Nicole Zelkowitz

Hey! Creative ruts are the absolute worst. I cannot stand when I'm in one, but they definitely are going to happen at least once to everyone. Something I like to do when I'm in a creative rut is travel someplace new. Being in a new environment I've never been gets me really inspired and excited to create. When traveling isn't an option, try to start doing things for fun. Your brain and body more than likely need a refresh and relaxing day (or few days) away from any type of pressure, and when you do things for fun you'll eventually stop feeling drained and start getting your motivation back 🙂

Ah, big fan of this one 🥹 I've always been an introvert, but believe me when I say putting myself out there even when it felt uncomfortable to do so and making friends in this community has been the biggest lifesaver both in my personal life and becoming a part of the photo community! I can positively say that 99% of any community you're looking to be a part of is genuinely really sweet and open minded, so if you run into anyone who isn't don't let them cloud your judgement. Just start engaging with peoples work, it's the easiest way to break through the initial layer. Try to find creators who live around where you do, and hang out with them! Go shoot together, or edit together in a coffee shop. When you're out shooting, don't be scared to talk to the other creators you see around you. I've made so many friends just by saying "hey!" when they're shooting the same location for sunrise or sunset. It's so easy to make friends in your community when you don't put pressure on it, and these friends will also help you see things from new perspectives which will ultimately help you grow as a creator as well! 🤍

Hello! 🥰 I actually use my own presets that I tweak about once per year into more of the steady changes I see myself doing on all of my edits 👀 My presets have been an absolute solid ground base for all of my edits to help me keep everything somewhat consistent and make all of my edits I put out there feel like my own. There are tons of epic photographers out there who sell their presets as well, and while I don't sell mine I definitely think it's worth it to look into others who do sell theirs and whos content you're a big fan of, and if you don't already have your own I think it would be great for you to create your own this way you can have a starting point for all of your edits moving forward 🙂

I love this goal so much! 🥹 Wildlife photographers are so incredible, and wow it would be so epic to work with NatGeo and BBC! I absolutely think you can achieve this goal in the future - your work is already so good! I personally think you're already killing it out there, but if I were to give you any guidance to help achieve it faster, I think it's important to remember never to give up and to just keep pushing yourself to new extremes and push your boundaries. Keep traveling, and just keep getting out there and shooting and editing. You've been branching out into new creative depths; I've definitely been watching your work. Just stay motivated and keep the inspiration alive and creative juices flowing! 🙌

I think something that I wish I could tell my younger self just starting out in photography is that taking risks is what will help you the most. It's so important to remember that trying new things and always going into everything with an open mind is going to help you succeed so much. It's going to help you grow in ways you didn't think were possible, and it will help you expand your horizons to a new extent. When I first started out in photography, I was definitely content with shooting all of the city stuff. I didn't have much of a desire to shoot outside of the Bay Area... until I finally did it. I was editing in specific dramatic ways that were similar to other photographers, and eventually I decided to mess around and found a style that resonates with my own liking more. The risks don't need to be big, but any type of risk will help make you a better creator! 🙂

This is a great question! For starters, I never leave home without my filters. I have the PolarPro Helix Maglock 2-5VND + 6-9VND, and PolarPro Chroma 2-5VND/PL which is my all time favorite. Filters are so, so necessary and I couldn't recommend them enough; especially the Chroma one if you're in the market for one. Having a variable + a polarizer in one is such a game changer. I'll also always bring both a lens cloth + a LensPen Lens cleaner because if I lose one somehow at least I have a backup 😇 Spare batteries and backup SD cards are also an absolute must. I couldn't imagine how mad at myself I would be if the sole reason me not being able to shoot some epic photo is due to not having a charged battery or enough space on a SD card.

Hi there! 🥰 I'm honestly obsessedddd with all of my gear! In my camera bag you will find my a7C II, 12-24mm GM /2.8, 14mm GM /1.8, 24-70mm GMII /2.8, and 70-200mm GMII /2.8 ... you will also find my Mavic Air 2s because drones are so fun to mess around with!

Thank you so much!! 🥹 Your work is so dope, I love always looking at your photos. You're a killer drone pilot, too 🙂

Mine!? YOURS is so inspiring! Your videography, especially, has been getting more and more epic. You're a huge inspiration for so many creators, myself included 🤘

It's hard to find balance sometimes, but my job makes it easy with the flexible scheduling & my partner makes it even easier by always being willing to go on any adventure the second I say "let's go." I'm really fortunate to be able to work in a field that lets me travel whenever I want to, and even more fortunate to be with someone who is always down to explore and see the world 🙂

If I had to pick my top, very top favorite... hands down it was the Lofoten Islands! I need a redo for sure due to all the random horrible weather than hindered all the epic hikes, but it was still so surreal. Outside of there, I'm a huge fan of the PNW. I've been to Oregon way too many times to count, and I finally was able to touch the surface of Washington and I'm already itching to go back 😅

Hello! 🥰 When I first started photography back in 2019, I was shooting a ton more city/urban and a lot less nature. It was really fun shooting in the city, but I think what turned me off was how dangerous it became for a photographer in the Bay Area. I started going on more roadtrips to super cool places like Yosemite National Park, and the Oregon Coast, and I realized there's a lot more interesting subjects to shoot in these places. They caught my eye and kept my interest a lot more than the city stuff. I will say tho - I sure do miss a good rooftop 🤭🤫

I like this question a lot, actually. I work for an airline which helps me with the opportunity to travel often. The flexibility in scheduling is great and my flying benefits are even better, and it's cheaper at times for me to take a weekend trip to Europe than to take a weekend roadtrip to the Sierras or the PNW. Having a partner and close friends who love traveling and love being in the outdoors really helps me out with balancing my personal life alongside travel and photography. Being able to tell myself "hey Nicole, maybe your bank account can't afford this trip" is another story 😂 I think the hardest part about balancing it all is finding the right places to include my dog. There's so many places I want to travel to for the purpose of photography, but a lot of these places are either difficult to get to with my dog, or are not dog friendly and it's always hard leaving him at home. So more times than not, I'm out creating in these super beautiful places while simultaneously feeling like a part of me is left at home because he loves the adventures more than all of us combined. I will often tend to go to the same places I've been to a bunch of times, or not go on specific trails or hikes so that I can make what would otherwise not be a dog-friendly trip more into a dog-friendly trip this way I can have the best of both worlds. I guess I'm a bit lucky that's my only true difficulty in balancing it all out 🙂

Hi Salvador! Thank you for your questions 🥰 I actually am not a full time photographer, but I've got a great full time job that offers cool benefits like flexible scheduling that allows me to do photography a lot of the time, and most of the time as often as I'd like. I do remember a few years back when I was dating a photographer here in the Bay Area when I first started to mess around with photography. He had already worked with brands and our whole friend group was pretty experienced in this field. I was taking photos mainly for the fun of it (and I still am!) but there was this one day when I told my ex I was thinking about buying something, and he told me "Try to email them, you never know. I'll help you" and we sent this brand an email and they wanted to work with me and I thought it was the absolute coolest thing ever 🤭 I think a lot of what I mainly needed to commit to in order to get this type of lifestyle really rolling was an online presence and the need to stay motivated to create. A few years back, instagram was all about photos and so I really honed in on that and I was going out to shoot every single chance I could. I shot so many sunrises before going to work, and I shot so many sunsets when I wasn't working or was off work in time. And I'd be so quick to post, and engage with the community and tried to make friends and tried to learn with these friends. I spent a lot of time on my laptop editing in Lightroom and Photoshop, and then spent the rest of my time on my phone which wasn't the most fun, but I was constantly seeing photos of new places and coming across new creators that helped me stay beyond motivated and kept me wanting to learn as much as possible.

You know... I started off this year with so many goals. I wanted to get more into videography and learn how to edit better on Davinci Resolve, and I wanted to post on Instagram every day and edit multiple photos each week even if it meant going back and editing older photos I haven't looked at in years. I also wanted to work with more brands this year than last year and increase my income from last year in freelance if it was possible. I started the year off strong but had so many things happen in my personal life that I havent met many of my goals for growth and learning. That being said - when life has it's calm moments I certainly try to get back into my goals and tackle them. I learn a lot from my friends, but I also learn so much from Youtube. It truly is one of the best teachers out there! There's a million and ten videos and tutorials on everything under the sun 🙂