There’s clearly a dichotomy here.
On the one hand, she is an absolute badass, something that is certainly represented in the first portrait. She will not only get excited to perform surgery to repair your guinea pig’s eyeball, she will calmly nerd out on the science of it. She will do this unflinchingly, with a love for the science of veterinarian surgery.
But on the other hand, she cares so deeply about others that the toughness you see in the first portrait really doesn’t begin to cover it. She is compassionate and humble to a fault. I joke that she will not cross the street if she thinks someone else might prefer to go first. She certainly got into veterinary medicine out of that unbelievable compassion for both the animals she cares for and the humans who love them. I call her a Magical Animal Whisperer because Dr. Doolittle is an inadequate description. She has a great laugh and tremendous amount of patience.
Our town is incredibly lucky to have her. I am even luckier to call her a friend.
Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography
Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona
4 responses to “Veterinarian. Mom. Superhero. Portrait of Chelsey in Flagstaff, AZ”
What a sweet write up about Chelsey. You nailed it and of course the photos are perfect! Happy holidays to you and yours from Peter and me. We’re happy and healthy and loving being retired. We do miss all the friendly faces from our past though…. ❤️
Thank you so much, Deb! Happy holidays to you and Peter. I’m so glad that you are well and that you liked Chelsey’s portraits. She is amazing! Wishing you all the best.
Kristen, Your ability to capture so much about people in words AND photography remains only a part of how fully you are able to connect with humans and other beings. Thanks for sharing so much of yourself with so many so often.
Leslie, You are sooo kind to say that. I’m really touched. Thank you!