We had the good fortune of connecting with Richard Kroening and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Richard, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
Work Life Balance! Ooh! It can difficult one.

In the beginning there was more free time to spend with friends & family. But as time goes on projects stack on each other, editing starts to take over the day, you find yourself doing more and more research to hone your skills. Keeping a work life balance though is incredibly important for your own mental & physical health! The phrase “burning a candle by both ends” comes to mind.

It’s difficult to say “Oh! This path that I’ve decided to go down has begun to grow and change as time passes & I find that I have less time to do other things.”; because depending on what your end goal is you might want it to grow! Personally, I LOVE being able to spend more time taking photos, spending time editing, being a part of the photographer community, learning from others who’ve been doing this longer than I’ve been alive and seeing amazing work from others. But I’ve been trying recently to keep track of my weeks and set up a schedule of how much time I spend on work.

For those struggling to find a balance or are just starting their path I would highly recommend getting used to using a planner/calendar!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
“Art”. That’s a difficult word to attribute to my work. Then again I still struggle to call myself a “Photographer” despite taking photos is quite literally what I love and want to do practically every waking moment of my day. Maybe I just haven’t done the project that makes me feel like I deserve the capital “P” in photographer?

Regardless, for me that’s personally the biggest challenge. You can learn about ISO, Shutter speed, framing, composition, Lightroom, photoshop & how different cameras function..but if you can’t get past the self doubt, for at least a moment to get what you need, then it’s going to take a while.

All that being said, what I’ve found helps separated from others is that I try to take every photo in the same way I would film it. Since the last we talked I’m still hesitant to use the term “Cinematic” for my work but I can’t find a better phrase. I primarily, if not exclusively, use either Cine Style lenses or older Canon FD lenses which definitely give each photo a different feeling compared to modern lenses.

A big lesson that I learned, not sure where or from whom I picked it up from but, is to “mentally visualize what you physically see through your lens”. Learn how your glass reacts to shade, direct sunlight, minimum/max focus range, lens distortion and mentally form the final frame without needing to put your camera up.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
OOO! Week long itinerary? San Clemente Pier, Pizza Port, Bear Coast Coffee & the farmers market in San Clemente! Mayfield, Hidden House Coffee, Docent Brewery, Selma’s Chicago Pizza, The Old Barn Antique Mall in San Juan Capistrano!
Walk around Dana Point harbor..they got boats!
The Sawdust Festival, Gelato Paradiso, Skyloft, walk the beach, window shop up and down the streets in Laguna Beach.
Try not to go broke at Fashion Island in New Port Beach.
See the zoo & try to burn off all the calories we’ve eaten at the Irvine Regional Park!
Finally, spend whatever extra days up in Los Angeles!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
With out a doubt my parents deserve a huge shoutout to where I’m today! As cheesy as it is, their patients and support have been big motivators to help me keep going.

If my parents were the foundation then College was the arch stone. It was during these years that my love for both cinema and photography grew. I learned a lot from my professors, Ryan Hoskins, Charlie Myers & Nils Taylor. They all were beyond instrumental in shaping my approach to framing/composition through their lesson plans, helping how I define “work purpose” as well as just being overall great mentors.

Beyond them the next biggest contributors to getting me where I am now is the practically countless friends I’ve made over the years. Too many people have contributed in some way, even if they may not have realized it at the time, to helping push me towards the path I am on today. They continue to be a massive, daily motivator through positive comments & seeing them grow themselves!

Website: https://www.rakcameraphotography.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rak_camera/?hl=en

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-kroening-83288417b/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rakcamera?lang=en

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/rakcamera/photos/?ref=page_internal&mt_nav=0

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