Carissa Parker

Carissa Parker loves to take pictures. She’s only been doing it for a few years but absolutely loves it. Since she was eight, her mom has had a business selling scrap booking items and photo preservation products -- which is how she got into loving this.
She takes pictures of everything. Her favorite thing to take pictures of is people, mainly children. She enjoys taking pictures of anything, though. She said, “This world is such a beautiful place, and I feel honored to have the ability to capture it in a way not everyone can.” Her pictures take place everywhere! “I love just capturing my natural surroundings, the places I live, the people around me, places that mean the most to me.” she added.
It surprises most people, but she has never taken a single photography class. When she moves back to Minnesota, though, she wants to go to art school. She already has a job lined up with her sister-in-law when she’s done. She also wants to take a dark-room class and eventually develop her own pictures.
The camera and equipment are the most important things you need to pursue this, though. Right now, she has a Kodak C913 but she wants a Nikon D80. She also uses Photoshot CS2 to edit her pictures and a tripod.
For beginners, she says that a simple camera is all it takes. The kind you should get if you’re really serious about this is anything from the Nikon D series. “Practice, practice, practice!” she said, “Just like a sport, you realize what works and what doesn’t by just taking pictures.”