Inspired, A Very Special Project | Cora Edwards Photography

Name Cora Edwards

What is your Business Name? Cora Edwards Photography
What is your Facebook Fan Page?
https://www.facebook.com/CoraEdwardsPhotography

What is your Camera Body?
Canon
Website http://www.coraedwardsphotography.com
What inspired you to become a Photographer?
My parents gave me an Olympus OM-1 for Christmas in 1997. From the moment I took my first photo, I knew it would be a part of my life forever. Considering how introverted I was (am), I found it to be another method of communicating how I visualized the world around me. I loved that I could highlight details and movements of light and darkness which others may overlook. It quickly became my art, my inspiration, and finally, my profession.

If you could only keep three things in your camera bag at one time, what would they be and why?
Besides my camera body? My 85mm f/1.8 hardly ever comes off my camera when I’m shooting portrait sessions. I also love my 35mm f/2.0 IS, it’s an amazing lens – so sharp and fast. Then of course there’s my 70-200 lens, which is perfect for weddings and those drives around the countryside in search of wildlife.

If you are a Professional Photographer, what was your first paid session like?
It was nerve-wracking, exciting, and awesome! It was such a rewarding feeling, knowing how hard I had worked and studied and practiced to get to this point. One of my first paid sessions was a wedding actually held on a moving steam train. Taking photos on a train as it meandered up a mountainside and shook like a washing machine proved to be such a challenge, but how many people can say they’ve shot a wedding on an old steam train?! Not many that I know of… what a fantastic opportunity that was!

Jump in a time capsule. What would you do differently if you could? Do you have a cautionary tale?
The only thing I think I would have done a bit differently is perhaps doing an internship. I would have loved to study under a professional photographer until I was more confident working with the general public and learned more about the business side of photography.
So many people just pick up a camera at a big box store and and snap a few photos and then start charging people. They create a website and a facebook page and think that’s it. There’s so much more to it than that. Photography is business like any other. It can’t just be a hobby-turned-business-overnight kind of thing. You need to master it. You need to know how to shoot in any given lighting situation. You need to know how to run a business and get a business license. You need to know how to market. You wouldn’t hire a plumber who just picked up a wrench for the first time last week, would you? Study and practice and experience are everything. Never, I repeat, never charge people money until you have achieved these goals.

What’s in your camera bag?
Camera body, 3 lenses, 3 speedlights, triggers, batteries, makeup, bobby pins, benadryl, a pair of earrings I made, a pack of peanut butter cheese crackers, lens cleaner, memory flash cards, and a small bottle of germ gel.

Above all, what inspires your art the most?
God above all. He puts ideas where there were none, inspiration where there is desolation, and guides my thought process during a shoot. Music also inspires me greatly, especially during the editing process. Currently, my playlist features the bands Sam Cooke, London Grammar, Pokey LaFarge, Seryn, Milosh, MS MR, and Sohn.

Do you have any personal projects in the works?

If I don’t have constantly have a project I go crazy. haha My imagination is always spinning, creating, weaving. I have several irons in the fire at the moment, but I can’t divulge the details. Ancient Chinese secret. 😉

Any one token piece of advice to someone that has just picked up a camera for the first time?
Yes. Study. Intern under someone more experienced than you. Practice. Take business classes or attend workshops. Get a business license and insurance. Never charge money for your photo shoots until you have done all the above.

What is one thing you will never get tired of photographing?
My family. My French Bulldogs, Quincy and Camille. Tennessee.

If you could sit across any one photographer with a cup of your favorite warm beverage, and talk shop for an hour, who would it be and what would you talk about?
Oh wow, I’ve never thought of this before! I don’t think I have any one photographer I particularly look up to. If I had to pick only one for today, I think it would be Paolo Roversi. His portraits are so moving, classic, and mysterious. Ethereal, yet dark and foreboding. Everything I love basically.

Favorite Snack to Edit to:
coffee or sweet iced tea, twizzlers, and/or doritos

Favorite time of Day to Shoot at:
Most likely evenings because I’m not a morning person at all unless I absolutely have to be.

Favorite Quote:
“Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary.” – Cecil Beaton

One thing you do NOT like to Photograph is:
Please don’t hate me for saying this, but babies and children. It takes a special photographer to be able to work with children and I admire them greatly. I just don’t have the patience for it. (-I could NEVER hate you ha!! -Sarah)
If you could Photograph anyone, who would that one person be?
Kate Winslet. She is a classic beauty.

One thing no one knows about you?
I know the lyrics to every Radiohead song.
Best Photography Investment you ever made:
My speedlights. Worth every penny and then some. I love being able to bend light at will.
Photoshop or Lightroom?
Both. I couldn’t have one without the other.
If you could live anywhere it would be:
Tennessee! Love it here.
Pants or No pants?
I like to wear pants. Pants are nice. And dresses. Oh, and don’t say pants in England, it means underwear.
Natural Hair Color?
Auburn
Last Book you Read was?
“Johnny Cash – The Life” by Robert Hilburn
Can you sum up your Photography in just four words?

Light. Dark. Soul. Dreamy.

If your Photography had a theme song, what would it be?
“Dream” by Priscilla Ahn
Favorite Non Photography Related Website is:
www.pinterest.com… So addicting.