KFC Pizza Hut People
How this KFC U.S. associate communications manager developed a photography side hustle
Jaclyn “Jax” Carson studied journalism in college, but with her self-described “PhD in Google,” she’s become a professional photographer whose pictures have been seen around the world.
Publish date December 09, 2025
Image provided by Jaclyn Carson.
KFC U.S. Associate Communications Manager Jaclyn “Jax” Carson still has her first camera. Even though she hasn’t used it in years, she keeps her Cannon T3 tucked away on a closet shelf, like a teen unwilling to part with her childhood teddy bear. It’s also safe from her young daughters who could accidentally break it, mistaking it for toy.
Today, Carson prefers her Sony A7III, which she uses in her professional photography business on nights and weekends to shoot portraits of graduates, professionals, expecting mothers, newborns and families. It’s also the camera she uses to capture employee events for KFC and Pizza Hut, marrying Carson’s side hustle with her day job of graphic design, videography and yes, taking photos.
Carson didn’t study photography, but her passion for capturing images developed over time, like a print in a dark room.
It started at the University of Louisiana-Monroe, when she worked for the Hawkeye newspaper. As a journalism major and the publication’s editor-in-chief, she was around photographers plenty. But she’d never gone beyond snapping candids of her family and friends until, one day, the staff photographer couldn’t make an assignment, giving Carson the opportunity to evolve her hobby.
Post-graduation, Carson got a job at a local TV news station and used her first paycheck to buy her first “big girl purchase,” the Cannon T3.
“At the time, I thought it was spectacular, but looking back, I think, that’s cute, because it was a starter camera that came with a kit lens.” Carson said. “Eventually, I purchased a used – because they are not cheap – Canon EOS 5D Mark II with a 50-millimeter lens, which is pristine for portrait photography.”
Carson would go on to take photos of close friends and relatives until the world shut down in 2020, and like many creatives, she was motivated to launch her own photography business.
“This was pre-kids, and I was working for a bank at the time, so I really had the freedom – and time – to experiment and learn,” Carson said. “I have a PhD in Google or YouTube as my former boss used to say. If I didn’t understand a light or a piece of equipment, I would Google it.”
Carson is also a regular participant at Dallas-based photography trainings, follows professional photographers on Instagram and has a subscription to Master Class. “I’m a hands-on learner, so I’ll take everything I’ve learned and then go out and do it,” she said.
Pizza Hut Global Head of Communications Michael Maldonado; photo taken by Jaclyn Carson.
In the five years since she launched JaxLens Visual Storytelling, Carson has taken headshots of Pizza Hut leaders like Global Head of Communications Michael Maldonado and Senior Director of Global Strategy and Transformation Rachel Meyer. One coworker, KFC U.S. Senior Associate Marketing Manager Kelsea Wilkerson, drove over an hour to have her headshots taken by Carson.
Jaclyn is a gem,” Wilkerson said. “She’s so low-key about her photography that I genuinely had no idea she even did portraits. Once I finally figured it out, I booked her immediately. Now I have headshots I actually love, which feels like such a gift.”
Pizza Hut, Ohio Drive location; photo taken by Jaclyn Carson.
Her photos have even been used by Amazon employees, the band Dru Hill and journalists. But she’s most proud of the photos she took of the Ohio Drive location of Pizza Hut, which were used by news outlets that reported on the restaurant’s grand opening.
“I’m primarily portrait photography, so to see my asset images on CNN, Fast Company, local news stations, that was exciting,” Carson said.
And more of Carson’s images will appear on KFC U.S.’s internal communications as she’s taken on a new role for the brand, swapping images of pizza cheese pulls for fried chicken wings. But the images of people will remain Carson’s focus.
“I prefer to be behind the camera, making people laugh, so they’re comfortable having their picture taken,” Carson said. “I sometimes tell them my story because it’s kind of funny how I went from that Canon T3 that’s collecting dust in my closet to polished photography for the world’s largest restaurant company.”
Funny – more like, inspiring.
