Rising Stars: Meet Katrina Williams

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katrina Williams.

Katrina, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My work and art are shaped so much by my experience of living in a hospital for nearly two years as my son journeyed through a bone marrow transplant.

The heartache, the suffering, the grief, the nights spent wondering if he would survive- this is why I make Family Photos and Films. I make Family photos and films so I can hold onto the good, hold onto the details, hold onto the love. I create Films to give myself and others a tangible reminder of the hope and the joy that exists in the midst of the pain.

I want to celebrate and treasure this precious life, especially as a way to honor the friends I’ve lost along the way. It was to the glow of the lights from my son’s life-sustaining IV pump that I started getting serious about following my passion. It was while I sat on the edge of life, and I saw how short and fragile life is, that I began to question everything.

My partner and my dear friends gave me the courage to live into what made me feel most alive– creating Art. Creating Photos and Films for families. I feel incredibly humbled each and every time I am invited into a family’s story. I am forever grateful for the families who open their hearts to me and invite me to create imagery of their most treasured moments. I hold your memories with tenderness, care, and love.

Why Fifty Two Hundred Photo? 5200 is the Bone Marrow Transplant unit where my son’s life was saved. There I’ve known the deepest heartbreak, alongside the purest joy I’ve ever experienced. 5200 is a place that can hold the grief and the joy, the beauty and the sorrow, the love, and the loss. It contains it all. Every life is valued equally, every feeling is welcomed, there’s no filter here. You are your true self because there is no other way to be when you sit at the edge of life.

Søren and I walk the halls of 5200 sending love into each room we pass. Behind each door is a story. Behind one door a family just received the worst news of their life, the next door a family is rejoicing a clear scan. Everywhere you turn there is love. 5200 has come to mean more than the number of a hospital unit. It has come to be the place inside of me where I am my most authentic, vulnerable, and truest self. With nothing to hide, searching for hope and beauty in a difficult world.

I will carry this with me always, and do my very best to make the most of the precious life I was given. I do it to honor the friends I’ve loved and lost on 5200.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Well, it’s been anything BUT smooth. My road to becoming an artist was built on the struggle you could say. It was an attempt to turn my suffering into something beautiful. Creating family photos helps heal a part of me. And beyond being an artist, being a mother has been filled with the struggle for me. Really nothing about the role has been easy.

My journey to and through motherhood has felt so different from the typical path. Perhaps, this is why I feel such deep compassion for those who are struggling or are having a difficult time in life. I get it. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a family photographer and family filmmaker. I offer an experience for your family to connect and enjoy time together, resulting in deeply meaningful + authentic photographs and films. After I lost my job as a Family Medicine PA when Søren got sick and in retrospect, I can see that this was such a gift. It gave me the freedom to really listen and to find my purpose.

Because of what I’ve been through I’m able to create a unique environment and space for families to slow down and see the beauty in the struggle, the beauty in the mundane. My hope is that experience of working with me goes beyond pretty pictures and videos. What sets me apart from others is my cinematic Family Films.

My films are able to capture a feeling of family, the essence of a family in a unique way that is so special and goes beyond what a still image can do.

What’s next?
Last year, I started a Membership or a subscription service for families. In addition to a session with me, I help them organize and put together all their photos and videos on their phone throughout the year. I can help families preserve their memories and give them an easy way to revisit the sweetest memories for years to come. Families have loved this unique service and I hope to be able to expand this in new ways.

Contact Info:

• Email: katrina@fiftytwohundredphoto.com
• Website: https://www.fiftytwohundredphoto.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fiftytwohundredphoto/