Meet Elysee Carreno

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elysee Carreno.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Elysee. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I fell in love with creating through photography pretty early on in my youth. I remember being in middle school and asking all my friends to model for me in my backyard. At the time, I was using a crappy little point and shoot that I didn’t really know how to use. In high school, my parents bought a Canon Rebel T3i as our “family camera” for vacations and what not. That’s what the game-changer was for me. I just fell in love with the art of photography. I fell in love with capturing people; expressions, emotions, body language, humanness.

I didn’t start to think of photography seriously as a career option until around my second year of college. At first, I wasn’t selective at all in the opportunities that came my way. I said yes to use about everything that would put a camera in my hand, which meant anything from weddings to senior photos to Link’d In headshots. As I went through college, I realized more and more that I wasn’t really finding fulfillment in school. It was keeping me from my creativity, and my creativity is what keeps me sane. So, I dropped out after my third year of school to pursue photography full-time. That’s when I started to advertise my work more and really tried to brand myself as a photographer. It still took me a while to develop my style. I think that as an artist, you’re constantly developing and growing based off of whatever is inspiring you at the time. I landed a photography internship in West Hollywood for a pretty big company and fell in love with fashion/creative lifestyle photography. I learned more about posing models, studio photography, editing, working with natural light, and creative directing. It was my first time working in a really fast-paced creative environment.

After that internship, I worked at a little local coffee/ice cream shop and pushed my freelance career on the side. I worked my part-time job for about a year until I landed another internship with a photographer in August of 2018. I quickly fell in love with creative directing and channeling my visions more selectively through direction. My internship became my job in March of 2019. My current title as creative director is constantly challenging me to seek inspiration and think of new ideas. I’m still learning and growing so much in my profession, but I couldn’t be more thrilled to be pursuing my creative career.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I don’t know that being a freelancer is ever a smooth road. I mean, if it is, I’m probably doing it wildly wrong! I think that as a freelancer, I’m constantly figuring out what works and what doesn’t. It’s very trial and error-esque. My biggest challenge at first was definitely figuring out what my work was worth. It’s all fun and games at first. You know, asking friends to help you out while you’re building your portfolio. The big question after you feel confident enough to start charging people is, “wait… how much should I charge?” It took me a long time to feel comfortable asking for a reasonable compensation for my photography, especially when it came to friends asking. It’s definitely an adjustment, but I really strongly believe that if your friends support you and your work, they won’t expect anything for free. I mean, it’s your career.

Photography also definitely has its fair share of dry-spells and off-seasons. So that in itself can be pretty challenging. But, I think the struggle that I faced the most often when I was first starting off, and sometimes still face now, was developing a style that felt unique and individual to me. I’m constantly reminding myself of the things that make my work different and using those things to empower myself. It can be really easy to be discouraged in this field, especially with platforms like Instagram out there. You really have to keep telling yourself, “My work’s worth is not found in the amount of likes it receives on Instagram.” It seems silly, but I would say that’s been the biggest struggle for me in my career thus far.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Elysee Carreno Creative – what should we know?
Apart from freelance, as I mentioned before, I work as a creative director for Karen Marie Co. As of right now, our creative team consists of the two of us. She is a photographer and an Instagram influencer. Most of our work consists of product and lifestyle photography, working with brands to help provide them with content or to promote their product with Instagram ads on her account. The thing that sets Karen apart from so many other influencers out there is that you won’t find one picture of herself on her feed. I LOVE that. She doesn’t pose with products, she doesn’t post videos of herself talking on her story; she brands herself as a photographer. Not that there’s anything wrong with influencers whose feed mainly consists of themselves. I think there’s many people out there that do that very tastefully and really well. But Karen has something that sets her apart, and that is what attracts brands and companies to her page. We focus specifically on the item/person we are shooting.

As creative director, my role is to constantly be thinking of ways to make our photos different. I make mood boards on mood boards on mood boards and I absolutely love it. I direct all of our photoshoots and occasionally act as a second shooter on set/in studio. I’m really proud to be apart of a team that allows total creative freedom. We are our own bosses and it leaves so much room for growth and creativity.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I’m a people-person. Big time. I really love working with people and pride myself in my communication skills. I think I’ve found that to be the most crucial part of my success. I’ve met a lot of photographers that are really incredible and have so much experience and talent but don’t really put a lot of effort in engaging with the client. I’ve learned how helpful it is to constantly be giving words of affirmation when you’re shooting someone. Unless you’re shooting with experienced models, most of the time, people find it uncomfortable being in front of the camera. If you can make someone feel comfortable and like they can be themselves, the shoot goes a LOT smoother and it becomes fun for both of you. Communication is so important when it comes to directing as well. You have to pose people and direct the photographer, so having a positive attitude in your engagement with people plays such a huge role in this profession.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.elcarrenocreative.com
• Email: elyseefrinee96@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ely_carreno/?hl=en

Image Credit:
Personal photo – Nicholas Worrell

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