Q) When should I book?

A) As soon as possible. Two weeks in advance is usually enough time for portraits, a month for weddings. For something less predictable, like a birth, I need to know a time frame (i.e. due date) as soon as youre ready to book.

Q) Do you require a deposit?

A) Its important that I recieve half of the session fee at the time of booking to ensure that my time is reserved.

Q) What is your style and interests?

A) I love working with people.I really enjoy the photojournalistic, documentary style approach when working with children (often referred to as "lifestyle" portraits), as well as fine art fashiony stuff with teens and adults.
I do my best to capture emotion and personality regardless of the assignment, in addition to making every photograph unique, distinct, and full of life.

Q) Where will you travel?

A) Wherever you ask me to. I am located in Louisville, KY, and will travel anywhere within the metropolitain area at no additional cost. If you are located outside of Louisville and would like me to travel to your location, please contact me for a quote.

Q) Where will we shoot?

A) Thats best decided by you. Children often do best in familiar areas such as their home or the park. Urban/downtown areas can add a nice feel to portraits of teens or adults. If youre not entirely sure where youd like your photographs made, just let me know and ill help you brainstorm.

Q) How should i prepare for a shoot?

A) For children, its best to schedule shortly after a nap and meal, this will ensure that they are happy and refreshed. If the shoot will involve the exposure of a part of the body that is normally covered (such as the belly for maternity) make sure there is nothing constricting that could leave indentations in the potentially exposed areas for at least 2 hours prior to shooting (such as bras or elastic waist bands). Feel free to bring as many outfits, accessories, props, etc. as youd like.

Q) Do you color correct & retouch photos?

A) I wouldnt have it any other way. When I shot film, I would have never dreamt of printing an image from a negative completely "as is". even if my darkroom work was as simple as reducing/increasing exposure and slightly cropping the image. i dont believe the image is ready to hang on your wall for years to come directly out of the camera. I dont believe that any of the historical greats of photography would have gotten the recognition they did had they not invested their time in the darkroom, the only difference with digital, is its photoshop instead of an enlarger.

Q) Can I show my friends my proofs?

A) I will provide you with access to a private web album to view and select your unedited proofs before editing and ordering prints. If you would like to share and get assistance from friends or family that is fine, although i do ask that you not share you proofs via sites such as myspace or facebook until ive had a chance to edit your favorite images and attatch my logo. If my logo is on an image youre welcome to share it with the whole world in whatever manner you like, so long as you do not edit or distort the image or logo.

Q) How long will you keep my images?

A) They will remain in the proofing gallery for a minimum of 2 weeks. I will reupload them at no charge for up to 30 days after the shoot for reprints. After that the images will remain on my harddrive for 6 months and your gallery can be recreated for a small fee. After 6 months I archive them and the recovery process is slightly more involved, but reprints are possible, just contact me for rates.

Q) What equipment do you use?

A) My primary body is a canon 5DmkII. I also have a Canon 40D, along with Canon lens', flashes and pocket wizards. Then I edit it all on a mac.

Q) What measures are you taking to "go green", and reduce your carbon footprint?

A) Aside from the numerous things me and my family do at home, since this is a huge concern of ours. I use dark backgrounds on ALL of my pages, since it takes far less energy to display a dark background to a light one. I was lucky enough to end up with a web site server that opperates solely on wind power. Ive also converted completely to digital, which reduces the amount of plastic film canisters ending upin landfills, in addition to processing chemistry finding their way into our water supply. Your print order comes in a (reusable) handmade (by me) cloth bag, so its life doesnt end when you recieve your pictures.

In addition to those things that i do on the portrait front, im working very hard on a photo documentary about coal, in hopes of exposing many of its unknown secrets. If youd like to learn more, please check out coalcost.blogspot.com

Q) Where can I see your latest images?

While i do my best to keep the galleries on here updated with my latest work, the best place is the blog, or facebook.