innightclubs, and a club owner.
We got an argument.
I said, I pay you, I ownthe club, I own the rights.
I'm like, all right, go talk to a lawyer.
It's just that knowledge ofhow they'll handle things.
(19:33):
The clients like they haven't paid me yet.
All right, send me acease and desist letter.
I'm big on a deposit retainer.
Now, we both have skin in the gameit doesn't happen often, but I
did have a sushi delivery company,they had their creative director on
site, and she verifies things, theowner, in the end, not being happy.
I'm like, Hey, we cando a reshoot for this.
And he just cut communication.
(19:54):
My production fee was covered.
He didn't get any of the images.
So it's that knowledge.
And it's also just, sharing.
I've learned a lot.
I got my start on Capitol Hill in 04.
I was next to guys who were Pulitzerthe prize winning photojournalist for
Time Magazine, Newsweek, New York Times.
And some of them literally grabbedme by the shirts a few times, say,
Hey, go here and help me along.
(20:17):
But they didn't have to, they're like, Oh,here's this young 22 year old guy up here.
And it's going back to branding.
Can they take my clients?
Maybe they could, butI'm not really caring.
Help the next generation, that'sgoing to keep this business going
because unfortunately, we got AInow, everybody's a photographer.
It's not dead and it's notdying, but it is changing.
Mica (20:40):
I saw a LinkedIn post yesterday about how photography programs
are taught by professors who havenever actually been in the field.
So they can't really tell you what's what.
And I mentioned that this goesaround to most arts based programs.
How do we get active working photographersto teach in a collegiate setting?
(21:05):
Because you're right, toget into photography, you
don't need to go to college.
But for those who feel like they do,they're setting themselves up for
disappointment because they're beingtaught by professors who went straight
into teaching right outside of school,so they have no actual experience.
(21:27):
I would like to know from you, whatincentive would you need to teach
in a collegiate setting, if offered?
Would you need any convincing?
Kris (21:38):
I'll be honest.
I wouldn't need it much.
I would love to do it, I'm getting older,so it's like going out in the field.
I would love to teach the next generation.
My biggest complaint about a lot ofart schools in New York, I was on that
crusade for a while, anti art college kid.
They had a panel and I'm like, what is,and I asked is like, what is the R O I?
On your guys at school, causeyou got a 30, 40 grand a year.
(22:00):
What is it?
And nobody really wanted to answerthat because they didn't have that.
But I'm like, you're feeling thesekids up that they get out, they spend
four years, they can't even do a simplecontract, they can't do no market.
And some schools do a little better,but, licensing, all this stuff, great.
The teaching is the art of it,but you got to learn the business.
The old route was you go assist.
(22:23):
I was mentoring a buddy earlier, he saidhis master's was assisting in New York and
he assists a lot of working photographers.
So you have people that also like, I'mgoing to be a professional photographer, I
made a, you know, a studio in my kitchen.
And now I'm going to be a foodphotographer, which is great.
But they're not knowing, allright, how do I license this image?
(22:43):
How do I, like I said, write acontract, just write in the proposal.
A lot of those photographersare undervaluing themselves.
Mica (22:52):
What I loved about my program is that they at least tried to teach us the
business side, but there just was toomuch information to cram into one class.
A lot of lessons I've learned fromother photographers from workshops
that I've taken outside of school.
I've had to really go out ofmy way to learn on my own.
(23:14):
Those who can't do teach, it can'tapply to an arts based program because
we need the ones who can do to teach.
Yeah.
So how do we get the ones who can doto teach, what incentives do they need?
What requirements do colleges need to makeexceptions because they can't treat art
(23:34):
space programs the same way that you woulda business or a computer science major.
Maybe someone doesn't have aMaster's or a PhD in photography, but
they've been working for 30 years.
They are way more qualified to teach than,Kevin, who got his PhD, but never actually
worked as a freelancing photographer.
Kris (23:57):
You're saying you came from theater.
Look at acting, how many actors actuallywent to acting school and have a degree
in acting, but you're like, Oh, theycan't teach, because they didn't go that.
But it's like, Hey, if youhave two Oscars, that's a PhD.
Or like sometimes you get honorarydoctorates, but, if you sit there and say,
all right, you got to have a master's, yougot to have this, you got to have that.
(24:19):
Photographers are going to do that,and what about people who later in life
the other route is you teach workshops,but we're all doing workshops, it's
not as much money as you'd think.
University came to me and said,teach two or three classes a week.
This is what will giveyou, health plan and stuff.
I would do it.
They need to be like, this is art program.
We should not have the samerequirements as a computer science
(24:42):
program or a biology program.
We should say, all right, careeradds up and this guy's career, is
amazing or this girl and say, allright, this is equivalent is those
students will learn a lot, from theirstudents and be much more prepared.
Mica (24:56):
I want to close out today's interview by asking
you about achondroplasia.
I feel like that's such aninteresting thing to know about you.
I've heard of the limblengthening surgeries.
I watched a documentary about it and Iwas just like, Oh my gosh, that sounds
like a really tough thing to go through.
(25:17):
What's something people don'tknow about that time in your life?
Kris (25:20):
I went through limb lengthening starting at the age of 10.
I had three operations on my legsand one operation on my arms.
The last one being when I was around 15.
I predict the height was four, three.
My now high is five two.
So it's definitely made it much easierto operate in the photography world.
I hid it the first half of my career.
Now, one thing too, I think was reallygreat, going back to branding it's about
(25:44):
showing what makes you more unique.
The industry's changed a lot more.
It's not all white dudes.
It's still a lot but usingwhat makes it unique.
And I've found like sharing my story.
I've done some projects.
I have a current project I'm working on.
It really helps that part.
I've even applied for some grants,like Getty has this disability.
I've seen grants for people of color.
(26:05):
I've seen grants for women of color.
So it's shifted from where I felt like Ihad to hide who I was and now showing it.
I have a regular height son.
It was a one in two chance thathe would be born achondroplasia.
His mother is average height.
But it's definitely, create somegreat situations where I get in
spots other photographers couldn't.
My joke is when I was in D. C., you seeall the ABC, NBC cameras up high, and
(26:29):
all the tall photographers kneeling.
I would stand in between the cameras.
I didn't, I didn't have my knee, killingmy knees on cement in front of the Supreme
Court on a hundred degrees summer day,with the ground being about 200 degrees.
It's definitely been tough too.
Carrying around heavy gear andeverything else, but it's definitely
has helped me do this career.
Mica (26:48):
What you said before about feeling like you needed to hide that
part of yourself, but now putting thatout there saying, this is who I am.
This is me.
I had a really tough childhood and Iwas in foster care when I was a kid.
I kept a lot of that kindof behind closed doors.
Cause I'm like, I don't want,people feeling sorry for me.
(27:09):
I don't want their pityor anything like that.
But now I feel like it's really importantfor me to talk about these things
because maybe there's a teen or a youthwho is also going through a really
tough childhood and they see someoneof a similar background doing something
they could envision themselves doing.
And they're like if theycan do it, I can do it.
(27:30):
Sometimes you have to be the firstperson to put the flag up there and
say, Hey, community come join me.
Let's show that we are here.
I feel like the tide is turning asfar as what kind of photographers
companies are wanting to hire.
More and more people of color,more people with disabilities
are getting hired for jobs.
(27:51):
It feels good to know that you arehiring outside of the box, why hide
that, show that, be proud of that.
You don't know who's going to see thisand be inspired by it maybe that'll prompt
them to go after their dreams and maybesomeone else might be talking about you.
I learned through a family friend.
(28:11):
They have a cousin that says they wantedto be a photographer, but they don't
want to be a wedding photographer.
They're like, I hate weddings andwould never want to be one, but I feel
like that's the only way I can be one.
And my friend told her cousins like youshould go look at my friend Mica's page.
She's a food photographer.
She doesn't shoot weddings.
She's like, Oh, I didn'tknow I could do that.
That's the thing.
(28:32):
If you are the person representingyour community, there's someone
out there who didn't know it waspossible to do what you're doing.
Maybe they feel like something is holdingthem back from being that photographer.
You're showing thatthis is not stopping me.
I'm still doing this.
Kris (28:51):
Look at Simone Biles she came from foster care and got
adopted by her grandparents.
Photographers not going through theeducational routes and the old routes
that we used to have has limit towhat those new photographers are
thinking they can make money at.
I hate to use term, I say as asurburban housewife, you go, Oh,
I can make money at families.
Cause that's what's around me.
Or I can make money at headshots.
(29:12):
or But going back to your point.
There's so many other organizations,like the Luupe, which I know
as a lot of a women's focus.
I think Collective.
There's also Brent Lewis runs diversity,
Women's Soldiers in Washington.
I also took a long step away, just theLPA, which is Little People of America,
I just recently joined, but wasn'tpart of that community for a long time.
(29:32):
I've reentered and I'm exploringthat, seeing I'll keep my
own horn like a trailblazer.
I found one other little person inphotography and they did weddings.
But I found nobody in the commercialeditorial, restaurant industries.
Not everybody has had limb lengthening,but I'm like, all right, like, even
if we didn't, but it's kind of saying,you know what, guys, we can do this.
Like Peter Dinklage, broke alot of barriers because he did
(29:54):
roles that weren't just a littlesidekick or the plain funny roles.
He actually broke into where he'sa main actor and a serious actor.
He was a groundbreaker.
Like you said your family member.
I didn't know I could go shootrestaurants and food or there's
the commercial world or journalism.
There's some kid, who lives in myschool town, Frostburg, Maryland.
(30:15):
40 years ago, you didn't knowanybody existed like you, unless
you moved to New York or a big city.
Now you can go online and find there'sanother kid like you just down the
street and you can become friends.
The internet has allowed some ofthe organization portals and you can
search, Hey, what food photographersare in this region, let me hit
them up or like groups and stuff.
So I wish the organizationskeep growing, cause I think
(30:38):
that's a big, important thing.
So people realize there's more avenuesjust within this business for who they
are and they can take who they are andhelp make their brand, to help drive
their business and drive their passion.
Mica (30:51):
My final question for you you talked a little bit about Stacey Swiderski.
Stacey, we're having you on the show.
I've never heard of phototherapy andI'm very curious to hear about that
and what prompted you to contactStacey and what did you learn about
yourself after your session with her?
Kris (31:13):
So phone therapy is a consulting session, I went in and she's like, where
do you want to go with your career?
What do you want to do?
What are you shooting now?
One question, she asked me, it'slike, if you could have your dream
shoot today, what would it be?
It has helped open my eyes to what I havedone that I might have not thought were
within the food and restaurant genres.
I mentioned stuff oncapitol hill and lobbying.
(31:33):
It gave me a new perspective at old work.
As I get older in this business,I'm a big believer in consultants.
I go to therapy, and it givesme a different perspective,
meeting with other photographersand talking about giving back.
I highly recommend her.
Spending money sucks, but.
Mica (31:48):
You're investing.
It's an investment.
Yeah.
Kris (31:52):
You know, it's and I think you know, going back to marketing, I
would pay any amount of money forthis if I could sit there say this
person sees my post this person seesmy post this person see my post.
I would love that.
And that's the thing too, like I'ma big believer in money buys time.
So one of the other reasons too is, havingconsultant is instead of me, going back
to my logo, spending time to design itmyself, which I took graphic design.
(32:17):
I have a minor and Ihaven't touched in 20 years.
All right, Kobe, you go do witha portfolio or this and while I'm
working and that's the one thing too,I'm trying to work on in my business
is, bring on a bookkeeper, bring on aretailer, bring on a virtual assistant.
A great thing to watch is Abstracton Netflix for a book time and they
(32:37):
show his studio and there is aboutfour or five people working in their
apartments, two years at a time.
And they had to retouch.
He had an assistant, hehas, the office manager.
What's he doing?
He's shooting, he shotColin Powell one day.
But he's focusing on that, or he's goingout speaking by all these other things,
happening.
(32:58):
I think, you got to spendmoney to make money.
Mica (33:00):
Oh man, Kris, I could talk to you.
All day,
Kris (33:05):
We had you like part three.
Mica (33:07):
I'm so open to a part three and part four and five and six and seven eight,
because I really enjoy talking to you.
I just love yourperspective on everything.
Where can the listeners find youand follow you and support you?
Kris (33:23):
My website is Krisconnor.
com, K R I S C O N N O R.Facebook is Krisconnorphotography.
Social media on Instagram isConnorKris, so my name flipped.
And I'm on Twitter, not as active,and that's ConnorKris as well.
LinkedIn is just Connor.
So really, you Google my name that'sthe one great thing about my spelling.
(33:43):
I'm the first thing that pops up.
So just Google Kris Conner and thengo to where you want to go from there.
Mica (33:48):
Thank you so much for being on the show.
I enjoy everything about this and I knowyou got things to do, but I really will
keep you all day here if you let me, sothank you so much for being on the show.
Welcome to the 61st episode of the Savory Shot.
(00:06):
A podcast about the art and soulof working in food photography.
Y'all know who I be, I'm yourhost with the most, Mica McCook.
I'm a food and beverage photographerbased out of Austin, Texas.
First and always, I'd like to startthis show off by thanking y'all, the
(00:27):
listeners, for continuing to showup and show out for the Savory Shot.
I've said this once, I've said it twice,and I'll say it every single time.
This show wouldn't exist withouty'all, the guests, the listeners.
Y'all keep me going.
So thank you for beinghere again and again.
(00:48):
And if this is your first timejoining us on The Savory Shot,
welcome to the Hot Mess Express.
I hope you like it here, butlet's talk about today's episode.
Today's guest is someone I'mexcited to introduce to y'all.
We made an instant connection andI'm thrilled that we crossed paths.
(01:10):
So without further ado, furtherdelay, further roadblock, I'd like
to introduce y'all to Kris Connor.
Kris is an award winning NewYork based celebrity chef
and restaurant photographer.
Who has been behind the camerafor over 30 years, y'all.
(01:30):
He seamlessly merges artistryand culinary storytelling in
collaborations with chefs like CarlaHall, Wolfgang Puck, and Bobby Flay.
You've seen his work on brands likeFood Network and Casamigos Tequila.
Born with achondroplasia, he underwentmultiple limb lengthening operations
(01:52):
that gave him a unique outlook on life.
This distinct viewpoint is evidentin his photography as he seeks to
highlight the beauty and craftsmanshipand both food and those who prepare it.
Whether it's for a campaign, editorialor a special project, he is excited to
(02:14):
collaborate with y'all and showcase theart of food and the chefs behind it.
Y'all, I hope you enjoy thisepisode as much as I did.
I love meeting and talking withphotographers who have been in the
industry for as long as Kris has.
(02:34):
He's truly seen the photography industrygrow and change and evolve over the years.
I feel like his insights andperspective are one that every growing
photographer should take heed to.
I'm not going to getinto a rant about that.
So grab your coffee, kickback, and let's start the show.
(03:32):
Kris, I just want to say thank youso much for being on the Savory Shot.
I'm excited for this conversation.
I want to start by asking youabout the beard because I need
to know the story behind it.
It's part of your branding and your logo.
When did this luscious,gorgeous beard of yours begin?
Kris (03:55):
The beard start actually winter of 2011.
I always kind of have had facialhair for most of my adult life.
I used to have like little chinpatch in my 20s and then for a
long time I did a scruffy face.
And winter in Thailand didn't shavefor a while, but it was like hot.
So I'm like, all right, I'llshave and then when I got back to
US, it was winter time with DC.
(04:16):
So i'm like, all rightperfect time to grow it.
It used to be clean and thenover time it got longer it's been
about the length it's been now,but yeah, it's been really funny.
I noticed definitelyin the DC dating area.
I was single.
And just started online dating LikeHinge, I felt like it helped me stand out.
It definitely helped me set apart.
(04:37):
DC is a very clean shaven, I would sayVineyard Vines ad, Abcrombie Fish ad type
of town And so it helped me step apartfrom my competition and then it just grew.
I started Twitter for it that alot of my clients like, and I've
done some social media with it.
In 2022, I went through a rebrandand had this designer Kirby Rouse,
(04:58):
he created one with a beard.
The joking thing I say is I can'tcut the man bun or the beard or
have to go through another logo.
Uh, but I mean i've had it for 13 years.
I don't think it's going anywhere.
Mica (05:10):
No, and nor should it.
What kind of maintenance goesinto maintaining it and keeping
it looking like it's gorgeous.
Kris (05:19):
I know I need to create a little fan club for it.
The daily maintenance is not too bad.
I wash it two or three times a week.
Brush it.
Put some beard balm or beard oil in it.
About once a month , I'llgo with a barber.
When I'm in D. C. visiting,I go Help on barber.
And when I'm back in New York, I goKramp's Barber in Bronxville and have a
barber do, because it's too long for meto do it, trying to look in the mirror.
(05:39):
I have even a beard straightener.
So it's definitely, I have myown little bag of beard products,
brushes, combs and, a straightener.
So it does have its own thing.
Because it'll get, likehoney gets stuck in there.
It's definitely its ownliving element in a sense.
Mica (05:54):
You were talking earlier about how you went through the rebrand.
The challenge as a commercialphotographer is how do you present
yourself professionally, butstill keep that personal touch?
They have all these differenttips and advice about what
your website should look like.
How do you put out your personalstory in a photo or in a logo?
(06:19):
I feel like your logo with your beardlike that just says, Okay, this is
something that really stands out.
Was that intentional whenhe presented that logo?
Kris (06:30):
As we went through, we tried different logos and
went through different rounds.
We started to see that kindof morphed into its own thing.
He even sent me mock ups ofwhat it would look like in a
backpack or a hoodie or a beanie.
My brother, his girlfriend worksin the coffee industry and I'm like
maybe do small batch coffee with it.
It's kind of morphed into a thing that canrun off if I want to create other avenues.
(06:53):
I see so many photographersuse the aperture ring.
Then you're stuck only using thatfor photography where I want a
logo that more about my personalityand who I am also could transcribe
across other genres of businessthat it wasn't just stuck in this.
Cause, they say once you builda brand versus commodity.
Then, it's endless.
(07:14):
I've thought about getting a stamp.
I said, badges is on my email headers.
On my signature is my Instagram profile.
We also worked with acolor palette as well.
We have a teal and then a plumcolor and then the gold color.
The font I use is called Corn Dog.
Mica (07:30):
Oh, I love that.
font.
Kris (07:32):
Yeah, so there's like a bubble, like, he's an amazing designer.
Unfortunately he's gone staffed somewhere,so he's left the freelance world.
Everything from the envelope, toemail signature, letterhead I can put
on packages, I can put on a t shirt.
So it just really hasbecome its own thing.
I've, I've seen very positive.
(07:53):
Um, there's, I mean, there arealso some other consultants that
I've come across that are like,Oh, maybe you change it, you know?
So you're always going toget different opinions.
It matches well in therestaurant chef world.
The last couple of yearsnarrowed down into that genre,
I definitely see it fits better.
And now I'm starting to color grademy images to see about matching it.
(08:14):
I noticed like my food portfolio,had a lot of warm images.
I'm not like, when I was like foodphotographers, I see like a lot of bright
color, like mine more like homey, warmso it kind of just really fits in well
and shapes the way I shoot and tonemy photos playing with the presets and
stuff and kind of create around it.
So it was a reallycoherent body all around.
Mica (08:35):
I like that you said the logo and branding you've created,
can go across multiple industries.
That's super important.
I actually just went through myown rebrand, my website debuted,
and it was probably, one ofthe most difficult experiences.
The first time I did a brand, itwas under the name Austin Food
(08:58):
Guide, I started Austin Food Guideto practice my food photography.
I mostly worked with restaurants.
Most of these restaurants that wouldreach out to me, hadn't realized they
were already following me on Instagram.
When I finished school, it feltnatural to continue under Austin Food
Guide and make it more of official.
(09:19):
But then, pandemic hit, allmy restaurant shoots just meh.
And then I got into commercialstudio and there was that disconnect.
Which is why I decidedto rebrand under my name.
And it was difficult because AustinFood Guide felt so personal to me.
But I'm not hiding behindAustin Food Guide anymore.
(09:43):
It took a lot of being brave enough toembrace that and being okay with that.
And then trusting the process.
And trusting that the peoplethat I'm paying to do this for
me know what they're doing.
You have a really interestingbackground on how you made your
way towards food photography, youstarted in photojournalism, you
(10:04):
covered politics got into portraits.
So I'm curious to hear aboutwhat inspired your move from
photojournalism, portraitureto eventually food photography.
Kris (10:17):
I've had a very long history with it.
Actually the other day on my Facebookmemories was me holding the last
physical copy of the Washington PostExpress, which is a newspaper that
the Washington Post produced thatthey gave out at Metro Stops in DC.
I got my start about early 09, shootingtheir weekend edition, doing restaurant
(10:39):
reviews and food reviews for them.
DC food scene wasn't closeto what it was a day.
And then fell out for a while.
It was more shootingthe entertainment world.
I work in the spectrum wherecelebrity and entertainment meet food.
Started doing a lot of brandingshoots for like Pepsi and Bud Light.
(10:59):
2016, I became one of thehouse photographers for New
York Wine and Food Festival.
Shooting dinners where theybring in celebrity chefs like
Michael Ortega and John George.
People pay tickets to eat dinnersare cooked by these people.
Also cooking workshops from 2017 to 2022.
I did a column with Judy Ju inOK Magazine where she interviewed
(11:22):
her celebrity chef friends.
Over the last couple of years,I've been doing my rebrand.
We narrowed it down to celebrityportraiture, corporate portraiture, food.
I took 2023 off for some physicalreasons and to have some surgery.
As I come out, I'm like, all right,I want to narrow it down even more.
So I'm like, you have this bigbody of work with celebrity chefs,
(11:43):
which, I shot for Food Networkto Beat Bobby Flay and Unwrapped.
So narrowed down to, celebrity chef,hospitality, restaurant section.
That's really my thing.
I'm either comfortable on a TV set, orin a busy Michelin star restaurant.
Which incorporates a lot ofthe photojournalism that we're
(12:04):
doing when I was shooting forNew York Wine and Food Festival.
I was shooting a lot behindthe scenes while they're in a
kitchen, preparing and making.
I actually just did aphoto therapy session.
This consultant named Stacy.
Mica (12:16):
Think it's Dipper, Switt, Switter, Switterski.
Swiderski, Stacey, I'm gonna, I'mgonna invite you to the show so you
can tell us and the world how toproperly pronounce your last name.
Kris (12:31):
It made me look back she's like, what do you want to do though?
I'm like, I really want to go food.
I've been doing some headshot work, butthe avenue I'm not really interested in.
It made me take a step back.
Now kind of doing anaudit of my body of work.
For example, in 2012, I did ajob, a chef actions network.
Some of the top chef judges were onCapitol Hill lobbying for programs.
(12:55):
Now I'm trying to seethis political connection.
I'm like, all right, what other times?
Like I've done workwith Save the Children.
I'm trying to see more of thelobbying and political side connection
to food, because that's a bigtopic right now in this election.
Food cause, childcareand all these things.
And it's really connection with humanity.
So it's now taking all this andseeing how going back to branding.
(13:19):
How's my body work different?
I think in this day and age, yougotta know what you want to do.
And we try to overthink things.
In the food and restaurant genre hasreally helped me a lot to deal with
people and get a chef in front of mewho doesn't want to be photographed,
but be able to break down that barrier.
Mica (13:38):
Oh man you hit something on the nail about chefs and there not
being enough portraitures of them.
What's been your experience withthat, though, with reaching out
and connecting with chefs andbuilding relationships with them?
Kris (13:52):
It's a slow process.
They work a lot.
Five, six days a week, seven hours.
So you gotta be flexible.
You hear our parents storieswhere our dads ask our moms out 10
times and they finally said, yes.
I think it's really lettingthese relationships marinate,
going by where they work, andjust have a beer or have a meal.
I met Chester that way.
There's a little restaurant in cityIsland, I met the chef on a Saturday
(14:15):
afternoon in between their busy times.
I found out he worked for John George.
We've been in communication.
There's a photographer, JimmySullivan, he came from the chef's
side and he talks about it.
Just really letting these relationshipsmarinate and realize this is a
marathon and not a sprint, right?
I think so many people are like,all right, you need to build,
definitely with social media.
(14:35):
With social media is the part thatturns that we feel like we got always
be producing content we always gotto be showing something so it's like
you're not willing to let things likeprojects marinate and take their time.
Mica (14:48):
Oh, the word you're saying, marinate, like that.
Not to be corny about it, but chef's kiss.
The pressure to constantly post, here'ssomething new, here's something new.
When I was feeling pressured topost on Instagram three times a
week, it killed my creativity.
Kris (15:09):
National food days.
Like you're like strappedand you're you're like, oh
my god, like and you're like.
Mica (15:13):
Gotta find a burger.
Kris (15:15):
I like what burger and you're like, and, you know, there was a
time where I'm like, all right, eventhough it's not the greatest picture.
Now I'm like, is this reallygoing to bring new business?
Mica (15:25):
That brings me to a question.
It's hard for some photographersto be objective about their work.
Do you have like a checklistor checkpoints of what you
determine to be share worthy?
And if so, what are some of those things?
Is it intuition?
How do you know when you havesomething really worthy of sharing
(15:45):
and how do you accept when you don't?
Kris (15:50):
Gotten a lot better at accepting that I don't.
I've never gotten older, just comes withbeing in the business for a long time.
There's been many times I've doneprojects that I thought were amazing.
This happens a lot in the entertainmenttelevision world where you'll
work on a project, definitely ina commercial advertising world.
And it just gets scrapped.
Those pictures will neversee the light of day.
(16:11):
And I've done products that weremonths long and it just done.
Deciding what to post, I think thenumber one question I said, ask
myself is, does this fit my brand?
Does this fit the work I want to go for?
I shoot a lot with my X100 but alot of my client work is I use our,
(16:31):
strobes and stuff and I'm trying tofind, how do I find this balance that
looks like a coherent body of work?
Today actually came up on Facebookmemories where I did a premiere with
Brad Pitt and Tommy Lee Jones for AdArtar, maybe in about like space in 2019.
I'm like, Oh, this is really cool.
But does this fit who I wantto get hired by and for, and
(16:54):
does this fit my buyer work?
And I'm finding that, I was actuallyjust thinking that this morning,
I feel like about 90 percent ofwhat I've shot, if I took it, would
not see the light of day today.
Just cause that's not where my work is.
It might mean a lot to me, but,will that translate to the audience?
When I used to do portfolio reviews fora couple of colleges, you get these young
kids, and they're like, I spent eighthours on this photo, I love this photo.
(17:18):
I'm like, okay, if you wantto keep it, great, but keep
it in your print portfolio.
There's work in my print portfolio,and there's work on my website.
Social media.
You have to think when youpost that photo to Instagram,
how would the audience see it?
Do they see as important?
Do they see as a good image?
Do they see it as, thisis a Kris Conner image.
I strive to get the point that ifsomebody looks at one of my photos,
(17:40):
they go, all right, that's Kris Conner.
I saw a local magazine and I knowsome photographers, I couldn't
already say who that photographer was.
Mica (17:49):
Just based on the photo?
Kris (17:51):
On the photo, the lighting, I'm like, that's Scott.
We meet for coffee and talk about that.
Don't be afraid because you did thisreally great job for Nike or Applebee's.
There's a way to let people knowthat you have the client, but if
it doesn't fit your body of work,then maybe doing the tear sheets.
That's what tear sheetsections are great for.
I look at some photographersyou go to their tear sheet.
(18:12):
section and it looks totallydifferent than their portraits.
I think the third one, ishow often am I posting?
Have I posted something similar recently?
So it doesn't become repetitive.
Mica (18:24):
Those are good questions to ask yourself.
You mentioned earlier that youdid portfolio reviews, that you
gave portfolio reviews to otherphotographers, and you're part of
different Facebook groups and forums.
I love that you are giving backto the photography community.
Why is this important to you to dothese portfolio views and to be part of
(18:45):
these groups and to share the knowledgethat you've gained over the years?
Kris (18:49):
One reason is learn from my mistakes.
Learn from what I made wrong.
What I've noticed is photographersare coming in because it's so easy.
They're not going the traditional routelike school or through organizations.
I've had, when I was part of ASMP, it wasAmerican Society of Media Photographers,
and they do magazine editorial.
We're part of that, and then wedid APA, Advertising Photographers
(19:11):
of America, and now they'reAmerican Photographic Association.
But the point I was getting to is, I seeso many photographers in these groups that
don't even know they own the copyright.
I remember years ago, I was innightclubs, and a club owner.
We got an argument.
I said, I pay you, I ownthe club, I own the rights.
I'm like, all right, go talk to a lawyer.
It's just that knowledge ofhow they'll handle things.
(19:33):
The clients like they haven't paid me yet.
All right, send me acease and desist letter.
I'm big on a deposit retainer.
Now, we both have skin in the gameit doesn't happen often, but I
did have a sushi delivery company,they had their creative director on
site, and she verifies things, theowner, in the end, not being happy.
I'm like, Hey, we cando a reshoot for this.
And he just cut communication.
(19:54):
My production fee was covered.
He didn't get any of the images.
So it's that knowledge.
And it's also just, sharing.
I've learned a lot.
I got my start on Capitol Hill in 04.
I was next to guys who were Pulitzerthe prize winning photojournalist for
Time Magazine, Newsweek, New York Times.
And some of them literally grabbedme by the shirts a few times, say,
Hey, go here and help me along.
(20:17):
But they didn't have to, they're like, Oh,here's this young 22 year old guy up here.
And it's going back to branding.
Can they take my clients?
Maybe they could, butI'm not really caring.
Help the next generation, that'sgoing to keep this business going
because unfortunately, we got AInow, everybody's a photographer.
It's not dead and it's notdying, but it is changing.
Mica (20:40):
I saw a LinkedIn post yesterday about how photography programs
are taught by professors who havenever actually been in the field.
So they can't really tell you what's what.
And I mentioned that this goesaround to most arts based programs.
How do we get active working photographersto teach in a collegiate setting?
(21:05):
Because you're right, toget into photography, you
don't need to go to college.
But for those who feel like they do,they're setting themselves up for
disappointment because they're beingtaught by professors who went straight
into teaching right outside of school,so they have no actual experience.
(21:27):
I would like to know from you, whatincentive would you need to teach
in a collegiate setting, if offered?
Would you need any convincing?
Kris (21:38):
I'll be honest.
I wouldn't need it much.
I would love to do it, I'm getting older,so it's like going out in the field.
I would love to teach the next generation.
My biggest complaint about a lot ofart schools in New York, I was on that
crusade for a while, anti art college kid.
They had a panel and I'm like, what is,and I asked is like, what is the R O I?
On your guys at school, causeyou got a 30, 40 grand a year.
(22:00):
What is it?
And nobody really wanted to answerthat because they didn't have that.
But I'm like, you're feeling thesekids up that they get out, they spend
four years, they can't even do a simplecontract, they can't do no market.
And some schools do a little better,but, licensing, all this stuff, great.
The teaching is the art of it,but you got to learn the business.
The old route was you go assist.
(22:23):
I was mentoring a buddy earlier, he saidhis master's was assisting in New York and
he assists a lot of working photographers.
So you have people that also like, I'mgoing to be a professional photographer, I
made a, you know, a studio in my kitchen.
And now I'm going to be a foodphotographer, which is great.
But they're not knowing, allright, how do I license this image?
(22:43):
How do I, like I said, write acontract, just write in the proposal.
A lot of those photographersare undervaluing themselves.
Mica (22:52):
What I loved about my program is that they at least tried to teach us the
business side, but there just was toomuch information to cram into one class.
A lot of lessons I've learned fromother photographers from workshops
that I've taken outside of school.
I've had to really go out ofmy way to learn on my own.
(23:14):
Those who can't do teach, it can'tapply to an arts based program because
we need the ones who can do to teach.
Yeah.
So how do we get the ones who can doto teach, what incentives do they need?
What requirements do colleges need to makeexceptions because they can't treat art
(23:34):
space programs the same way that you woulda business or a computer science major.
Maybe someone doesn't have aMaster's or a PhD in photography, but
they've been working for 30 years.
They are way more qualified to teach than,Kevin, who got his PhD, but never actually
worked as a freelancing photographer.
Kris (23:57):
You're saying you came from theater.
Look at acting, how many actors actuallywent to acting school and have a degree
in acting, but you're like, Oh, theycan't teach, because they didn't go that.
But it's like, Hey, if youhave two Oscars, that's a PhD.
Or like sometimes you get honorarydoctorates, but, if you sit there and say,
all right, you got to have a master's, yougot to have this, you got to have that.
(24:19):
Photographers are going to do that,and what about people who later in life
the other route is you teach workshops,but we're all doing workshops, it's
not as much money as you'd think.
University came to me and said,teach two or three classes a week.
This is what will giveyou, health plan and stuff.
I would do it.
They need to be like, this is art program.
We should not have the samerequirements as a computer science
(24:42):
program or a biology program.
We should say, all right, careeradds up and this guy's career, is
amazing or this girl and say, allright, this is equivalent is those
students will learn a lot, from theirstudents and be much more prepared.
Mica (24:56):
I want to close out today's interview by asking
you about achondroplasia.
I feel like that's such aninteresting thing to know about you.
I've heard of the limblengthening surgeries.
I watched a documentary about it and Iwas just like, Oh my gosh, that sounds
like a really tough thing to go through.
(25:17):
What's something people don'tknow about that time in your life?
Kris (25:20):
I went through limb lengthening starting at the age of 10.
I had three operations on my legsand one operation on my arms.
The last one being when I was around 15.
I predict the height was four, three.
My now high is five two.
So it's definitely made it much easierto operate in the photography world.
I hid it the first half of my career.
Now, one thing too, I think was reallygreat, going back to branding it's about
(25:44):
showing what makes you more unique.
The industry's changed a lot more.
It's not all white dudes.
It's still a lot but usingwhat makes it unique.
And I've found like sharing my story.
I've done some projects.
I have a current project I'm working on.
It really helps that part.
I've even applied for some grants,like Getty has this disability.
I've seen grants for people of color.
(26:05):
I've seen grants for women of color.
So it's shifted from where I felt like Ihad to hide who I was and now showing it.
I have a regular height son.
It was a one in two chance thathe would be born achondroplasia.
His mother is average height.
But it's definitely, create somegreat situations where I get in
spots other photographers couldn't.
My joke is when I was in D. C., you seeall the ABC, NBC cameras up high, and
(26:29):
all the tall photographers kneeling.
I would stand in between the cameras.
I didn't, I didn't have my knee, killingmy knees on cement in front of the Supreme
Court on a hundred degrees summer day,with the ground being about 200 degrees.
It's definitely been tough too.
Carrying around heavy gear andeverything else, but it's definitely
has helped me do this career.
Mica (26:48):
What you said before about feeling like you needed to hide that
part of yourself, but now putting thatout there saying, this is who I am.
This is me.
I had a really tough childhood and Iwas in foster care when I was a kid.
I kept a lot of that kindof behind closed doors.
Cause I'm like, I don't want,people feeling sorry for me.
(27:09):
I don't want their pityor anything like that.
But now I feel like it's really importantfor me to talk about these things
because maybe there's a teen or a youthwho is also going through a really
tough childhood and they see someoneof a similar background doing something
they could envision themselves doing.
And they're like if theycan do it, I can do it.
(27:30):
Sometimes you have to be the firstperson to put the flag up there and
say, Hey, community come join me.
Let's show that we are here.
I feel like the tide is turning asfar as what kind of photographers
companies are wanting to hire.
More and more people of color,more people with disabilities
are getting hired for jobs.
(27:51):
It feels good to know that you arehiring outside of the box, why hide
that, show that, be proud of that.
You don't know who's going to see thisand be inspired by it maybe that'll prompt
them to go after their dreams and maybesomeone else might be talking about you.
I learned through a family friend.
(28:11):
They have a cousin that says they wantedto be a photographer, but they don't
want to be a wedding photographer.
They're like, I hate weddings andwould never want to be one, but I feel
like that's the only way I can be one.
And my friend told her cousins like youshould go look at my friend Mica's page.
She's a food photographer.
She doesn't shoot weddings.
She's like, Oh, I didn'tknow I could do that.
That's the thing.
(28:32):
If you are the person representingyour community, there's someone
out there who didn't know it waspossible to do what you're doing.
Maybe they feel like something is holdingthem back from being that photographer.
You're showing thatthis is not stopping me.
I'm still doing this.
Kris (28:51):
Look at Simone Biles she came from foster care and got
adopted by her grandparents.
Photographers not going through theeducational routes and the old routes
that we used to have has limit towhat those new photographers are
thinking they can make money at.
I hate to use term, I say as asurburban housewife, you go, Oh,
I can make money at families.
Cause that's what's around me.
Or I can make money at headshots.
(29:12):
or But going back to your point.
There's so many other organizations,like the Luupe, which I know
as a lot of a women's focus.
I think Collective.
There's also Brent Lewis runs diversity,
Women's Soldiers in Washington.
I also took a long step away, just theLPA, which is Little People of America,
I just recently joined, but wasn'tpart of that community for a long time.
(29:32):
I've reentered and I'm exploringthat, seeing I'll keep my
own horn like a trailblazer.
I found one other little person inphotography and they did weddings.
But I found nobody in the commercialeditorial, restaurant industries.
Not everybody has had limb lengthening,but I'm like, all right, like, even
if we didn't, but it's kind of saying,you know what, guys, we can do this.
Like Peter Dinklage, broke alot of barriers because he did
(29:54):
roles that weren't just a littlesidekick or the plain funny roles.
He actually broke into where he'sa main actor and a serious actor.
He was a groundbreaker.
Like you said your family member.
I didn't know I could go shootrestaurants and food or there's
the commercial world or journalism.
There's some kid, who lives in myschool town, Frostburg, Maryland.
(30:15):
40 years ago, you didn't knowanybody existed like you, unless
you moved to New York or a big city.
Now you can go online and find there'sanother kid like you just down the
street and you can become friends.
The internet has allowed some ofthe organization portals and you can
search, Hey, what food photographersare in this region, let me hit
them up or like groups and stuff.
So I wish the organizationskeep growing, cause I think
(30:38):
that's a big, important thing.
So people realize there's more avenuesjust within this business for who they
are and they can take who they are andhelp make their brand, to help drive
their business and drive their passion.
Mica (30:51):
My final question for you you talked a little bit about Stacey Swiderski.
Stacey, we're having you on the show.
I've never heard of phototherapy andI'm very curious to hear about that
and what prompted you to contactStacey and what did you learn about
yourself after your session with her?
Kris (31:13):
So phone therapy is a consulting session, I went in and she's like, where
do you want to go with your career?
What do you want to do?
What are you shooting now?
One question, she asked me, it'slike, if you could have your dream
shoot today, what would it be?
It has helped open my eyes to what I havedone that I might have not thought were
within the food and restaurant genres.
I mentioned stuff oncapitol hill and lobbying.
(31:33):
It gave me a new perspective at old work.
As I get older in this business,I'm a big believer in consultants.
I go to therapy, and it givesme a different perspective,
meeting with other photographersand talking about giving back.
I highly recommend her.
Spending money sucks, but.
Mica (31:48):
You're investing.
It's an investment.
Yeah.
Kris (31:52):
You know, it's and I think you know, going back to marketing, I
would pay any amount of money forthis if I could sit there say this
person sees my post this person seesmy post this person see my post.
I would love that.
And that's the thing too, like I'ma big believer in money buys time.
So one of the other reasons too is, havingconsultant is instead of me, going back
to my logo, spending time to design itmyself, which I took graphic design.
(32:17):
I have a minor and Ihaven't touched in 20 years.
All right, Kobe, you go do witha portfolio or this and while I'm
working and that's the one thing too,I'm trying to work on in my business
is, bring on a bookkeeper, bring on aretailer, bring on a virtual assistant.
A great thing to watch is Abstracton Netflix for a book time and they
(32:37):
show his studio and there is aboutfour or five people working in their
apartments, two years at a time.
And they had to retouch.
He had an assistant, hehas, the office manager.
What's he doing?
He's shooting, he shotColin Powell one day.
But he's focusing on that, or he's goingout speaking by all these other things,
happening.
(32:58):
I think, you got to spendmoney to make money.
Mica (33:00):
Oh man, Kris, I could talk to you.
All day,
Kris (33:05):
We had you like part three.
Mica (33:07):
I'm so open to a part three and part four and five and six and seven eight,
because I really enjoy talking to you.
I just love yourperspective on everything.
Where can the listeners find youand follow you and support you?
Kris (33:23):
My website is Krisconnor.
com, K R I S C O N N O R.Facebook is Krisconnorphotography.
Social media on Instagram isConnorKris, so my name flipped.
And I'm on Twitter, not as active,and that's ConnorKris as well.
LinkedIn is just Connor.
So really, you Google my name that'sthe one great thing about my spelling.
(33:43):
I'm the first thing that pops up.
So just Google Kris Conner and thengo to where you want to go from there.
Mica (33:48):
Thank you so much for being on the show.
I enjoy everything about this and I knowyou got things to do, but I really will
keep you all day here if you let me, sothank you so much for being on the show.
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