ABOUT MERK PHOTOGRAPHY
Mission
Provide professional photographic services with integrity and respect to help every client look their best.
​
Vision
Merk Photography leads in creative photographic services and positive collaborations in the York Region area.
​
About The Photographer
Karen Merk, LPPOC, PMP is an Accredited Professional Photographer of Canada, Award winning National Competition Photographer, and experienced Portrait photographer, working in the York Region area since 2008. She is a past Director and current member of the Richmond Hill Board of Trade and enjoys helping her community whenever possible.
​
In her portrait photography, Karen strives to reveal the unique qualities in each individual -getting the right expression is key. She enjoys photographing in that person's environment to add another level of dimension to personalize the portraits. Many clients tell Karen that she makes them feel at ease and comfortable during sessions, which is what she strives to do at every time she has the opportunity to photograph a client.
Community Focused
​Karen is a certified member of the Professional Photographers Canada and has won several awards at juried competitions including a national award for her fine art photography.
Karen is a past Board Director for the Richmond Hill Board of Trade and has been an active member supporting her business community.
Since 2005, Karen has held her Project Management Professional designation that is the foundation of her skills to create new initiatives steeped in collaboration, like Portraits of Giving, to educate, celebrate and inspire her community. The annual Portraits of Giving exhibit allows Karen to celebrate the many people she has met along her adventures in photography and who provide a true source of inspiration.
Karen is active in the arts community and was honoured to be elected to serve second terms on the Richmond Hill Cultural Leadership and the Richmond Hill Public Art Councils. Recently she also served on the Town of Richmond Hill's Canada 150 Council and was honoured to have witnessed and photographed many inspiring events that were revealed during the Canada 150 historical year.
Karen is the founder of Portraits of Giving, created in 2009 and inspired by her community. The goal of this initiative has always been to inspire our community to start or to keep giving back to help others. She has won the Canada 150 and Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Awards for her work over the years.
Projects and Portraits that celebrate and inspire people are what she enjoys the most. And paddling in her kayak or watching a beautiful sunset while sipping a really good glass of red wine.
Karen is a "seasoned veteran" at special event photography and has had the pleasure of photographing thousands of special events and celebrations since 2008 for private clients and publications like SNAPd and “Neighbours of Mill Pond” Magazine.
_JPG.jpg)
Outdoor family portraits are always a pleasure to photograph in the spring, summer and fall seasons to create the gift of a moment in time to generations of families to treasure.
Always looking for ways to help her community, Karen donates full event photography services every quarter, frequently donates fine art photographs and gift certificates, or lends a hand on charitable committees.
Here are some of the organization's Merk Photography has given back to over the years: