The Secret Garden
Kimberly Nicole
written by fanta gai
My name is Kimberly Nicole Douglas, I am 22 years old. I’m from a small town in Cali called Apple Valley, right between Vegas and LA. I graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising I’m downtown Los Angeles with my Associate of Arts degree in Visual Communications in 2016 and I love taking self portraits.
K’s Process
Into the Artist's mind....
Q- What inspired "The Secret Garden"?
K- "I posted a photo with the caption “What I look like on the daily (while also trying to think of another photo shoot idea)” and someone commented "bubbles" I really loved that idea and so I was trying to think of how to incorporate bubbles in a shoot. I began thinking of words to describe how I wanted the viewer to see it, as in mystical, ethereal, beautiful and then I got an image of a garden in my mind which reminded me of a book I read called The Secret Garden....I remembered how the garden was hidden in a place around a house and I thought it would be cool to transform a small space in my house into a hidden garden! so then the bubble idea went out the window (I’m still trying to think of an idea for that one ) haha"
Q- When and how did you discover your love for photography and Modelling?
K- "I’ve always been interested in the fashion industry and everything related to it, I started to really get into photography when I started following @bleachfilm on Instagram a couple years ago and the surreal images they posted made me think about life and fictional stories behind it".
K- "I always wanted to take pictures of my best friend but she would always flake. So I figured out how to do it myself. One day I was bored and started taking selfies in a jean jacket and ended up with this awesome photo of me from above surrounded by books in my homecoming dress. I had taped my iPhone 6s to the ceiling, set the self timer and shot away"!
K- "With modeling I recently found my love for it 4 years ago, I always liked the idea of being a model from watching ANTM when I was younger, I just never thought I was unique enough looking or I could handle being in the industry.....until one day I was doing a 3 day styling session and when they were shooting the model all I could think about was how I wish I was in front of the camera instead of behind".
Q- How long have you been taking self portraits?
K- "Since 2016. It all happened by chance and the fact that I’m inspiring people and my shoots have gotten better blows my mind. I know I’m not huge and I don’t have hundreds of thousands of followers but people commenting and dming me about how I’ve inspired them to start or get into modeling or get back into photography is why I continue to do it and I love taking pictures"!
Q- Have you ever had a shoot idea that you worked on and it didn't come out the way you wanted? If so, how do you deal with the disappointment or dissatisfaction with your work?
K- "Yeah, I remember this one day I wanted to do a bathtub shoot and it completely didn’t work out, I got so frustrated and I kept trying different ideas and they all fell through, it sucks but I’ve realized if I don’t have a clear plan, to just stop and let my mind rest for a few days until another idea comes to mind. It just depends on the day and shoot, where certain things are harder to figure out....I also came to realize that not everything I do is going to come out amazing or even good. Regardless, I know eventually something better will come to mind. Sometimes I just take selfies with my phone.....and as superficial as it may sound, it makes me feel better especially when I’m they come out good".
Q- What's one advice you'd give someone whose trying to get into self portraiture but maybe isn't confident enough to, or is intimidated by the whole process?
K- "Honestly, to just do it and fake it until you get to where you want to be, I wasn’t confident in myself when I first started, I'm now more confident than I was a couple years before I had started. My confidence grew as I realized that I’m pretty good at this"!
@Khimberlie