I maintain a quiet presence. I'm not invisible, but most people forget I'm there even when I'm only a couple feet away. I don't manufacture moments. or arrange scenarios to replicate pictures made elsewhere. These pictures should be about you, your life, your memories. So you'll never hear me ask you to do something again or in a different way. I observe, wait, and anticipate.
I let you be you and don't intrude upon your experience.
I'm in Boulder, and don't charge for travel within 100 miles. For shoots requiring airfare, hotels, etc., I estimate actual expenses and bill a flat fee in advance.
Over 300 weddings in 20 years.
It's generally described as documentary or wedding photojournalism. Aside from a few group photos, I photograph real life as it naturally occurs. I still make beautiful images, and I think the authenticity gives them an impact and power a staged photo will never posses. It also lets me work virtually unnoticed.
I charge $4,000 for up to 8 hours coverage, an online gallery, actual prints, and hi-res digital files. I feel strongly about the quality of the final images, so it generally takes me 1-2 weeks of post-production for a single wedding.
Yes, or a café that's mutually convenient. I recently moved to Boulder, but if you're elsewhere we can find someplace in the middle. If you're out of the area, there's always Zoom or Google Meets.
I worked as a photojournalist based in Washington DC for 15 years, doing stories throughout the U.S. and Latin America. I'm a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and my work is in the collections of a few museums. You can see samples of my non-wedding work at carlbower.com. The Wedding Photojournalist Association ranked me as one of the top 25 photographers worldwide for two consecutive years. I'm currently ranked #1 in Denver.
