Meet Patty Carratala: Family & Wedding Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Patty Carratala and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Patty, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The most important factor of my success is staying grounded in humility. I will always remember where I came from and all that God has done for me and my business.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I would say that service, following up, and connecting with others, aside from my daily life as a person have kept me busy as a professional.My days are full of love and simplicity and I wouldn’t have it any other way.I homeschool my daughter and we love it so much.It has definitely kept me very grounded while running a business. I have been able to guide my daughter through school and daily life as well as maintaining the balance of my business and providing my clients with great service. It truly has been an amazing journey for me as a Mom and business owner.It has shown me the value of not giving up when you truly love something and when you want to see the harvest of it all. I have evolved as a person and I understand that hard work pays off ,and you can do anything in life with FAITH. You just don’t quit just because you had a bad day, you keep pressing on! So with this improper introduction I would like to say that I am your South Florida Family & Wedding Photographer.I document the evolution of love and happiness within people : ) I am Patty the girl behind Patty Carratala Photography and here are some extra facts about me I thought I share away! I am 39 years old soon to be 40 this year YIKES!!!!!! I have been married to my best friend Nelson for 14 years CHEERS!!!!Marriage means a lot to us and this is the reason I think I have grown to value witnessing love among my many clients.Nelson has fully supported me on this God given journey he’s had my back since day one! Finally I am a mama to my miracle girl Emily Grace who always brings out MY WHY of why I document beautiful memories.

I love capturing life as it unfolds through my lens by using both mediums of photography digital and film.I love witnessing the tears from the moment a mama holds her baby in her arms to the bride walking down the isle in all her glory. I am super happy of where my business is today because I have grown as a business owner and as an individual. I am proud to say that the statement that has kept my business grounded is to “LOVE & SERVE WELL”. This statement will always be real in anything I do because it is the fire that fuels my heart and leads me to work even harder.I am also grateful for the support I have received from my family and friends (you know who you are!) over the years and of course God, without HIM I would not be Patty Carratala Photography.

This journey has not been easy at all! Of course some days are harder than others, but staying true to yourself and remembering WHY you even started has helped me to continue to grow my business.Through the highs and the lows I will never forget where I came from literally having NOTHING to now having so many blessings God has graced my business with.Two lessons I have learned along the way are Family time and Self care. Family time is super important to me because I want to be present with the ones I love most. I really believe that your family is your biggest team and without them my business won’t function well ,this is why every so often I have to step away and prioritize time for what is most important and if this means a family vacation, or no social media or answering calls or texts I do it. The second one is Self care and I must say that in order to give to others from your cup it must be full, you cannot be pouring yourself from an empty cup otherwise you will be dry and burnt out and growth will not happen. Stepping away, having a heart check and dealing with your emotions, getting a massage, an iced coffee, or taking a vacation is very much needed in my opinion and it it not selfish at all! We all need to take care of ourselves to be able to run a business we are also humans. As far as the many challenges that business owners face daily for me one that stands out a lot is that I am one person running the show, I am in the front and in the back doing it all for the sake of serving well. My goal is to eventually have a team of my own individuals who are both humble and passionate professionals. Finally,I want the world to know that I love what I do. I want people to feel valued and beautiful when I capture their memories. Annie Lebowitz said it best and it is my favorite quote “A thing that you will see in my photographs is that I wasn’t afraid to fall in love with these people.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
OH WOW!!!! I love traveling and so for me adventure is always on my list with my family. If my best friend was visiting the area I think I would definitely take her to Sanibel beach. We love outdoors and of course Florida is well know for its beautiful relaxed beaches. I would totally give her a tour of our beaches and relax in a beautiful resort and eat all the yummy foods and watch the sunset because that is a must for everyone who visits a Florida beach. A week of sunny beaches, clear blue skies, tasty drinks, great food, jet ski riding, and lots of rest is what this Florida girl can offer anyone who visits.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I owe it all to God and my family 🙂