I’m a documentary photographer capturing authentic stories for families who see the sacred in the ordinary and find beauty in real life.
I believe that photography is an art and spiritual practice.
Sacred photography is a belief that real life is beautiful and that there is sacredness in the ordinary.
Your life — in its days, moments, connections — is made up of little slivers of magic. Documentary photography reveals that ordinary magic to us.
I see the sacred in your beautiful, ordinary life and bring the deep listening of spiritual direction into my sessions to capture things for “what else they are.” (Minor White)
Because if you can do it, I can see the sacred in it.
meet the photographer.
As a little girl, I would sit on the family room floor and flip through our family photo albums until the pages were falling out. My mom always had a camera, and she captured the beauty of real life. We took annual family portraits at the Olan Mills studio, but they aren’t treasures to me. When I look at them, I feel…nothing. If I remember anything, it is the sterility of the studio.
Here is what I treasure: The photos of me twirling in my pajamas with my older sister. My dad teaching me how to play the guitar. My sisters and I lined up on the piano bench in matching Easter dresses. The messy table. The magnets that spell “home.”
I started my photography business, Koranda Lab Photography, in 2016 after learning the basics of photography in journalism school. From the beginning, I have taken a documentary approach. Now, I have brought my photography business under the umbrella of Juniper House because I see photography as an expression of spiritual direction. And I’m not trying to be sanctimonious — I truly think there is something sacred about capturing ordinary moments. If you do, too, let’s talk.
philosophy + style
“One should not only photograph things for what they are but for what else they are.” — Minor White
my shooting style.
I like to call my shooting style documentary-forward. That means that I take a photo journalism approach to your session. I’m an observer — capturing moments. While I try not to interfere at all, I might gently move you to better lighting or away from a garbage can (just a weird little example). I do very little posing, but I’ll still take portraits at your family session or wedding. Portraits are de-prioritized in favor of moments and photographing things, as White says, “for what else they are.”
my editing style.
I bring my documentary-forward approach all the way through your shoot into my editing. That means I’m not heavy handed in my edits and attempt to be as true-to-life as possible in both color and scene. My philosophy is that there is beauty — even sacredness — in your ordinary moments. Everything in an image is meant to be there. It’s part of your story, and it's beautiful even in its imperfections.
Oh, and I’m a bit obsessed with black & white!
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Ours wasn’t a typical wedding. Our story isn’t typical. But I still wanted to capture the celebration of our life together. The moments of real and beautiful time together with our families. To capture what others see between us. Katie’s amazing candid, photojournalistic style was the perfect choice. Not only is her photography beautiful, she has an eye that sees the sweet and special moments and she captures that in all its realness. Through all of our chaos she gave us photos that showed the love, the peace, the warmth, the wonderful. These are the memories I wanted to have of that moment.
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I have worked with Katie for over seven years, and I can honestly say she is the best documentary style photographer I have ever met. She has captured my family’s personality, growth, and milestones in a way that no one else could. She is a storyteller. I am grateful for the memories she has preserved for us.
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My son is on the autism spectrum and it’s hard to capture his true personality. Katie did his senior pictures and she made him feel comfortable being his authentic self. I get so many compliments on how his pictures turned out. Katie is a true creative talent with an intuitive ability connect to others.
