Expect a pre-shoot consultation process that treats you, as the client, as a co-art director for your upcoming shoot. I want to collaborate with you on the artistic process so that the setting, style and, ultimately, the end product exceeds your specific expectations. I want to create the images with you, not for you.
Expect the actual sessions to last as long as they need to last - no more, no less. We will establish a start time, and a rough plan for how long we think the shoot will last. My goal isn't to keep you in front of the camera for hours on end. However, the day of the photo shoot is your day. You're my only client that day, and I'll be happy to accommodate as many outfit changes as you'd like, or as many delays due to crying babies as we need to ensure we capture a variety of outstanding images.
Expect quality over quantity. Many of you have had your picture taken by a photographer who spent an hour with you during their session, then gave you 125 digital images. This undoubtedly works for some, but is not how I operate. In the world of high-end portrait photography, quantity is virtually irrelevant. My goal isn't to meet an arbitrary quota of images I provide. It's to knock you off your feet with a well-curated, exclusive set of photographs that you'll cherish forever. Depending on the type of session and your stated expectations, the end result of our time together might be 15-20 photographs or more. But each one will be a piece of art that will give you joy the rest of your life.
Expect to end the process with physical, printed products. In 2020, so many of our photographs get buried under a digital mountain of other...stuff. If you like an image, you typically enjoy it for a few days initially, and then again when it pops up four years later as a Facebook Memory, but that's about it. When you decide to work with me to create a series of stand-out photographs, you also make the decision to enjoy them as tangible keepsakes. They might take the form of wall art, which gives you a small injection of dopamine each time you or your family members pass by it in the hallway. Or they might take the form of matted prints that you can display on a book shelf and give away to loved ones as gifts. Sure, for any purchased product you'll also receive the digital file to post to social media and save on your computer, but that aspect of your purchase is secondary to the real, physical product you get from Ryan Pendleton Photography.
Finally, expect to have a fun, laid back experience. My goal is for each and every client to go through the process - from initial consultation, to the actual shoot, and finally the reveal and product selection - without an ounce of stress.