Patty Swanson Receives Awards for Photography

When someone really loves their job, it’s obvious. And when someone loves their job, and has the talent and vision to do it really well, it’s even better.

“Everybody has their own style, but I really like to get to know my subjects,” said Patty Swanson. She’s an award-winning photographer, with her own business (Patty Swanson Photography), and she brings that personal approach and an element of fun, as well as sensitivity, to every photo session.

When I first met Patty 13 years ago, she and I were both “on sabbatical” from our corporate jobs in the insurance industry. I immediately wondered how she had spent all those years deskbound in a cubicle. Her artistic nature and creativity showed through in everything she did; the clothes she wore, the outings she planned, even the sticky notes she attached when returning a borrowed dish demonstrated her flair.

Patty actually began freelancing as a photojournalist right about the same time as I began my second career as a writer. She had studied photography her senior year at the University of Northern Iowa, and even worked for a short time as a photojournalist with her hometown newspaper, the Mason City Globe Gazette in Mason City, Iowa, before embarking on her corporate career.

Patty is now a Certified Professional Photographer – a designation achieved by only three percent of photographers worldwide. And her work has received accolades, not only from her clients and other members of the public, but also from her peers. Patty recently won both a Blue Ribbon and a Judge’s Award at the Connecticut Professional Photographers' Association (CtPPA) 2011 convention for her image entitled “Fishtail.”

There are five judges at the CtPPA convention, and each selects their favorite image from among the entries. This is the second year in a row that Patty has received a Judge’s Award. Last year, “Bunkmates” received that designation as well as a Blue Ribbon and a People’s Choice award.

She works hard at it, but it’s obvious that Patty loves her job. She spends time before each photo session, getting to know her subjects, asking about their likes and dislikes, their favorite colors. She’s been doing a lot of senior portraits lately – but she doesn’t just take headshots to pass out to relatives.

“I like to capture them being who they are, doing what’s important to them.” For studio shots she asks the students to bring props that are meaningful – like sports equipment or musical instruments. “When shooting on location, there’s no limit to what you can do,” she said.

“Fishtail” – which was part of the senior portrait session for Matthew Mooers of The Williams School in New London – is one such example. Mooers is a swimmer, and his mother had made a last-minute request to include some photographs of him in their lap pool. Patty waited until the end of the photo session on a chilly October afternoon to have Mooers get into the pool, and as the sun was setting she was able to capture the award-winning image.

“Bunkmates,” last year’s award-winning image, was taken as part of Patty’s work with the March of Dimes and the neo-natal intensive care unit at UConn Medical Center. She offers her services to photograph premature babies with their parents, and a memory book is presented as her gift to the families. Ten of the images now hang permanently in the NICU’s “Family Centered Care Photo Gallery.”

“What they’re going through is such a difficult time. I ask the parents to interact with the children. I take the photos in black and white which makes it more classic, and you don’t seem to notice skin discoloration or tubes and wires as much.” As the mother of twins who were born prematurely, Patty understands the importance of creating these memories for the families, even as she is creating her own art.

Whether she is shooting family portraits, headshots (she took the photo of me that accompanies this column), creating the right impression for someone’s online dating profile, or even taking product photos, Patty is able to capture that special element – the unique quality that shows what the subject is really all about.

Patty was just elected to the board of the CtPPA as an area director. She has also received a Colleague Fellowship award for a combination of excellence in photography and voluntary service to the CtPPA over the past eight years. She also donates her time and expertise to many local charities and non-profit organizations. For more information or to see samples of her work, visit her website www.pattyswanson.com.