Events

“Find the emotion.”

Back in the day, when I was cutting my teeth as a photojournalist in Texas, one of my mentors gave me this piece of advice. Through all of the ways photography has changed, and all of the ways I have changed, this remains my guiding principle as an image maker.

And it’s why I love photographing events.

Whether it’s a meeting of professionals or a child’s birthday party, any gathering has its own energy and emotions. I take a kind of ‘fly on the wall’ approach and interfere as little as I can. Thirty years as a professional photographer has made me pretty good at observing. It’s also taught me that peoples unique magic comes out when you let them be themselves and don’t try putting them into boxes.