I've been a professional photographer since around 1980. I say "around" because like many professionals I didn't become a photographer - professionally - overnight. It took years of learning my craft and having my work exhibited at local museums (such as the Chrysler Museum in Norfolk) as well as shooting for local magazines (Tidewater Virginian and CommonWealth are two I remember) before I made the leap of faith and opened a studio and came to depend totally on photography as an income. Over the years I've shot hundreds of weddings and often am the family photographer for my brides as their families grow. In fact I have one client whose wedding I photographed, did her mother-to-be photographs, photographed her new born daughter, the growing family and eventually was the wedding photographer for that daughter of my client. I'm very easy going and incorporate both traditional styles and photojournalism in my work. If you think about it a wedding is a mixture of formal group shots, portraiture, and photojournalism. In a wedding scenario a photographer must call upon every skill he’s mastered and every previous event he’s covered to present a bride with a finished product her grandchildren will cherish. To do less is unacceptable.