Featured: Natalie Franke Photography

Tell us a little about yourself!
Hi, friends! I’m Natalie Franke and I’m an International Wedding Photographer, Avid Writer, Coastal Traveler & Anchor Lover! I’m married to my high school sweetheart and we live outside of Annapolis, Maryland with our two pups! I have worked as a professional wedding photographer for over five years, co-launched the nautical wedding blog: Bayside Bride with my best friend Krista A. Jones in 2011, and continue to pursue my love of visual storytelling and writing full time. I cherish my family, lazy Sunday mornings, and good coffee… And I firmly believe that love conquers all!

Where is home?
The Nautical Town of Annapolis, Maryland.

What is a website/blog you frequently visit?
I absolutely adore Heart Love Always & I spend far too much time on Pinterest!

If you could have lunch with one person, who would it be?
I would love to go back in time and sit down for lunch with Mother Theresa. I’ve always admired her (ever since my days in grade school) and felt truly connected to her story. What are five words friends would use to describe you?
Enthusiastic, committed, outgoing, cheesy (read: hopeless romantic), and hopefully loyal!

Where do you see yourself five years from now?
Right where I’m meant to be! I have all these big, crazy, audacious dreams – but I also have faith that I will be exactly where the Lord wants me to be in five years. Maybe traveling the world, maybe here in Annapolis, starting a family or pursuing my career… Maybe doing both? We’ll have to wait and see!

If you had to choose one lens, which one would it be?
Easy – 50mm f/1.4

What’s in your camera bag?
My Cameras include: Nikon D4s + D4 and the D800 as backup! The Lens Arsenal: 35mm f/1.4G, 50mm f/1.4G, 85mm f/1.4G, 24-70mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8, 105mm f/2.8 Macro

How long have you been doing photography?
I first began photographing in my junior year of high school in 2007 and photographed my first wedding as a second shooter in 2008! Throughout college I began building my own business and went full time in 2012!

What type of photography do you specialize in?
Weddings, Engagements, Anniversaries! I love capturing couples and the legacies they are building together!

Did you go to school for photography?
I have a Bachelors of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania is in Visual Studies – specifically in the psychology, philosophy, and neuroscience of seeing! Most of my courses throughout my undergraduate career were spent reading Descartes, learning about the visual cortex, and exploring various aspects of our sensory perception. I am primarily self-taught as a photographer!

What advice would you give your 15-year-old self?

Be brave. Stand up for what is right, even when it makes you weak in the knees and knotted up inside. Have the audacity to believe that your actions, and your words can make a difference.

Yes, I am telling you that what you do matters and if your voice has the power to improve just one person’s life… it’s worth speaking up. There will be those who tell you that you’re naive. They will try to diminish your positive spirit and I beg of you – fight back. Your open heart and wide-eyed wonder is a rarity in this world. At sixteen, you see the realities of this life and choose to focus on the silver lining.

That positive outlook will pull you through some of the darkest times. Hold on to it. Even when the waves roar higher and you take on water, have faith that the wind will guide your sails to safe harbor.

And you know how that camera makes you feel alive? You know the way that your hand seems to melt into the rubber grip of its body and your fingertips love to dance around the lens? That little machine holds much more than the potential to translate three dimensional space into a single frame. That camera is your way to communicate with the world.

When your words lose their meaning, when sentences – strung together with even the most eloquent of phrases – fail to express your emotion… your photographs will. Your images will give you the ability to share exactly how you see the world… for all its beauty and its grace. That camera will enable your mind to reach into the souls of your subjects and convey what it means to love and how it feels to be loved.

How does your relationship with God affect the way you do business?
Being a Christian changes everything. My entire business is my way of serving others, capturing their lives, bringing light + love to the world. Where many others would see numbers + revenue, I look for relationships to build, lives to touch, and ways to grow as a community.

What is your favorite verse?
Over the last few months, I’ve been really connected to Philippians 4:13 – “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”

How would you describe your style?
My style is joyful and genuine. It isn’t overly glamorous or editorial… it’s real, raw, and filled with laughter. It’s romantic in the most honest way possible. It aims to capture what it means to be in love. That fluttering joy in your stomach, that bubbling happiness that leaves you bursting at the seams.

Who or what is the greatest love of your life?
My husband is the love of my life. We’re high school sweethearts and I adore that man more than words can say. I would also say that my greatest passions are expressing the creativity that the Lord gave me, building my business to serve others, and discovering Him in the complexities of the universe.

Who has been the most influential person in your life?
My grandmother. She helped to raise me when my parents divorced and my mom went back to school. She was the rock of my family, a strong woman of faith, and if I grow to be even half the woman that she was – – I will have succeeded.

If you could shoot with another photographer, who would it be?
This is such a tough one! I would absolutely LOVE to photograph alongside my sweet friend Katelyn James or Justin + Mary Marantz! I love and admire all three of them!

Where do you find your inspiration?
Everywhere. I love the work of Film Photographres, the paintings of Teil Duncan and Lulie Wallace, my grandparent’s Wedding Album, and so much more!

If you could choose one person to photograph, who would it be?
I would absolutely love to photograph Malala Yousafzai. She is such an inspiration and a truly incredible voice in the global community for women’s rights.

Places you can find the Artist: