Cove Arts Photography

I prefer to work collaboratively with clients but can drive the project turn-key style when clients want that service. All projects start with a consultation, most often by phone with follow-ups by email, text, or subsequent calls depending on the nature of the communication. Initially I'm listening to get as much information as I can about clients' project goals, stylistic preferences, constraints, and expectations for deliverables. I do extensive pre-photoshoot location research, which informs lighting kit selections, our planned use of the space and, if outdoors, shoot time-of-day choices. I like to keep shoots light, relaxed, smooth, and efficient. All the pre-shoot homework we do is in service of that goal. In addition to private online proofing pages for all clients, I've also developed a tool to speed and improve the quality of the image-selection process.

I had been a life-long hobbyist since age 10 and an avid avocational photographer since high school, studying a year at a time under a couple of v kind professionals. In 2002 I was published for the first time in the US and by 2004 I had been published in Europe, Asia, and Australia as well. That experience motivated me to bring my skills & gear list up to a professional level and, after doing a number of freelance projects for commercial clients, I officially hung out my shingle as a professional photographer in 2015. In 2014, while working as a freelance technical writer, my largest clients asked if I could supply images to support materials I was writing. My little first digital couldn't quite meet their art departments' requirements so I had to decide to invest in a good amount of quite expensive gear. Ultimately I did, but couldn't allow that investment to sit on a shelf collecting dust so I decided to hang out my shingle in 2015. It didn't take long for photography to dominate my work load and I've been a working professional ever since.

I've photographed people from every continent except Antarctica because penguins almost never hire photographers; they're more into coldsnapshots. So far my youngest subject has been six hours old; the eldest, 98 years. The variety of my clients' ages, backgrounds, interests, motivations, and perspectives all contribute to making mine one of the most endlessly interesting jobs I know. By design, a foundation of my work is respect for my subjects, not just in theory but in practice. This manifests in various ways, among which are: My practice is LGBTQ+ friendly and supportive. I am, intrinsically, a body-positive photographer, but am always willing adjust my photographic and image-editing styles to accommodate the preferences of clients who are not. I welcome and enjoy working with clients of all cultures. These aren't just personal preferences but are core tenets. If any of these bother you then I am not the photographer for you.

On one recent project, I had a subject who looked quite uncomfortable under the camera's gaze and, even fifteen minutes in with several changeups, he held a stiff posture and an "I'm having my picture taken" expression. I was starting to fear this was not going to be a very successful portrait session. While trying to buy a few seconds to think how I might change my approach, I asked him to tell me the story of his ink. His entire demeanor and posture changed like a switch had been flipped. His face relaxed, he held out one arm, and he began a remarkable story because, literally on his sleeves, was the story of his life and of his family before him. His expression showed the complex mixture that I had come to know resided behind his eyes of enormous kindness, great strength, and tenacious loyalty to friends and family. One of my favorite frames from that shoot was one of the very first when he started revealing the narrative he wore on his arms. From our pre-shoot discussions, I knew I wanted to shoot with more a cross between studio and documentary style of lighting and camera craft than I might typically use for portraits. You can view it at my portfolio website, covearts dot com, and append /people#21. By the way, it was not shot in a studio but on location in his backyard. With modest adjustment to the lighting scheme, I also shot a set of couples portraits with this subject and his wife and another short set of her with her sister who was present that evening. The whole shoot lasted less than two hours.

1. Consider that there are two kinds of photographers: One has a specific style they apply to many if not most projects. They work like an excellent chef, making images following specific visual recipes and you go to them for that predictable quality. The second kind chooses and modulates photographic and work styles to serve specific goals of each shoot and aesthetic preferences of each client. You might compare this type of photographer to a custom cabinet maker that works with you first to plan exactly what design will best meet your personal needs, goals, and style. 2. Particularly if you're inclined to engage a photographer of this second type, think of yourself not just as a client but as a collaborator. You don't need to know anything about photography or visual arts in general but you are a great potential source of information that can go into photoshoot planning... or not... depending on how engaged you choose to be. A spirit of collaboration and a commitment to good communication can make marked improvements in how smoothly your shoot goes and how satisfied you are with the result. Remember: Every professional photographer wants to deliver images that delight you; not one of us can read minds. So the more engaged your are, the more your photographer can properly interpret your inputs to form a visual result. 3. Consider that, when you engage a professional photographer, you are hiring someone possessing not just a kit of expensive equipment but also significant expertise and an eagerness to put that skill (and gear) to work on your behalf. If you're familiar with Malcolm Gladwell's 10,000 hour rule, the lesser known followup punchline is that after the 10,000 hours there's a second 10,000 and a third after that and so on. So be clear and candid with yourself about your budget, what it can buy, and what you value in both client-experience and results. If you're looking to hire someone for minimum wage or less, don't look for a professional photographer; find a kid with a camera. There's nothing wrong with doing that, by the way, they are simply not interchangeable resources and don't produce same results.

1. Try to think through in advance and be clear in your mind on what you really need for deliverables. What is your purpose for the shoot? What images do you need to fulfill that purpose? I've had clients tell me they need 100 images of a single, fairly static, scene the story of which can usually be told in a handful of frames. Now I might shoot 100 or even more, but it's rare for a client to need all 100 because they will represent an great deal of redundancy. This is an issue that affects cost so do keep in mind: The devil is in the deliverables. 2a. Clients who have a specific shoot location in mind, indoors or out, can speed the pre-shoot-planning process by asking themselves how does that space look >>as a background