I am a Hawaii Family Portrait Photographer
on Oahu, but that hasn't always been my specialty.
First let me sat that 90 to 95% of all pro photographers
in Hawaii are Wedding photographers. There's good reason
for that. Hawaii is the world's number one wedding destination!
While I've always been a Family Portrait photographer,
for the first half of my career I was a "generalist". That is
I did every kind of photography that one can do...above water.
After 1991 I began to specialize in Family Portraits.
That was the year my dad died. And that's when I realized I had
no family portraits - not even a snapshot of my
parents and siblings all together. And now it can never be done.
Sad. I have always been an artist, and people have always been
my favorite subjects. I moved away from my family as a young 20-something
to Kauai, Hawaii, and at that time I just didn't
think about my own family portraits. And mortality
was absolutely the furthest thing from my mind. I was on a life
adventure to Hawaii! I was a young man with a passion
for art and photography living in Hawaii!
I free lanced as a photographer for some time, then
I took a position as a staff photographer for a
Maui advertising agency. It wasn't long before
I became the head of the photography department
for the agency. Eventually I started my own promotions company
and handled all the photography myself. Then my
dad passed away. It was then that I discovered I had not one single
family portrait, picture, snapshot. And
that was when I learned the real value of Family Portraits.
That's when I understood what a treasure a fine family portrait
truly is. You see, no portraits exist of my family, and
since my dad died there can never be one made. As a result my
grandchildren and great grandkids will never know what my family
looked like together. Even if we did have a snapshot of all of
us together, it wouldn't be the same as having a fine, professional
family portrait. As a family portrait photographer
in Hawaii I create a lot of photographs
at the beach, and so do a lot of other photographers.
What I've noticed is that 99% of the family beach photographs
I see being made by other photographers are being
made as if it were a wedding or other editorial type event. What
I mean by that is the photographers are using only
available light, or only one flash unit mounted right on the camera.
Available light can be very nice, but out on the beach in Hawaii,
unless you set up with the sun shining in the subject's face,
which will result in squinting, uncomfortable expressions, the
sky will always come out white, because it will be way overexposed.
When using just one flash on the camera, the light is flat...but
NOT flattering! (You can learn a lot more about location lighting
by signing up for my class, "Little Lights - BIG Impact" at www.HawaiiSchoolofPhotography.com).
As a lifetime student of art, and a fan of the "Old Masters" paintings,
and with my experience in creating family portraits in
Hawaii, I want you to know that I truly care. When
you place your trust in me to create your Hawaii Family
Portraits, I will take the time and care to make sure
you will have the very finest portraits possible.
I will invest all my experience, talent and artistry, I will put
my heart and soul into creating the most beautiful and sensitive
Family Portraits you have ever had....Made
in Hawaii!
About the author: Stan P. Cox II runs a Portrait
and Commercial photography studio in Honolulu, Hawaii, and has
been a professional Hawaii photographer for
31 years. His web address is: http://www.ParamountPhotography.com.
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