We love the New Year because it's a time to pause and find fresh perspective in our lives. A time to focus in on what is most significant and sacred to us, whether professional or personal. In this spirit, we're sharing a new blog series to highlight the "anthems" of some of the members of our FOTO fam.
We've been blown away by the popularity of our new Designer Fotostraps, but are most excited that so many of you are choosing to personalize these straps with an anthem message. Embedded on the interior of the camera strap, these words represent what fuels your work.
We're eager to share some of these meaningful anthems and hope you enjoy learning more about the unique photographers who wear them. We'll kick off the series with our fearless leader and the founder of Fotostrap, Katie Norris.
Name: Katie Norris
Based in: Dallas, Texas
Business Name & Brief Description: FOTO and Fotolanthropy. I design modern customizable camera straps for photographers who value meaningful style and function. As a photographer myself, I understand what professionals need and want in a camera strap. It's such a rewarding job to "arm" so many creatives and equip them to do their work. I also founded the nonprofit Fotolanthropy (that FOTO supports), produce documentary films, run my photography business and am a mom to 2-year-old Rose and our baby boy (due in a few weeks!).
Favorite Designer Fotostrap Color: It's a toss-up for me. We worked diligently to curate five beautiful colors for this line. I love the elegance and versatility of the Ivory strap. It's rare that you see an ivory camera strap in the marketplace and the Ivory feels high end and complements many photography events. As soon as I saw this leather, I knew we wanted it in the Designer line. I also adore the Rose strap because it's named after my daughter. The perfect shade of blush just makes me happy and because of its matte finish, it complements many outfit options and it's just simply pretty.
Anthem message: inspire the world.
Why did you choose this message? These three words summarize my mission for the work I do through Fotolanthropy and FOTO. Our mission is to inspire the world with real stories of hope. It's a big statement but it helps me to focus and continue to dream big.
The world we live in is full of adversity, and I believe that we all need and crave positive content that can bring renewed hope. When we watch stories of strength and grit, we can relate and also be challenged and renewed, too. I started Fotolanthropy to document these types of powerful stories and it's been a blessing to watch our films bring hope and inspiration to millions of viewers online and through platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Pureflix and Amazon Prime.
How do you think it will inspire your work? When I read my anthem "inspire the word" I envision people experiencing our documentaries and walking away with renewed inspiration. I also envision creatives wearing products that support our mission of inspiring the world with hope. This fires me up and gives me the drive to live my anthem. I believe it's important to know your why and I love that I can simply look down and be reminded.
Instagram profile: Follow me @katienorrisfoto for a look at all I'm up to – raising kiddos, traveling, everyday life, designing product and making documentaries.
Want to declare an anthem, but need some inspiration? Check out these ideas to help you decide on your personalization for your Fotostrap!
