We had the good fortune of connecting with Jamie Wetrade-Stevenson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jamie, what inspires you?
This is an awesome question, I’m inspired by a lot of things but I pull a lot of my ‘inspiration’ from visuals I see online; however I find that I’m personally drawn to anything specifically related to my indigenous roots through cultural and traditional practices such as beading, sewing and tan hiding, etc.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The way I would describe me discovering the artform of photography was definitely accidental, in the sense that I truly didn’t have an understanding of what capturing a photo means and what the process would entail.

What sparked my interest in photography was the editing process and this included learning the basic fundamentals through free apps on my iPad. I really had no clue what I was doing, but I knew that slapping on a filter and making tweak lighting adjustments to the image sparked some type of creativity in myself and naturally I started taking photos on my iPad and from there my love for photography grew.

I started learning photography when I was around 13/14 years old and then I professionally started it as a business at around 17/18 years old. Although I knew my way around the editing process and camera functions, I didn’t know too much about the business aspect of everything. I knew that if I wanted to be sustainable, this was something I needed to learn more about and because I’m a self-taught artist, I resorted back to exactly that (self-teachings) when I was learning the business side of things. It wasn’t an easy process to overcome however I knew that I was driven and passionate enough about my artform that anything related to sustaining it in a business perspective was going to be learnt. I didn’t really give myself the option to give up on this.

One of the things about my photography business that sets me apart from other’s in my area are my Boudoir Photography Services. I discovered boudoir, I would say pretty early on in my journey through my makeup artist and good friend, Karen Murray; who is also a big reason why I do offer these services and is huge driver behind my love and passion for empowering and celebrating everyone’s self love journey.

Karen gave me the opportunity to dive right into this (boudoir photography) by allowing me to photograph her and through these valuable experiences, we formed a really trusting professional relationship which has since allowed us to do many creative and collaborative shoots together.

I truly believe that everyone deserves to feel empowered, beautiful and strong and if this is something that I could offer through my photography services, then I know I’m doing something right. I take pride in my ability to be able to make my clients feel comfortable in-front of the camera, as I know from experience, that can be extremely vulnerable for some people, including myself! So I know with the right guidance and direction, anyone who steps in-front of my camera will leave feeling excited and powerful.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Ahh, this is a great question! Some of my favorite hang-out spots in Yellowknife, well I have a few and really depends on what you’re personally in the mood for.

If you’re interested in taking a walk, there are some awesome trails such as frame lake or tin-can hill. However, if you find that you’re in the mood for food, then the Woodyard (NWT Brewing & Co) and the Copper House are some tasty options!

However, if you’re interested in shopping for local goods, then some places I’d recommend to pay a visit to would be Dene Divaz (Also known as Dene Beadz on social media), which is located in old-town and carry many indigenous hand-crafted jewelry and artwork.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to give a shoutout to my mom, Mary Lynn Wetrade, who continues to be an inspiration to me everyday. I grew up being raised by my mom in Behchoko, Northwest Territories along with 3 other siblings, my late sister, a younger brother and oldest brother, and my dad passed unfortunately when I was very young.

My mom continues to be an inspiration and a huge motivator in my life because despite her hardship as a single mother in an indigenous community with a family to provide for, she continues to represent strength, courage and bravery. I admire my mom for many things but one of the qualities I love most about her (& that I’m grateful to now have a better understanding of today), is her resilience.

Website: www.jamiestevenosnphotography.com

Instagram: @JamieStevensonPhotography

Facebook: Jamie Stevenson Photography

Other: Instagram: @JamieStevensonBoudoir Facebook: Jamie Stevenson Boudoir

Image Credits
Photography by Jamie Wetrade-Stevenson at Jamie Stevenson Photography, Creative Makeup by Karen Murray. Models: Karis Gruben, Bobbi Rose Koe, Karen Murray, Willow Allen, Micheala Crook, Ora Paulette, and  Alida Ryan.