Katie Merkle: Becoming Fearless

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Katie Merkle, owner of Merkle Photographer based in Baltimore, applies a journalistic approach to documenting weddings.

Couples who hire a photographer to preserve the milestone of their wedding are handing over their trust and vulnerability by letting a virtual stranger into their private worlds. Often tying together a myriad of micro-events—memories, reunions, beginnings—weddings offer rare opportunities for a photographer to act as an observant voice of real-time sentiment. At the same time, apertures need to be set, f stops need to be decided, lenses need to be swapped, and light is forever changing. How, then, does a wedding photographer navigate the seemingly endless number of spontaneous variables while also capturing the subtle and often fleeting, once-in-a-lifetime moments throughout the big day?

Katie Merkle, owner of Merkle Photographer based in Baltimore, applies a journalistic approach to documenting weddings that results in a unique intersection of artistic quality and technical skill. Her natural talent for composition creates aesthetic beauty; however, what sets her apart as a photographer is her uncommonly empathetic eye, earned through her personal story. Katie will be sharing how her images stand on the shoulders of her personal lessons of determination, perseverance, and grace by overcoming insurmountable obstacles and challenges before the age of 30. In her own words, “My struggle provided me with incredible insight into the human condition that plays a central role in the work I create. It also led me here: to tell your story, with homespun wit, uncanny insight, and the ability to find the beauty in everything.”

In addition to being seen in almost a dozen respected magazines, Katie is the winner of the 2017 Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (Grand Award in Photojournalism, 1st Place in Wedding Photojournalism), recipient of the 2018 Silver Distinction Award of Excellence, two-time recipient of the 2018 Silver Award of Excellence, and most recently the two-time recipient the the 2019 Silver Award of Excellence in Photojournalism. Katie is also a mother, artist, writer, part-time musician, and (of course) business owner. Visit merklephotography.com.