bio

From childhood, I've had a love of the art of photography and, at the same time a love to get into the business of photography. One of my earliest memories in grade school was taking photos of a lady and getting paid $5.00 even though I never saw the photos. From that point I personally made my own business cards and began passing them out to everyone I knew.

In the early days of my career, I had a studio in Los Angeles where I photographed celebrities, editorial, and commercial work throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe. I never turned down an assignment, even if it was extremely challenging. One memorable job involved shooting a well-known pianist playing the piano while he was driving down the freeway during rush hour. Not only did I have to arrange for the piano to be delivered on site but had to manage a crew of assistants, fill the freeway in both directions with 57 cars plus get all the permits necessary to complete the assignement for an album cover.

In commerical work, as well as in wedding photography, diplomacy and tact are often more important than anything else.

My work has been used on scores of album and CD covers, national and international ads, publications, books, magazines, feature articles, calendars, and television promotions.

The demand on a commercial photographer can be tough sometimes. On an assignment in Spain, for example, I had to wait 7 days to photograph the key personalities for a television series and was allowed only 60 seconds for the actual shoot. This type of pressure forces you to really know your equipment, lighting, posing, and how to handle people.

I've been shooting weddings since the 60's, but in the early 1990's weddings began to intrigue me to take them more seriously and learn the professional approach to do a good job. I've photographed not only American weddings but many ethnic ceremonies as well, such as: Egyptian, Japanese, Indian, Jewish, Greek, Hindu, Persian, and Brazilian; extravagant and budget weddings.

Lighting is critical in good wedding photography, and one of the things that I specialize in is artistically lighting the bride and groom with available light and adding extra light. This sets my work apart from other photographers who don't understand the technical challenges of multi-light setups.

I've written for several bridal magazines, including Enchanted Bride Magazine, I Do Magazine, and Premier Bride where my photos and articles have helped brides make informed decisions about working with a photograher. I love teaching and I've been involved in the photo education at the university level since 1967.

In 2004 I photographed my first magazine cover with digital capture and have been exclusively digital since May of 2006. This has allowed me to be more creative than ever before with the images I can make, and my clients appreciate the control I have over how their photographs look. It's very important to keep up with the latest trends in lighting, shooting styles, and album designs since these are constantly changing especially in the wedding world.