Meet Katelyn Guild

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katelyn Guild.

Hi Katelyn, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My story actually started back in 2012, when I lost my dad unexpectedly about two weeks before our first professional family photoshoot in a decade. We had just planned a week-long trip home and we got the call that he had passed. It was such devastation and loss of what could have been. For me, that was the catalyst to purchase my first professional camera when we spread his ashes, and I vowed to help humans capture those precious moments that we couldn’t get back.

I started shooting weddings, events, real estate, families, lifestyle, and couples sessions and was learning quickly that people had major insecurities in their bodies and were always feeling inadequate in photos. Clients were asking to be altered, changed, photoshopped, etc at almost every session, I shot. I would leave weddings and just ache for the mother of the bride who didn’t want to be in any images because of her weight or size.

One day I woke up and realized I could create a space and a world where people felt seen, embraced, and loved in the body they lived in. Not in ten pounds, or when the baby weight was gone, but right now. That’s how Katelyn Scott was born. I work with couples and individuals to learn to embrace their bodies today through the art of photography.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. My company was started in a really tumultuous time in my life after leaving an industry I worked in since college. It was all brand new and I had to teach myself everything I know. Even today I am learning in growing in ways I didn’t know I could. I have also picked up and moved on two separate occasions to towns I knew no one, and that brings its own complications into the mix as well.

At one point, I remember crying on the bathroom floor of my studio apartment in Denver, talking on the phone with a good friend, because I had to make the decision to pay my rent or my health insurance. It was at that moment that I knew I needed a change. So I picked up my life again and moved to Raleigh to start over.

Once I got here I worked out of my home office for about half a year and at the beginning of 2020, I opened my first brick and mortar studio. And you know how that story goes. I had to close my doors for three months at the beginning of this pandemic and figure out how to pay the bills. ‘

All in all, the bumps and bruises are worth it because I now live a life I dreamed about for so long.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a body-inclusive boudoir photographer that specializes in helping humans in all bodies feel seen and embraced in front of the camera. Boudoir is a special type of intimate photography that is much more stripped-down than traditional portrait photography. Clients can participate in whatever level of dress they feel comfortable in and the studio I run is set up as an apartment with a full kitchen, bedroom set, shower, and living room. The photos we capture are raw and snuggly and edgy and help the client see themselves as the world sees them. Beautiful and worthy and deserving of love.

I am most proud of the fact that my studio is super size-inclusive. From the space to the wardrobe I offer, I want humans to know that their body size should never dictate their access to dope photos. We are all deserving of really cool and intimate photos no matter what. On top of that, I offer a wardrobe of lingerie covering sizes XS-6X.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Absolutely!! If you are just starting out in photography and you have a day job, keep it until you know for sure you can support yourself in this art! If you are going to jump in with both feet, don’t let anyone talk you out of it. Push on with conviction knowing that what you can offer this world is so important that you would do anything to succeed. And want it more than you want to breathe.

Also, you don’t need all the gear in the world. You need one camera and a lens that you love. Don’t go into debt trying to prove to the world you are legitimate with all the gear. It doesn’t make the artist.

Pricing:

• Session Fee is $199
• Images and Products are purchased separately

Contact Info:

• Email: katelyn@katelynscott.com
• Website: www.katelynscott.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katelynscottboudoir/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KatelynScottBoudoir
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KScottBoudoir
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCQfHNGXOdqVuwQWUsuhIHw

Image Credits:
Katelyn Scott Boudoir