My decade of working as a documentary wedding photographer grows from a foundation of 2 decades formerly as a full time news photographer. That career saw the usual challenges, trajectory and accolades of a full time news photographer. Many major events were covered. It was also a time of working intimately with members of the local community, creating meaningful stories with the photos published in major newspapers and magazines, as well as in much smaller specialized and local level publications. There is a shelf with boxes full of awards, from small local civic organizations to major national news industry groups. It all makes up who I am as a photojournalist. And that is a person, who happens to be a photographer, who has the ability, interest and the desire to preserve and show the things that take place in daily life. Full time photography has been my life-long career path since graduating with a photojournalism degree from Syracuse University. Great life experience came from running a painting business with a friend while I was in college. That taught me to work hard. And how to relate to and really listen to people. Figure out what their needs were and understand how I could meet those needs as a way of earning my living. It wasn't about me selling or imposing myself on others. It was about understanding other people and what they needed and working to fulfill those needs. What a great way to bring home a paycheck. Photographers always speak of passion, their first camera, and the wonder of photography. Those aspects are the price of admission to being a photographer who works for other people, responsible for understanding and fulfilling the needs of their clients. I was addicted upon seeing the first print I ever made appear in the developer in the darkroom. This all sounds super serious. That's my internal drive talking, the one which compels me to do this as a full-time career. When we end up as a team you're going to get somebody fun and friendly who is thorough, who plans a lot, who enjoys weddings immensely, who loves being part of the wedding day where so much family history and family legacy is displayed through the relationships and the traditions. You're also going to get somebody who is affable and relaxed and will keep you having fun and relaxed. We’ll plan together before the wedding to learn about what's most important to you, or to help you tease out those little details if you haven't even thought about it. And “working” is a one track thing for me. I’m happy to photograph any size wedding from the smallest and most intimate you can imagine (try 9 people or an elopement), to a big and brash gathering. Because it means I get to “work”. The irregular schedule of working as a photographer gives me the opportunity to do a lot of fun personal stuff. When things get quiet you'll either find me out hiking or riding a couple of hundred miles a week on my bike. I'm an inveterate home improvement kind of person. I'd rather talk about a new angle grinder or table saw than the latest camera. Or share how I built that huge retaining wall. I'm never alone in my office thanks to our two rescue cats. Animal organizations are very important to myself and my wife and we contribute both financially and in volunteering to those organizations. [New York - Upstate Wedding Photographer]