Photography is a fast-growing, popular art form, an essential skill in the world today.  At Saint Stephens, Sophomore Katie Carlsen is an up-and-coming talent in the field, and she’s got the awards to prove it.

Carlsen takes photos of everyday objects that most people just walk right by;  she finds beauty in the mundane, the everyday.

Already, Ms. Carlsen is an accomplished photographer.  Last year, she won the Manatee County Fair photo contest.

Katie’s love for photography started when she was young.   She commented: “I would always do summer camps at Art Center Manatee.”

In the summer of her 6th grade year, she took attended a photography camp, where she learned the basics and fostered her passion.   The course covered the different functions on cameras and the different styles of photography, all in one week.

To keep up with her skills, Carlsen says she “took a class until the summer of 8th grade and only stopped taking it due to being too old.”

This past summer, she went back to a day-long adult classes taught by the same teacher. She learned more advanced skills and more about her camera. As Katie’s skills continually improve, her love for art and photography grow.

As for accomplishments, Katie has been submitting art and photos into the fair for as long as she can remember. At the 2017 fair, fair-holders had a contest called “At The Fair,” for which anyone could submit photos taken during the 2017 fair to be judged.

Carlsen won first place for youth. This year, the three photos that she submitted have gotten one first place ribbon and two second place ribbons.

Katie loves sports photography because it is a bit of a challenge. “You need to change the settings in the camera so it freezes all of the fast moving people and it’s exciting to get one that turns out good,” says Katie.

She loves how photography can make you see something in a different way, and how different people can take two totally different pictures of the same object.  Katie’s passion and talent for photography is obvious, and should be recognized.  The Saint Stephens community is excited to see all the amazing moments she will capture in the future.