F.A.Q.

Fine Art Portrait General

Q. How long have you been photographing?
I began when I was 14. Wow – that means I have almost 20 years experience. Man I feel old.
I started shooting professionally back in 2001.
Q. Do you accept credit cards?
Yes, through Paypal.

Wedding

Q. How many years have you been photographing weddings?
Since 2003, with a semi-retirement while living in Thailand.
Q. What’s your primary style?
I like to think of it as Fine Art, Edgy Fashion and Journalistic styles. I tend to like what you would find in Grace Ormonde – Wedding Style magazine.
Q. Do you shoot digital or film?
I shoot entirely digital.
Q. Can we meet your second shooter?
Sure thing! I will introduce any assistants or second shooters to you at the earliest opportunity on the wedding day.
Q. How many other events will you also photograph that weekend?
I only shoot one wedding per weekend.
Q. What kind of equipment will you bring with you?
I shoot with Nikon equipment. Tripods will be used for occasional shots, but not many. Except for some on-camera flash, lighting will not generally be used.
Q. Do you have back up equipment?
Yes, I always have two camera bodies.
Q. Can we buy the High Res pictures on DVD from you?
I include a DVD of photos large enough to make prints up to 8×12. If you would like larger prints or canvas prints you must order through me, so that I can do any additional editing to the photograph first.
We also provide you with a slideshow DVD .
In addition we include low-resolution files that you can use online at places like Facebook, etc.
Q. Do you post proofs online.
Yes, this is part of the base package price.
Q. What is your payment structure?
40% At booking (which includes a $1,000 booking fee to secure the date).
40% One month prior to wedding.
20% On delivery of Album and DVD.
Q. Can I pay the day of my wedding?
This disrupts the flow of the day, so we encourage payments be made before the wedding day.
Q. Is the booking fee refundable?
There is a one week refundable period on deposits. After one week there is no refunds for any cancellations.
Q. Do you have references we can call?
Yes, I can provide you with a list at your request.
Q. Will you be the one that photographs my wedding?
Yes, I will also bring a second photographer to obtain additional photographs.
Q. When will the proofs be ready to view?
Usually within 2 weeks. An email will go out to you to inform you of when they are up.
Q. When will my album be complete?
The album design will be ready for you to view online within 2 weeks, and the completed album 4-8 weeks after that. This may happen sooner, but you should anticipate 4-8 weeks.
Q. How many photos will you take?
I will typically shoot over 1000 photos at the wedding.
Q. Do I get them all?
I will edit all of those down into a manageable 300-400 final photos.
Q. Why?
1000 photos are way too overwhelming for people. Paring them down to a more accessible 300-400 ensures that you are only the getting the best photos from the day (no blinking, duplicates, misfires or blurry people), plus this makes flipping through the photos a much more pleasant experience.
Q. What about photos that may have a unique relative in them that blinked?
It is important to my reputation and desire to provide only the highest of quality. In that respect if there are special relatives that you want to get photos of, please inform us in advance so that we may get good photos of them.
Q. Do I have to get an album?
It’s my intention to fully serve his clientele. And part of that service is to make sure that each client has some form of finished product, and that is not accomplished by a book of proofs and some pictures online. The album is the ultimate finished product. It is the one item that is polished enough to show your friends and family and have them “oooh” and “ahh” over.
Q. What do you do in the event there are ruined or blurry photos from the wedding?
Well, I shudder at the thought of something like that happening. But there is always the risk of an accident. I do take multiple images pictures of all the aspects of the wedding, but under the unfortunate event that there is a blurry altar kiss or some other unfortunate missed essential photo, I will do my best to compensate you with additional credits for prints or free portrait sessions.
Note: One of my goals is to make you absolutely happy with your experience. If I make a mistake, I want to make sure that I do right by you and ratify your concerns right away and in the most fair and respectable way.

Portraiture

Q. What is your philosophy/approach to taking portraits?
My style is all about Naturalness and being one with nature. It’s about finding each person’s uniqueness in the world and capturing that. You can read more here.
Q. Do I need to be a model?
Absolutely not. The majority of commissions I receive are not.
Q. What would I do with the final pictures?
There are a number of things you can do:
1. Create an album from the portrait session
2. Have select photos printed large, framed and displayed on the wall of your house
3. Have prints made and gift them to friends, family, boyfriends, husbands etc.
Q. I would like to do a nude/semi-nude photo shoot with you, may I bring a chaperone.
Yes, it is totally OK. Significant others are discouraged from attending the shoot however as they can disrupt the creative process.
Q. How do you come up with ideas for the photographs?
After meeting with you and getting to know you a little, he will come up with some sketches placing you in different landscapes and poses. We will have another short meeting to discuss the sketches and ideas before we shoot for feedback.

Misc.

Q. Why did you live in Thailand?
After the 2004 tsunami I moved there to assist in the recovery process. I was there for a year, and with other international volunteers helped rebuild houses in 2 villages on the Andaman Sea coastline north of Phuket.
Q. Do you do other humanitarian type things?
I like to donate (portrait sessions, signed prints, etc) to charities. I also have a clothing line of t-shirts and sweatshirts, where half of all profits are donated to international relief organizations. You can find that here at the Shop
Q. If Vegetarians eat vegetables, do Humanitarians eat Humans?
Yes.
Q. Who are your influences?
For portrait work my influences are Cole Weston, Jock Sturges, Phil Borges, and my mentor Landis Major.For general photography his influences are Edward Weston, Brett Weston, Paul Strand, Paul Caponigro, and Ansel Adams.