Today we’d like to introduce you to Caryn Werner.
Hi Caryn, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My love for photography started at 11 years old when I found my mom’s old Canon A1 film camera. I was hooked and constantly used up her rolls of film as I learned. My parents supported my obsession and gave me my first film camera when I turned 13. From there, it never really stopped. Photography just became part of how I saw the world.
For a few years I apprenticed with two photographers in Austin, one specializing in weddings and the other specializing in portraiture. I learned so much through watching them, assisting and asking endless questions. They were incredibly gracious to let me shadow them at such a young age. By the time I was 15, I had shot my first wedding on my own and that experience somehow gave me enough confidence to officially start my business. I spent the first several years focused on lifestyle and weddings. After high school, I volunteered with a nonprofit in South Africa and Swaziland for half a year. I brought my camera with me and the organization asked if I could take updated photos for them while I was there. That was a significant moment in my career. I fell in love with storytelling and realized photography could be more than just creating beautiful images – It could be used as a way to tell meaningful stories.
I studied photojournalism and international development at the University of Texas. Throughout college and for about eight years after, I focused heavily on humanitarian photography, working with nonprofits and socially conscious organizations all over the world. During that time, I was traveling about 50-80% of the year and really honed my approach to ethical, story-driven work. It was incredibly important to me that people felt represented well and with dignity. I worked with translators to have a collaborative approach with how their stories were told.
Right before COVID, I wrapped up my international contracts, and during that season I felt a strong pull toward brand and commercial work. I realized how powerful storytelling could be for businesses and brands. Since 2020, my focus has shifted more into personal branding for incredible founders, commercial lifestyle and product based photography. I now work with companies, creatives, and marketing teams to create visuals that feel elevated, editorial, and real. I still shoot some lifestyle on the side and I’m unsure I will ever be willing to give that up. It feels to precious to be included in backstage passes of people’s lives. 🙂
My career journey has been a bit all over the place but at the core, not much has changed. Whether I’m photographing a brand campaign, a couple wildly in love or a badass founder, I’m still drawn to the same thing. Being invited into real moments and telling stories in an honest way. I love the balance of structured creative direction for brands and the organic, emotional side of lifestyle work.
More than anything, I feel deeply grateful. So many people have said yes to me, trusted me, mentored me, and supported me over the years. Every step has shaped how I create and how I show up. I genuinely feel lucky to have a career that allows me to be creative, connect with people, and tell stories for a living, and I don’t take that for granted for a second.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a completely smooth road, although I feel really grateful for the journey overall. Starting so young meant I learned a lot through trial and error. I didn’t have a traditional roadmap or formal business training early on, so a lot of things I figured out by simply doing, making mistakes, and learning as I went.
One of the biggest challenges has been navigating seasons of transition. Moving from weddings and portrait work into humanitarian photography, then later shifting into commercial and brand work, required me to constantly evolve my identity, my skill set, and my confidence. Each phase came with its own learning curve, and at times I had to let go of work I was known for in order to make space for what felt more aligned in the current season. I had to stay curious, set my ego aside and embrace the mentality of a hungry novice in order to evolve. I did a lot of shoots for free in order to build a robust portfolio that supported my work. I’ve done this over and over throughout my career path as I’ve honed my skillset in different focuses with different tools and disciplines.
Another challenge has been the emotional side of the work, especially during my years as a humanitarian photographer. Being immersed in other people’s stories, particularly in vulnerable and complex situations, was incredibly meaningful but also very heavy. I have worked with children being rescued from sex trafficking and seen people on their death bed at medical clinics. I had to learn how to fully show up and care deeply while also protecting my own energy and carving out decompression moments at the end up the day.
Like most creatives, I’ve also faced the ups and downs of running my own business. Months of inconsistent income, self-doubt, burnout, and comparison are all very real, especially in an industry that’s constantly changing. Building something sustainable long-term has required a lot of patience, resilience, and learning to trust myself. I have a really beautiful community of creatives and other photographers that I have grown with over the years. I lean into the mentality that what is meant for me will always find me and instead of viewing other photographers as a competition, I believe that there is more than enough for everyone to go around and ‘a rising tide raises all ships.’ That keeps my heart soft and my community strong.
The way I see it, every challenge has been an important lesson in life school and has taught me something valuable that I needed to learn one way or another. I’ve learned how to accept those growth invitations with less resistance, adapt, listen to my intuition, and build a career that feels aligned with my values.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I answered a lot of this in the first question!
I think one thing that really sets me apart is that my business has grown entirely through referrals. I’ve never actively advertised or marketed myself, not because there’s anything wrong with that, but simply because my work has always come from word of mouth and repeat clients. I feel incredibly grateful for that. It means the people I work with enjoy the experience enough to share it with others in their community, and that feels like the highest compliment.
As for what I’m known for, that’s always a little harder to answer about yourself, but based on what my clients tell me, I think it’s my ability to make people feel genuinely comfortable in front of the camera. A lot of my portrait clients say they feel really seen and that the images capture their soul, not just how they look. If I could choose what I am know for it would be for authentically capturing a person’s essence. That would be incredible!
What are your plans for the future?
My plan is honestly to just keep creating and telling stories visually. I can’t really imagine a world where I stop. Being a creative and producing art brings me so much joy, and without that outlet, I’m not sure where all that energy would even go.
I feel incredibly grateful to have a career that’s so flexible and aligned with how I want to live my life. Right now, that looks like continuing to create with my camera and growing my commercial and lifestyle work in ways that feel meaningful and inspiring. I also have some really big and exciting projects in the pipeline, which I’m deeply grateful for and genuinely excited about.
Looking ahead, I know I eventually want to have kids, and I’m sure that will open up a whole new world of creativity for me. The flexibility of my work feels like such a gift in that sense. I really desire to be a present, hands-on mother, and I feel lucky to have built a career that can support both my creative life and my personal life. I genuinely get excited thinking about that next chapter and how my art will continue to evolve alongside it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.carynnoel.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carynnoel
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cnoelw
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carynwerner/
