I grew up with a camera in my hand, and my mother was a professional photographer. I have mostly been a hobby photographer throughout my life, but awhile ago started taking it seriously, and since 2019 have been doing various types professional photography, such as photojournalism, sports photography, concert photography, and personal portrait photography.
Yes! I shoot all my photos in RAW, which allows the most dynamic range for lighting and shadows, and edit those for the final photo product. There are a lot of editing trends, and I don't tend to follow any of those. I am mostly editorial in my editing process, meaning that my photos reflect the person and environment as realistically as possible, so no heavy filters.
For facial blemishes and facial editing, my standard rule is that if it is permanent it stays, but if it's temporary I remove it. So, if you have scars or birthmarks, I will respect those and not edit them out, but if you happen to have a zit the day we shoot, don't stress, their easy to remove. If you would rather any scars or other permanent facial features be edited, please feel free to discuss that with me.
No, I do not. Many of my sessions can be intimate for the client, and therefore I do not bring anyone along with me when I shoot. You are, of course, welcome to have anyone at the session you would like for your own comfort and safety.
That's a tough one. Since a lot of my work is private, my clients expect me to maintain that privacy as well. Any of the photos you see on the website are used with permission, but sometimes the names are changed.
It is possible for me to have clients reach out to you if you would like to have specific questions answered by someone other than me, but we would need to determine what those questions would be so I can get the right person.
I do not allow my clients to be contacted randomly by potential new clients for any reason.
No. I do not watermark any of my images, since watermarks are easily removable and take away from the overall aesthetic of the photo. My copyright information is embedded into the file itself, and is not removable, but does not impact the viewing of the photo. Nor is any sort of DRM placed on the file that may prevent you from opening or viewing the file at a later date.
That's very dependent on the session itself. If you are looking for a few headshots that you can use for resumes, than you'll get a few photos. If you are looking for a collection of photos then you can expect more. We can discuss any minimum requirements that you may have before we begin the session, but I typically err on the side of too many photos, rather than too few.
In session complications can affect the amount of photos that we get as well, since we will be limited on time. So if you are late to the session, or have other distractions during the session, it may prevent all the photos you want from being taken.
There are many factors that will affect the timeline of delivery, such as how busy I am currently, and what kind of backlog of photos I have to deal with, but that timeline is always finalized with the client before the session begins.
No, you do not. This is not negotiable, as the copyright is determined by who actually took the photo, rather than by who owns the photo. You will, however, have unlimited usage rights to the photo under almost all circumstances.
No, you do not. Snapping a photo is only the beginning of the creation of a photo, and the RAW files are not available for distribution. There are many parts to the process of creating a photo that you will love, and very few photographers are willing to give up the RAW files for any reason.
There are a wide range of types of portraits, whether you are talking about family portraits, newborn portraits, headshots, engagement, etc. etc. When I refer to "Personal Portraits" I am referring to any photo that focuses on you personally, and is guided by your interests, and vision for the photos at the end of the session.
Whether that means you are alone, or with your partner, or with your friends, the focus is still on you, and how you interact with those people.
In this way, you're able to create the experience you want for this photo session.
You may not, and that is perfectly ok. The biggest part of this experience is finding someone you are comfortable working with, and while I hope I can be that person, I may not be, and in that case, I can recommend some other photographers who may be a gender you're more comfortable with, or from a community you connect with easier.
As for me, I am a fat, married, queer, cis-male nerd, who loves playing Magic the Gathering and role-playing star wars and dungeons and dragons on my free nights. I am a heartfelt ally to my trans siblings, and an accomplice for my black and brown communities. I see beauty in every body, regardless of the gender, color, shape, or size.
No, no I do not. It CAN mean naked, if that is the type of photo you want to have taken, but personal means curated by you. I have photographed cosplayers, sports players, artful nudes, erotic nudes, and people who feel in general unseen or uncomfortable working with other photographers.
No. Hard No. Our session will be 100% judgment free, as long as everything is legal. There is nothing that will shock or embarrass me, and you should take the opportunity to create the vision you want for the session, and since all the photos are digital, you have my guarantee that only you and I will ever see them if that is what you prefer.
