Featured Photographer // Jaimie Nicole Krause // St. Louis, Missouri

I want to introduce y’all to a friend of mine – her name is Jaimie and she’s a photographer in Missouri! While we’ve never met in person, we’ve found ourselves in the same photography circle for the last few months – isn’t the power of Facebook amazing? She has an AMAZING guest post coming up tomorrow, but I thought it would be fun to do a little interview with her & show off some of her latest beautiful images first! Do her a favor & leave her some love in the comments!

Headshot images courtesy of Katharine Roberds Photography

About Jaimie..

I am a Missouri girl.  My studio is in south St. Louis city, a block or so from the famous Hill neighborhood.  I live in a rural area though.  My house is surrounded by farm fields, at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, in a little town called West Alton.

Behind the camera is my safe place.  I feel comfortable there, and I find myself to be a heck of a lot more outgoing than usual when I’ve got that hefty black chunk of metal and glass in front of my face.  I’m a little awkward, a little goofy, and I do whatever it takes to get my clients comfortable and keep the mood light, even if it means putting myself on the spot!

In front of the camera, I’m still awkward (and possibly even more so), but a little more quiet.  I’m super self-conscious; I don’t have a good side, and I feel like the camera adds 100 lbs.  I’m fairly open about my insecurities, because I finally realize that everyone else has them, too.  Being aware of that is what helps me relate to my clients and make them feel more comfortable.

Away from my camera, I’m probably sitting on my couch, surrounded by my two cats and two dogs (and I wouldn’t have it any other way).

Jaimie’s Photography Journey..

It’s hard to say what sparked my interest in photography. I’ve always loved photographs.  When I was little, I had a book about horses.  It was my favorite book, so everyone assumed I just loved horses, but in reality, I loved it because of the photographs.  It was the only book I had that was a book of photographs, and not illustrations.

I was given a point-and-shoot camera when I was 6, and unlike most children (or at least my siblings), I saved each of my 24 frames for things that I deemed to be spectacular.  Like sunsets, or beautiful freshly fallen snow, or when my cats did cute things (all of which I still compulsively photograph). In high school, I went to a tech school, where I studied graphic design.  By far, my favorite thing to do was to scour the storage cabinets for old 1960s and 70s design magazines and study the photographs.  For my high school graduation gift, my parents got me a camera- a 1970’s Pentax SuperME with a 50mm lens.  I took my first photography class a few months later, and I was absolutely hooked by the magic of the darkroom.

In art school (I have an AFA in Photography), I swore I would never photograph weddings.  I was going to be a fine art photographer, or maybe a photojournalist.

And here I am.  A wedding & engagement photographer.  Well… Mainly.  I also shoot boudoir.

For me, the fun in shooting a wedding is knowing WHAT is going to happen, but never knowing HOW it is going to happen.  It’s definitely never boring. Each wedding is different and has its own challenges – weather, locations, lighting, and even the people.  Nothing is controlled, and it keeps me on my toes.  My goal is to take what’s thrown at me and do something spectacular with it.

And you know what else?  It’s pretty awesome being able to spend my Saturdays with amazing couples who, out of all the people in the world, found each other.  And I get to celebrate that with them.  And eat wedding cake.  I love cake.

Fun Q&A with Jaimie..

What is your favorite photography memory from 2015?
Oh my gosh… I don’t even know!  I’ve had a lot of fun this year!
I guess one of the fondest memories I will have for this year is getting the keys to my storefront studio, which I share with two other amazing wedding photographers.  Having a studio is something I think every photographer dreams about, and I got there.

What is your favorite quote? 
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. -Lao Tzu

What is your favorite flavor of Skittles & why? 
It’s a tie between yellow, red, and purple.  I like to eat the yellow and red together, and the purple by itself.
The orange ones are ok, but I throw the green ones away. I seriously dislike green apple flavored anything. I miss the lime flavored green ones.

Best advice you’ve ever received? 
My studio mate and good friend Jacob Loafman is constantly reminding me to stop comparing myself to others and just be me.
I think that applies to everyone, everywhere.  Especially with Facebook and Instagram and Pinterest… We’re constantly comparing our everyday with others’ highlight reels.

You can find Jaimie on social media, the links her her pages are: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter! Trust me – you want to follow her! Her website is incredible as well! It’s: Modern St. Louis Photography Be sure to stop by & leave her some love!
And stay tuned: Jaimie wrote me a fabulous post for tomorrow filled to the brim with incredible information – you don’t want to miss this!