You Can’t Program Taste: A Photographer on Authenticity, Art and Finding Her Way

One of Brittany’s favourite images she’s captured

There’s something wonderfully refreshing about a photographer who doesn’t have a grand story about the moment she first picked up a camera.

There was no cinematic flash of recognition, no sudden this is what I’m meant to do revelation. For her, photography arrived more naturally, almost quietly.

A sense of instinct runs through her work and her life. She doesn’t try to dictate what someone should feel when they look at a photograph. She leaves room for them to bring their own story to it. Her own images, meanwhile, carry little fragments of the child she once was…bare feet, laughter, and an affection for eras she can admire without ever having lived through them.

Her career hasn’t followed a perfectly straight line, either. When her twin stepped away from their creative partnership, leaving her to navigate the industry on her own for the first time, she was scared. She made mistakes. She kept going. And perhaps most importantly, she learned that stepping away can sometimes be part of moving forward. Returning to photography with her heart fully in it is something she counts among her proudest achievements.

Today, she believes deeply in the people who make fashion imagery possible: the models, stylists, agencies and creative teams whose individual perspectives make the whole greater than its parts. And in an industry increasingly shaped by AI, she holds onto something she believes cannot be programmed: taste and authenticity.

Perhaps that is what makes her story so compelling. There is ambition, resilience, but also playfulness. And beneath it all is a simple hope for the people she works with: that they have fun, especially when it’s their very first shoot.

Introducing… Brittany Daigle!

Models of Canada: Every photographer has a story behind the first time they picked up a camera. Can you take us back to that moment and tell us what made you fall in love with photography?

Brittany: I wish I did, but I literally can not remember having this moment or when I first picked up a camera

Models of Canada: Looking back at your career, was there one defining moment that made you realize, "This is what I'm meant to do"?

Brittany: I don't know if I really had one of those moments, it was a natural progression...I actually started out in this field by doing makeup/hair and then realized I wanted more control of the final shot and then just started shooting with my sister. I loved the story telling, the moments caught, I loved the romance of it and the tones, the soft light. I was also a big magazine junkie when I was a kid. That probably helped with it.

Models of Canada: Photography often captures everyone else's stories. What is one chapter of your own life that has shaped the way you see the world through your lens?

Brittany: I can't really pinpoint a chapter of my life that has shaped my view point for my photography. I think with most people our childhoods really develop our sense of likes and self when it comes to art in general. There are little bits of me as a kid in my personal shoots, a lack of shoes, laughter, a bit of odd tension, a nod to time periods I'll never be a part of.

Models of Canada: What do you hope people feel (and not just see) when they look at one of your photographs?

Brittany: Whatever they feel is what they feel. Like with any art whether an abstract painting or a clay pot, what they feel when looking at it is entirely up to them.

Models of Canada: Creative careers are filled with both incredible highs and difficult lows. Can you share a challenge that changed you, and what it taught you about yourself?

Brittany: I used to shoot with my twin sister, Brianne Daigle and we used to be called Jane and Jane. She decided this part of the industry wasn't for her anymore and she went into wedding photography. I was going to be alone in my career for the first time in my life and honestly was scared and didn't know if I could do it. Turns out I can, albeit with a lot of mistakes but as long as I keep moving forward I'll get there.

Models of Canada: If you could photograph one person, living or gone, for just one hour, who would it be and what conversation would you hope to have with them?

Brittany: My grandma, because I miss her. I would take one photo and then spend the hour talking with her.

Models of Canada: Behind every successful artist is a human being. Outside of photography, what keeps your heart full, inspires you, or reminds you who you are?

Brittany: What's been keeping my heart full lately is antique malls, period dramas/movies, and bizarre chip flavours. I’ve been inspired a lot by victorian whimsy lately like cabbage leaf bowls and the greeting cards they use to end. 

Models of Canada: Fashion photography is rarely a solo effort! It’s built on collaboration. What has it been like working with agencies, models, and fellow creatives throughout your career, and what changes or growth do you hope to see in the Canadian fashion industry over the next decade?

Brittany: It's been wild to see the growth of models, and agencies over time and who is in what position now or where in the world. It's been nice seeing everyone succeed. I truly do wish for everyone to achieve what they want from their careers.

It's such an ecosystem of itself. Everyone is important, their perspective, their talent, whether that's the styling houses or models. I hope to see the continuing utilization of teams. AI seems to be becoming the rising norm for brands to use for campaigns, ecom and the like. You can't program taste, and you can't program authenticity.

Models of Canada: If your younger self (the one just starting out) could see where you are today, what do you think they would be most proud of, and what advice would you give them?

Brittany: They would be most proud of coming back to photography after taking breaks. It's hard to do but I wanted to make sure my heart was fully in it, and taking a break is what I'm most proud of.

Younger self probably wouldn't listen very well haha but tell them to just go for it, do your research and then do it. You will never, ever, ever think you are ready, or think that your book is enough but it is, and things will happen regardless!

Models of Canada: When your career is one day looked back on, what legacy do you hope you've left, not just as a photographer, but as a person?

Brittany: That the time spent was fun! I work with a lot of new faces and sometimes I'm their first photoshoot and I want nothing more than for them to have a fun time, to have a positive experience. That's the legacy that would be great to leave behind.

Models of Canada: If your life were captured in one final photograph, what would it look like, who would be in it, and why?

Brittany: A bag of chips, tucked into bed with sunglasses on. It feels ridiculous and accurate to me.

Cover photo taken by: Brianne Daigle

Written by: Models of Canada

See more of Brittany’s work at BrittanyDaigle.com