ABOUT ME

Where are you from?

I've done a lot of traveling, but MKE is home. I've lived in Wisconsin for my entire life, with the exception of a year in Brooklyn and a few months in Baltimore.

How long have you been doing photography? Motivation to start?

My mother was largely responsible for my early interest in photography. During my childhood, my mother was always taking photos. I was intrigued by the process, and got my first point & shoot camera at a very young age. My journey into manual 35mm film photography began when I was 17 years old, when my brother gave me his old manual 35mm film camera. I took a Summer class at MIAD (Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design) that taught me about developing black and white negatives and prints. These classes also gave me access to their equipment and darkroom facilities. I was also fortunate enough to have a friend whose parents had a darkroom set up in their basement.

We were very privileged to be able to experiment with different photography and development techniques and to be able to experience the processes involved in film photography.

You've been doing this a long time then. Could you outline some of the different types of photography/video you've been involved in?

As a cinematographer and videographer, I have worked on independent films. I have worked on short narrative films as well as documentary films. I have also been involved in the production of several web series, including the International Women's Series (a series of cooking videos featuring prominent women sharing their favorite recipes with the Pasta Tree Restaurant for the benefit of local charities.) I have also been involved with the production of The Riverwest Session, a live concert series featuring Wisconsin based musical performers. Each "Session" of the series includes live performances by 2 bands and a Q&A in which the two bands interview each other. Each recording produces 2 videos, each video featuring a band performing a 15-20 minute set of original music and a short Q/A segment, allowing the viewer insight into the performers. I have worked on several music videos for Wisconsin-based musicians of all genres. I also perform with local band Sleepersound, producing live video mixing and visual projection for their live performance.

I have 10 years of experience as a Director of Photography (DP), producing commercial content, including development of intriguing and dynamic story lines for businesses and organizations, as well as filming and editing interviews and promo videos for web and commercial broadcast. As DP, I have worked with Yelp, Zillow, Yellow Pages, Groupon, iMatrix and other national platforms creating a wide range of commercial video content. As a professional photographer, I have worked for 10 years doing portrait work, working within schools, taking yearbook pictures. In addition Ive got experience shooting weddings and photographing senior portraits. I also live concert photography experience, and experience photographing other events. I have experience with shooting in natural light and with flash photography, as well as working with 3-point lighting systems.

Other than photo/video, have you ever been, or are you involved in any artistic ventures?

I have been involved in making soundscapes since I was 19. That was when I received my first 4 track recorder. I began to experiment with recording weird, unique things and manipulating them through the recorder. While living in Baltimore in 1996, I was able to get my hands on a guitar preamp effects processor and a mic and record player to create ambient and harsh, noisy soundscapes. During this period, I frequently collaborated with an artist who was attending MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art) by the name of William David Simmons III.

After a few months on the East coast, I moved back to Wisconsin and ended up living in West Bend, where I resided for a year. It was in West Bend that I connected with a group of creatives calling themselves "The Limbik System". “The Limbik System” and I had regular jam sessions, eventually performing at a number of electronic music gatherings. At this point in my life, I was also starting to get into drum circles and acoustic instrumental jam sessions. I have also dabbled in singing, and took voice lessons at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music for a number of years. After moving back to Milwaukee, I obtained a studio space at a building called The Milwaukee Fortress. The space served as a music recording studio, where, for years, dozens of musicians came through and created music and video.

For nearly a decade, I have been involved with a project called "All Messed Up", a random band experiment held yearly at Linneman's in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood. The concept behind “All Messed Up” is simple: 64 people are randomly split into 16 bands with 4 members each. The bands then have 2 months to develop a 20-minute music set that includes a cover song as well as a random challenge that changes every year. I have been involved with this project since 2011, and in recent years have taken the role of lead singer as well as writing the lyrics.

My list of Equipment:

Cameras:

Sony A7S II
Canon 5D Mark IV
Canon 5D Mark III
Insta360 Camera Twin R

Lenses:

Canon 17-40mm f4.0
Canon 24-105mm f4.0
Canon 70-200mm f2.8
Canon 85mm 1.2
Canon 50mm 1.2

Audio:

Sennheiser MKE2 Gold Lav Mics (2 Mics)
Sennheiser Wireless Lav Sets (2 Sets)
Rode Wireless Lav Sets (3 Sets)
Zoom H4n Audio Recorder
Rode NTG2 Shotgun Mic Boom Pole
Tascam DR-70D 4-Track Audio Recorder
Zoom H1 (2 Units)
Tascam Lav Recorder

Addition Equipment:

4 Point Lowel Light Kit 4 Bi Color LED Lights
3 RGB LED Lights
2 Spot Light LEDs with Soft Boxes
DJI Mavic Pro 2
48" Electronic Programmable Slider
Zhiyun Crane Stabilizing Gimbal
C Stand