about me

My name is Laura Johnston and I am a Calgary based photographer specializing in portrait, lifestyle, event and branding photography.

An amateur photographer since 2008 and a professional photographer since 2011, my knowledge and skill in this industry is ever growing and changing. With a diploma in Photographic Imaging that I received in 2011 at a local college in Saskatoon, and a diploma that I received in 2014 after completing SAIT's Photojournalism program, I launched my full fledged business in Spring of 2014. I've been creatively photographing since the age of 17 but the years of technical training, industry knowledge and the acquiring of professional grade equipment have prepared me to be a confident, dynamic, and artistic photographer.

The more relatable me

So now that you've read what I am "officially about", let's get more casual:

• I have two beautiful daughters! My world shifted drastically with my first daughter’s arrival in 2020. I feel like I’m always trying to figure out how to balance life, motherhood and photography but one thing is for sure, I’m never bored!

• Ironically enough, I can very rarely take a serious picture. I need to hire someone to take headshots of me!

• I am an avid coffee drinker.

• I'm married to a wonderful man named Cameron who is unwavering in his love and support for me and what I do.

• My very first baby is my rescue pup, Ralph!

• I first became interested in photography when I took my little pink point-and-shoot on a high school trip to Italy that I went on at the age of 17.

• I love puns. The worse they are the better.

• I love to travel.

• I'm from Saskatoon but have been living in Calgary since 2011.

• I have been blessed with incredible family - both the one I was born into, and the one I married into.

• I've been an Auntie since I was 7 years old and I have 8 nieces and nephews!

• I LOVE movies and TV. My favourite TV shows are Gilmore Girls, anything by Mike Flanagan and Mad Men (diverse interest, I know).

• While sometimes it feels like we have a very complex relationship, photography is so special to me. No matter how difficult or challenging it can be, I keep doing it every single day because nothing feels more right than when I am behind my camera. It fills me from the inside out and the end result is that I get to hand over that happiness to someone else in the form of their photos. There is literally no better feeling.

• I love that this industry is always changing. It used to intimidate me but then I discovered that it gives me creative license to be in a constant state of learning, growth and adaptability, which is incredibly beautiful and liberating.