Lauren is a US-based nature photographer. She’s been taking photos since 2002, when she would buy a disposable camera every week and capture moments of her life. As the years went on, she upgraded from disposable cameras to point-n-shoots to DSLRs. She minted her first NFT in 2021 and hasn’t looked back.
She is inspired by a grandparent on each side of her family. Both were hobbyist photographers, Her grandmother was a feminist, and took photos of nature and her travels. Her grandfather always had a camera in his hands, and documented her childhood and family, along with moments of his life. She said that having 2 grandparents that were passionate photographers, pushes her to become a full-time artist.
This led me to ask if she can generate enough revenue as an NFT photographer, and she replied that at the moment, every time she makes a sale, she buys another NFT artist’s work. Which seems to be a current theme. This creates a community, but the same money is just switching hands. She expressed that as she mints more NFTs, she believes that she can generate 20-30% of her income with NFTs.
Speaking of community, she mentioned that there is a group of artists/photographers that are called teztunas and teztunaladies, and they are a close-knit community that discusses life, ideas, and inspiration. And they buy each other’s NFTs!
I asked if she was having trouble finding balance in her life, as I could hear a crying child in the background. She responded that she finds time to capture images wherever she goes. She will throw her camera in the diaper bag and out they go! Her non-NFT community complains that she hasn’t posted on Facebook in a year!
Her favorite place to shoot is about a 20-minute drive from her house, it’s got mountains, 3 lakes, and a forest! And it’s very kid-friendly, so easy to grab and go when the light is getting magical.
Her favorite season is Fall.
Her favorite color is Blue.
Her favorite NFT artist is Irina, @ambi_eth
Her favorite traditional artist is Ansel Adams, but she has a love/hate relationship with him. For years she would compare her shots to his, and it made her feel she wasn’t good enough. Thankfully, with the support of her NFT community, she has gotten over that and values what she creates.
I asked her what she feels needs to change in the NFT community. She responded that we need to make onboarding easy, uncomplicated, and more consumer friendly. And that using the terms digital artist and digital collectibles is a start.
She is working on building her website to generate more photo business, as well as to help onboard folks via her blog.
Listen here for the full podcast!