We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kaitlin Saltzman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kaitlin below.
We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kaitlin Saltzman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kaitlin below.
Kaitlin, we’ve been so fortunate to work with so many incredible folks and one common thread we have seen is that those who have built amazing lives for themselves are also often the folks who are most generous. Where do you think your generosity comes from?
As I have launched my photography side hustle, I have leaned heavily on my friend and mentor, Dana Hanley (of Dana Hanley Photography). Through her friendship and mentorship, I ultimately, essentially, got a cheat sheet on how to do it, from what camera to get, to figuring out my editing style, to working with clients.
Dana had nothing to gain from helping me except helping a fellow mom and friend. Throughout my career in TV, mentorship has been a major element, whether it’s been about people helping me get a leg up, or me helping other people do the same. I’ve had incredible bosses who have taught me and included me in their work, I’ve had friends recommend me for jobs, I’ve had people do favors for me out of the goodness of their hearts… the list goes on. And because I’ve seen what a massive difference all of this has made for me, I have made it a mission to do the same for other people. It can be hard to ask for help sometimes, especially if you identify as strong and independent (which I do), but I find it much easier to ask for and accept help when I know I’m going to pay it forward.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am a woman that wears many hats.
My main career is that I am a television executive; I am the head of a scripted department for a production company with a first-look deal at a major studio. My job keeps me extraordinarily busy, and I’ve always loved that. My passion for television is significant, and I genuinely absolutely love what I do, so I’ve always embraced the intensity.
I’m also a mom of two young kids, so I don’t exactly have a ton of time to focus on myself. The idea of having a hobby honestly sounded laughable to me even just a year ago. My plate was already too full!
But during the WGA and SAG strikes, I was a lot less busy, and I’m honestly not great at being idle, so I decided it was time pick up the hobby I’d had back in high school: photography. However, I quickly realized that this was more than a hobby; it was becoming a new passion. Capturing moments that evoke emotion or encapsulate a moment in time is so special to me. I love that I get to memorialize memories. I also love that I can capture moments in time that build on each other. My dream is to get to photograph some families over time, for all of the milestones: engagement, wedding, maternity, newborn, yearly family photos, etc. That would be so rewarding.
I also, transparently, am facing the same inflation and high cost of living in a major city as everyone else, and when I realized I had the opportunity to turn this hobby into a way to make my family more comfortable, that sealed the deal: I was going to add a salad plate to my place setting. Or maybe a dessert plate? Whatever it is, it’s now a necessary dish. But in other words, this is how Kaitlin Saltzman Photography was born.
(Hilariously, I also picked up *another* side hustle during the strikes, kind of accidentally: a greeting card business on Etsy called Cardswift, in which I make mostly Taylor Swift themed cards. Since she’s on top of the world, it’s been a fun moment for me!)
Now that things have ramped back up in TV, I’m finding a new balance, but I know that KSP and photography will continue to be a very real side hustle for me. In TV, it’s rare (one might even say impossible) for me to have full creative control over anything, and it’s also rare to get to see a project all the way through — that’s just the nature of the business, and particularly of my side of it as a producer. But in photography, I get to have those things. I get to take the photos, choose the ones that I want to represent my work, edit them to my heart’s desire, and deliver them to a (hopefully) happy client. It’s a beautiful thing!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1. The ability to compartmentalize and multitask. Given that I wear so many hats, it’s really important that I track everything separately and that I turn my full attention to whatever I’m working on, while keeping copious notes and a strict(ish) schedule.
- Love for what I do. I couldn’t be this busy all the time if I didn’t genuinely love each of the things I’ve taken on.
- Hustle and faith in myself. As I’ve grown, I’ve realized that hustle is my superpower. I have faith that I’m someone that can take things on, and I’ve put the pedal to the pavement. Things don’t get done if you just sit around hoping they will happen.
The best advice I have is that you need to genuinely love what you’re doing, if you’re going to give your heart and soul to it. Not everybody needs to have passion for what they do professionally, but if you don’t have passion for what you do professionally, then you should limit the amount of your life that it takes over. Life’s too short.
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
I am extraordinarily lucky in that my parents were able to provide me with many opportunities to pursue the things I loved. I was able to do the NBC Page Program, for instance — an incredible professional program that at the time didn’t pay well but opened many doors for me — because my parents helped to subsidize my life during that time. I learned photography as a teenager because of the summer camp they sent me to, and I got my college degree (and part of my masters degree as well) because they paid for much of my education. Even recently, I was able to get my most loved and used lens for my camera because my parents helped me to purchase it (photography is expensive!). My parents have also given me their full emotional support, throughout my entire life, as I have pursued my passions. I am very, very lucky.
But in a somewhat convoluted way, the most important thing that all of the above did for me was to teach me, eventually, to recognize the extraordinary privilege that I have, and to understand that so many people are not afforded what I was afforded. This is one of the many reasons why, as a television executive, my primary interest is to bring representation to the screen (on it and behind the scenes), and why in all of my careers and areas of life, mentorship is always a foremost priority.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.kaitlinsaltzmanphotography.com (and https://shesacardswift.etsy.com)
- Instagram: @kaitlinsaltzmanphotography (and @shesacardswift)
Image Credits
The photo of me is by Dana Hanley Photography. All other photos are mine.
