Hey There!
My name is Kristen and I’m the photographer behind Kristen Norman Photography. I recently relocated to Grand Rapids, MI from Chicago and wanted to share a little about me with my new clients. My fiance, Brian, and I are loving life in the mitten! We can’t wait to meet new people and explore more of West Michigan as spring and summer roll in.
Self-Portrait, 2020
I’ve been a photographer a little over 10 years now and have been running my own business for 6 of those years. I went to school for photojournalism at Ohio University (Go Bobcats!) where my love for photographing everyday life and people grew.
Documenting life and sharing those images with the people I photograph is what I love most about my job. Everyone should have the opportunity to have beautiful photos of the ones they love.
When I’m not photographing weddings, families and engagements, I shoot editorial and documentary work. My work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, TIME, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, BuzzFeed News, ESPN, O Magazine, VICE, Uber, Honda and NPR, among others.
I love to travel and I’m game to go wherever you need photos made! I’ve traveled around the country for weddings and portraits. And I’ve worked internationally in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and The Democratic Republic of the Congo for my photojournalism work.
With my background in photojournalism, my style is timeless, authentic and natural. My philosophy is, the less posing the better. My clients want their photos to look and feel real and they do – because the moments are! Whether it’s your wedding day or photos of your family at home – I’m there to observe and document.
Here are a few of my favorite things:
PET: My dog, Harvey, she’s a Hurricane Harvey rescue and the best girl.
BOOKS: Harry Potter, always.
HOBBY: Weaving on my loom, you can never have too much yarn!
ACTIVITY: Hiking and camping, anything outdoors.
PLACES TRAVELED: Vietnam, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Thailand and Cambodia
MOVIE: Jurassic Park + Harry Potter (duh!)
PLANT: ALL of them. I have a pretty good collection of house plants, 30 and growing!
DRINK: Daytime, coffee + Evenings, a bold Cab
FOOD: Thai - the more noodles the better.
HUMAN: My partner in crime and fiance, Brian (that’s him in the photo). We’ve been together for 10 years and have lived in 3 states together!
I can’t wait to make photos exploring everything Michigan has to offer. If you love my work, let’s chat! Emails are great but socially distanced coffee meetups are even better (once warm weather finally gets here) Feel free to send me a note here. :)
We love to go camping and take Harvey along for the adventure.
We didn’t have formal engagement photos done. So I brought my camera and tripod to take some photos of us while on a camping trip!
We spent a lot of time hiking and exploring the suburbs of Chicago last year. Chicago had pretty strict COVID guidelines and we needed the fresh air and nature to help us get through the year.
Here’s my journalism partner in crime and writer extraordinaire, Erin Ding, and I in the back of a truck in the DRC. She and I have been fortunate to report as a team from around the world.
The quickest and coolest way to navigate the busy streets of Hanoi is by motorbike! Erin snapped this photo as we rode next to each other on our way back from working on a story.
