Fran Ruchalski | Music Photography
The Quick Survey
- Name: Fran Ruchalski - The PhotoGuy of Amelia Island - The Photographer, LLC
- Located in: Amelia Island / Jacksonville Florida
- Started in: January. 2008
- Status: Made the jump to full-time June, 2010.....hence the new name
- Types of Photography: Music Photography & Portraits
- Primary Camera / Favorite Lens: Nikon D700 / Nikon 80-200 2.8
- Interesting Personal Fact: I have a blue spot in the middle of my forehead from an "extreme sport" accident....I was racing a shopping cart, lost control, and went skidding across the Wal-Mart parking lot head first. My pride was hurt more than my head. My mother always told me not to do it....maybe someday I'll listen.
Find out more
Website: www.photoguyofai.com
Blog: www.ishootmusicians.net
Twitter: @PhotoGuyofAI @IShootMusicians
Facebook/MySpace: The PhotoGuy of Ameila Island
Short Bio
I am many things to many people. I am Dad to 4. I am Pop to 8. I am the “significant other” to 1. I am “the ex” to 2. And I am the master to one crazy German Shepherd.
I have lived in a very large city and on a farm outside a small rural town. Yes, I’m a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll. These days, I live in a little beach town on a small island in Northeast Florida, and I am very happy to be here. It’s a place that I truly feel at home and may be the place where I was always meant to be. For a beach bum like me, nothing beats living less than 5 minutes from the beach.
If I don’t have a camera with me, the universe seems somehow out of kilter. I’ve been doing this since I was quite young. And people…not only my mom…think I’m pretty darn good at it. I'm really good at candid shots of people. An art school professor once told me that I have a special way of capturing people. Who am I to argue with her? Actually, I think she was right.
While I've always loved photography, it's only fairly recently that I decided that I wanted to try to make it my full-time gig, and I am seriously studying everything I can to become better at it. I have fallen in love with lighting and stobist type shooting.
Concert & band photography is my passion. The combination of photography and live music is just so natural for me as they are both such a big part of my life. I went to my first concert when I was 12, over 40 years ago; it was The Grateful Dead at the Spectrum in Philly and they played for 5 hours. I’ll never forget it. I spent most of my teen years and beyond going to as many concerts as I could, sometimes 3 or 4 in a week. I’ve seen most every rock artist of the 70’s, a lot of them several times. These days, I get out to probably one live performance a week, sometimes quite a few more. I Shoot Musicians and I make people look like Rock Stars. I love to capture the moment when a performer shows their spirit and personality. It’s like magic. Capturing that energy and emotion is what it’s all about for me. Someone told me that I do it so well because I feel the music so much more than most people. Some of my photos have been published in Guitar World, Guitar Player, Guitar Edge, Musicians Friend, The Buzz, Axis Magazine, and other national and local publications as well as many sites on the web. While I take most of my photos in the Northeast Florida area, I have traveled throughout the Southeast to cover musical events. Now, if I could just figure out a way to make real money at it!
Dawn McCarthy | Glamour Photography
The Quick Survey
- Business Name: Dawn McCarthy Photography
- Located in: Jacksonville, Florida
- Started: 2003 photographing friends weddings
- Types of Photography: wedding but I love the art of photography as a whole.
- Primary Camera / Favorite Lens: 5dMarkII and 70-200L 2.8 IS
- Interesting Personal Fact: I am a tad bit OCD…particularly with counting money, setting alarms and washing my hands. I like to eat my crackers salt side down. I once auditioned for The Next Food Network Star. I believe that I will win the lottery someday. I love laughing so hard that it takes my breath away. Haribo gummy bears are my favorite! I eat apples in a specific pattern. I love rubbing my nose on my babies cheeks. Watching my baby eat is one of my favorite things to do. I love long eyelashes and white teeth. I am celebrating 10 years of marriage this month. I love an afternoon nap although it is extremely rare that I get one. I am a hard worker and a bit of a perfectionist. I believe that life and love is full of seasons. I consider myself a blessed individual.
Main Site: www.DawnMcCarthyPhotography.com
Blog: www.DawnMcCarthyBlog.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/DawnMcCarthy
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DawnMcCarthyPhotography
Short Bio - My name is Dawn McCarthy and I am a professional wedding photographer. I positively LOVE what I do! There is not a happier day in a woman’s life than her wedding day… well, okay... maybe those women who have won the lottery feel differently, but I am basing this statement on the average woman. I thrive on witnessing the love and blissful emotion between two people who are about to commit their lives to one another. I have a personal goal in every wedding that I shoot to provide my Brides with a tangible, everlasting reflection of the dream day that escaped them far too fast! I pay strict attention to detail, but evoke a light-hearted spirit that has been said to “put you at ease on the most important day of your life.” I love everything about weddings and I am always anxious to meet my next Bride…might you be her?
In addition to my insatiable passion for photography, I am a wife and a mom. I have been married for ten years (on the 17th of this month) to my college sweetheart and I am raising two boys who are undeniably the loves of my life! I have a thick southern accent that tends to make people smile and say “where do you come from?” But don't let the accent fool you! I am quite the savvy business woman. And I am a force to be reckoned with in my kitchen! An invitation to supper at my house is usually a coveted prize. You wanna come? I'll feed ya! If I had to pick a few adjectives to describe myself, I suppose they would be: determined, fierce, creative, honest and completely genuine. I’m just me. It’s been so nice to meet ‘cha.
Kristen Weaver
The Quick Survey
- Name / Business Name: Kristen Weaver from Kristen Weaver Photography, LLC.
- Located in: Orlando, FL (but I work all over Florida)
- Started in: 2009
- Status: Full time
- Types of Photography: Fashion, editorial and Wedding
- Primary Camera / Favorite Lens: Nikon D700, Favorite lens is 50mm 1.4
- Interesting Personal Fact: I'm terrified of going under water, wet paper freaks me out and I could drink Sweet Tea until I explode.
- Career Highlights:
- Being named as a Featured Photographer in the London, UK e-magazine, Remedy. I love what the magazine was created around and the talented professionals who contribute to it. I was so honored! I wrote about it here on my blog: http://www.kristenweaverblog.com/fashion/remedy-magazine-london/ and they have also used much of what I wrote on their Testimonials page on their website: http://www.remedymag.co.uk/ (click Testimonies)
- Starting the Photography Non-Profit fund raising event, Images for a Cure, in October 2009. From The Breast Cancer Research Foundation's website: "Photographer, Kristen Weaver, wished to make her ideal a reality--to positively affect change in the world. She decided to make this happen with an inspiring fundraiser that would include her fellow photographers joining together to raise funds for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. And so, Images for the Cure was born. Initially, the goal set by Kristen for Images For A Cure was to raise $5,000. By the end of the registration period for photographers, Kristen reviewed the statistics and realized that she would more than double her goal--239 Images for a Cure photographers, from 44 states and from 3 countries had signed up! And when the big day was over, all Kristen's efforts were rewarded with an astonishing $12,750 raised for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation!"
Find out more
- Main Site: http://www.kristenweaver.com (currently redirecting to my blog until my new site is launched!)
- Blog: http://www.kristenweaverblog.com
- Twitter: @kristenweaver
- Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/kristenweaverphotography
- Formspring: http://www.formspring.me/kristenweaver
- Images for a Cure: http://www.imagesforacure.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kristenweaver
Short Bio - Word from the Photographer
If you ask some of my fans, I'm a wedding photographer based out of Orlando, FL. If you ask others, I'm an internationally published fashion photographer. Somewhere in the middle, you may hear that I'm a philanthropist, mentor, friend and sister. I wear a lot of hats, but my heart is in photography. I love fashion (I always say, 'those who can't, take pictures of those who can!') and I love romance. I'm a sucker for cool details and amazing designers like Karl Lagerfeld, Lanvin, Alexander McQueen and Christian Lacroix. I also have a not-so-subtle obsession for Jimmy Choo and Louboutin. Combining some serious fashion with a beautiful romance is just about as perfect a wedding day as I could imagine!
Amanda McMahon Photography
About the Photographer
- Name / Business Name: Amanda McMahon/Amanda McMahon Photography
- Located in: Orlando, Florida
- Started in: January 2009
- Status: Full time
- Types of Photography: Weddings and Portraits
- Primary Camera / Favorite Lens: 5D Mark II and my favorite lens is the 16-35mm 2.8..I love wide shots!
- Interesting Personal Fact: hmmm this could be bad if I give away something embarrassing, so I will just say I played soccer for 14 years
Find out more
- Main Site: www.AmandaMcMahon.com
- Blog:http://amandamcmahon.wordpress.com
- Twitter:http://twitter.com/amandamcmahon
- (Others): http://www.flickr.com/photos/amandamcmahonphotography/
Short Bio - Word from the Photographer:
I am a big dork. I like to make faces and weird noises at random times. I am pretty up front and open and those who know me can pretty much tell you that if you ask me something, I will tell you the truth. I have no shame and tend to blog personal things that many may not have even thought of knowing...but this is who I am. I can be random, I like..no LOVE ice cream and will take it any day of the week in any weather. I love photographing people because it allows me to see inside their lives for a little bit and really makes me appreciate the love and spirit for life even more. I consider myself really lucky and really blessed.
