Cassidy Kristiansen - Photographer

03/18/2025

Some mood for your Tuesday afternoon

03/14/2025

Working on new client photos means posting older work in the meantime ~*

Happy Friday y’all, anyone else getting absolutely wrecked by the start of allergy season?? 🫠

03/04/2025

It’s ‘s birthday today and I was looking through some past photos from the David Lynch exhibit (RIP) we went to a million years ago, so here we are ✨

HBD to one of my favorite people to photograph and explore treasure troves of NYC junk with 🩷

04/16/2023

Pulling from the archives as I find a kind of momentum that works for me.

The expectation of artists to not only create, but to find new and interesting ways to constantly promote themselves, can feel like two full time jobs that I didn’t sign up for. The algorithms always change, we spend time worrying what we’re doing wrong where it absolutely played into feelings of, “is this even good enough?”

What happens when we begin to only show up in the ways that are more likely to go viral? What happens when that doesn’t necessarily feel like “us”?

After taking a step back at the beginning of the pandemic, I am only just starting to re-learn how I want to define my art and how I present it to the world. I’m giving myself permission to share work I once heavily criticized myself for. Nothing was good enough, but by that standard, what would be? Aren’t I doing a disservice to all of the times I carried a 40 lb camera bag around all day? Spent how many hours late at night agonizing over the perfect edit?

We’re all a work in progress in some way. But we’re trying, brick by brick. One good habit at a time. One step closer to whatever it is we’re walking towards.

All this to say, hello again. Thanks for sticking around.

06/05/2020

In an effort to use my platform, however small, to create awareness around Black Lives Matter, I’ve decided to not post anything for this week’s Season’s project. Instead, I’m attaching a comprehensive list of things you can do to enact change, big and small.

https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/ #

- Feeling a bit overwhelmed with options and not knowing where to start? -

Set a 20-minute timer to look through all of the different ways of helping. Create separate tabs on your browser for options you’d prefer to do, or copy the links into your Notes app on your phone.

- Here are a few of the places I’ve donated to. -

- The Loveland Therapy Foundation:
(Currently aiming to raise enough money to offer over 5,000 hours of free therapy sessions for black women and girls.)
https://thelovelandfoundation.org/

- We Need Diverse Books:
(Promotes more diverse & inclusive books in school systems as well as advocating for essential change in the publishing industry. Children deserve to feel seen and represented in literature.)
https://diversebooks.org/donate-to-wndb/

- Campaign Zero:
(Supports the analysis of policing practices across the country, research to identify effective solutions to end police violence, leading police accountability campaigns and the development of model legislation and advocacy to end police violence nationwide.)
https://www.joincampaignzero.org/

- National Urban League:
(Promotes economic empowerment through education and job training, housing and community development, workforce development, entrepreneurship, health, and quality of life.)
https://nul.org/

- MN Freedom Fund:
(I donated very early in to this, they are currently recommending donating elsewhere due to the sheer amount that’s been donated to them so far)
https://minnesotafreedomfund.org/

-Not sure where to donate?-

Reflect on the areas in your life where you’ve found to be pivotal.

Mine have been in reading, art, and therapy. My privilege is having no problem getting access to books where the characters look like me, art schools where I was not judged by the color of my skin, and therapists that could accurately understand my struggles.

-What if I don't have money?-

Sign petitions, email government representatives with the pre-filled forms, watch the Youtube video to generate ad revenue for BLM organizations in the link above and talk to your friends & family that may still hold racist beliefs. Small changes can make a huge difference.

And I get it, we’re all strapped for cash. I am currently in more debt than I’d like due to a complete halt in work from COVID-19 since March and needed equipment purchases at the beginning of the year that I anticipated being able to pay back during my typically busy spring season.

But if in the past week you’ve bought something on Amazon, new summer clothes, or ordered takeout, I don’t want to hear that you can’t spare $20 towards one of the dozens of organizations on that list.

We are all in this together.

We can do better.

Black Lives Matter.

06/04/2020

In an effort to use my platform, however small, to create awareness around Black Lives Matter, I’ve decided to not post anything for this week’s Season’s project. Instead, I’m attaching a comprehensive list of things you can do to enact change, big and small.

https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/ #

- Feeling a bit overwhelmed with options and not knowing where to start? -

Set a 20-minute timer to look through all of the different ways of helping. Create separate tabs on your browser for options you’d prefer to do, or copy the links into your Notes app on your phone.

- Here are a few of the places I’ve donated to. -

- The Loveland Therapy Foundation:
(Currently aiming to raise enough money to offer over 5,000 hours of free therapy sessions for black women and girls.)
https://thelovelandfoundation.org/

- We Need Diverse Books:
(Promotes more diverse & inclusive books in school systems as well as advocating for essential change in the publishing industry. Children deserve to feel seen and represented in literature.)
https://diversebooks.org/donate-to-wndb/

- Campaign Zero:
(Supports the analysis of policing practices across the country, research to identify effective solutions to end police violence, leading police accountability campaigns and the development of model legislation and advocacy to end police violence nationwide.)
https://www.joincampaignzero.org/

- National Urban League:
(Promotes economic empowerment through education and job training, housing and community development, workforce development, entrepreneurship, health, and quality of life.)
https://nul.org/

- MN Freedom Fund:
(I donated very early in to this, they are currently recommending donating elsewhere due to the sheer amount that’s been donated to them so far)
https://minnesotafreedomfund.org/

-Not sure where to donate?-

Reflect on the areas in your life where you’ve found to be pivotal.

Mine have been in reading, art, and therapy. My privilege is having no problem getting access to books where the characters look like me, art schools where I was not judged by the color of my skin, and therapists that could accurately understand my struggles.

-What if I don't have money?-

Sign petitions, email government representatives with the pre-filled forms, watch the Youtube video to generate ad revenue for BLM organizations in the link above and talk to your friends & family that may still hold racist beliefs. Small changes can make a huge difference.

And I get it, we’re all strapped for cash. I am currently in more debt than I’d like due to a complete halt in work from COVID-19 since March and needed equipment purchases at the beginning of the year that I anticipated being able to pay back during my typically busy spring season.

But if in the past week you’ve bought something on Amazon, new summer clothes, or ordered takeout, I don’t want to hear that you can’t spare $20 towards one of the dozens of organizations on that list.

We are all in this together.

We can do better.

Black Lives Matter.

Ways To Help

05/29/2020

Seasons Project | Week 2 of 13- Valerie

Earlier this year, I took a financial risk to begin the start of a new personal project centering around the people that bring a lot of our favorite cultural events to life. We typically only see the final project where everyone is in full costume & makeup, but I was curious about the inner workings. Starting off in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, I contacted as many creators as I possibly could to work with. I figured most wouldn't respond or would be way too busy at this point.

Boy, was I wrong.

The learning curve was absolutely enormous; I completely burnt myself out running from one to the next, walking for a mile to get around parade routes with heavy equipment, and barely eating. Despite running myself dry, it was the people I met along the way that literally kept me going. Valerie, pictured in all of these photos, was one of those people. We spent about four hours chatting and photographing the process of how she typically gets ready as a member of Krewe des Fleurs.

As a professional krewe that performs in multiple parades during the Mardi Gras season, each krewe member hand-crafts the chosen flower of that year. Once the base design is finalized, each member is able to customize and paint their 5-6' flowers however they'd like.

While also planning out the aesthetics, each krewe member has to figure out how to attach these giant flowers to themselves to endure a year's worth of parading several miles at a time, overly-enthusiastic people trying to grab the petals, as well as staying intact in most weather conditions. Did I mention each flower also has to be rigged to light up at night?

If you hadn't realized at this point, but Valerie, along with all the other members of Krewe des Fleurs, are dedicated as hell. Less of a few days of dress-up, and more of a year-round production, it really does become a way of life.

I feel incredibly honored to have been able to spend time with Valerie (in the middle of Mardi Gras season no less!) as she allowed me to see the vulnerable, in-between moments of transformation. Oftentimes we only feel comfortable showing off our polished, best selves to the world. But as she created a space where I could ask what were more than likely "stupid" questions, I tried my best to do the same for her as I photographed her process.

Here are the results.

(Also, Valerie if you see this, tag yourself! For some reason, Facebook won't let me..)

Other credits go to:
Chimera Lashes
We Love Colors
Fifi Mahony's

www.CassidyKristiansen.com

05/22/2020

Seasons Project | Week 1 of 13- Mettie

Every time I've tried to start back up my 52 Week Project, I get completely and utterly overwhelmed. In an effort to simply while also pushing myself to post more, I've decided to give it a go for the length of approximately one season, 13 weeks.

Seeing as I'm starting this up in the middle of a pandemic, I'm going to be taking the opportunity to go back through older work I've neglected and put up on here.

About this shoot: Right before I boarded a plane to begin a new personal project in New Orleans, I asked one of my friends to come over so I could test out some new equipment and lighting styles. The only requirements I gave her were to bring a few clothing options/accessories with a lot of texture and varying colors. My goal was to try to figure out a lighting style that would look flattering across a multitude of outfits (hello all my Mardi Gras photo subjects) and scenarios.

I ended up only photographing a portion of the people I reached out to on a plain backdrop, and these test photos felt perfect for some vintage-looking edits.

Which ones are your favorites?

www.CassidyKristiansen.com

02/20/2020

Rolled off the airplane and right into the thick of it on Sunday when I met up with Studio 3 Inc. to photograph some of their smaller floats in the cutest parade by Mystic Krewe of Barkus New Orleans I’ve ever seen (& shoutout to Treme Brass Band)

It’s been an exhausting few days, but the people I’ve met and had the privilege to photograph along the way have made this all so very worth it.