Meet the Photographer
Hiiii, I'm Sierra!
You got the quick version on the homepage. Military with ten years service, nurse, two wildlings, enough caffeine to concern a physician. Here's the longer one.
I am an emergency and trauma nurse, currently training to become a Nurse-Midwife. I've spent years in the rooms where everything changes in about four seconds - where a family walks in as one thing and walks out as something else entirely. You don't get to do that job and still believe you've got unlimited time. You just don't. It has changed my entire outlook on life - because life is meant to be lived, my friends. Someone, somewhere, once said so eloquently "You just gotta keep on livin' man, L-I-V-I-N."
So when I show up with a camera, I am not thinking about poses. I am thinking: this exact version of your family exists right now, and in two years it's going to look so different because time keeps marching along. The feral kids who won't stop talking. The way your person looks at you when they think nobody's watching. The season you're in the middle of and are honestly even maybe, sometimes, a little tired of. The season you're not sure is worth documenting.
It's the one. That's the whole job.
Fun Facts
12+
YEARS BEHIND THE CAMERA
218
EVERY X-FILES EPISODE I'VE MEMORIZED (yes, there are 218 + two movies).
800
MILLIGRAMS OF CAFFEINE CONSUMED ON AN AVERAGE DAY. CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE.
2000+
FAMILIES, COUPLES, FERRAL CHAOTIC CHILDREN, AND ELOPEMENTS I'VE PHOTOGRAPHED.
HOW THIS ACTUALLY GOES
We talk before I ever pick up a camera. I want to know who your kids actually are, what makes your person laugh, what you'd rather be doing on a Saturday night.
Then I direct. The whole way through. You're never left wondering what to wear to what to do. That's my job, not yours.
I don't run templates. Not every family is the flowy-dress-in-a-mountain valley session and that's exactly the point.
I am also in it with you. The creek, the mountain, the wave - I'm not standing on the bank in nice shoes. Fair warning: I don't do small talk. Half the time I'm still at the cars an hour after a session, yapping with you. A lot of my clients end up friends and I've got them all over the country now.
What you get back looks undeniably like you. That's the only version I'm interested in making.
FAQ
This is my first photoshoot, what should I know?
That you don't have to know anything! Truly. Almost everyone tells me some version of "we're awkward and we have no idea what we're doing" before a session. Then I direct the whole thing, and about forty minutes in, you forget I'm there. That's the goal. That's the job.
What is the Wayward and Wild Experience?
After filling out a contact form, I will be in contact with you - generally within 24 hours! From there, we will select a date and have a 10-15 minute phone consultation. This allows me to get to know you a little better! You'll receive a client guide that includes locations I recommend as well as links to my client closet. Hair and makeup will be available upon request.
Can you recommend any good locations?
Yes! It's one of my favorite parts. I'll pull from what I know about Colorado Springs, Denver, and Castle Rock as well as up into the Rockies (Crested Butte, Washington Gulch Road, San Jaun Mountains, Garden of the Gods, etc.) I won't just hand you a list. I pick based on your family. A crew of feral toddlers and a couple eloping at 10,000 feet are *very* different ground. Tell me who you are and I'll find the place.
Are the travel expenses included in your packages?
Anything within 45 minutes / 25 miles from Castle Rock is included. Past that travel gets added at cost. No markup, no games. And since the answer to traveling is always yes: ask me! I've said yes to further, promise.
Do you offer digital files, prints, or albums?
Once your gallery is delivered digitally, you'll be able to order prints through my storefront that is linked directly through your gallery. My turnaround time for images is 7-21 days, on average, depending on the season!
What gear do you shoot with?
I have two camera bodies (Canon R6 Mark II) with a 24-70mm 2.8, 50mm 1.2, 35mm 1.4, and 85mm 1.8. I also shoot with a DJI Mavic Mini drone as well as Olympus 35mm film camera.
