Faces of 2011 ... and beyond

It's been my privilege to shoot lots of portraits in the past year. It's a privilege because a lot of people have placed their trust in me to produce pictures that go beyond a simple documentary record of their physical appearance. The DMV can do that much just fine, thank you.

I work hard to combine lighting, angles, focal lengths, time of day, witty repartee and sometimes some outright goofiness to place people, young and old, in their best light. To those of you whom I have had the honor of standing before you with a camera, thank you. To those of you yet to appear in my viewfinder, I hope to see you in the coming year.




James Jordan, Chicago and suburbs professional portrait photographer

Chicago senior portrait photography

I like photographing high school seniors. People who stand on the edge of the rest of their lives. Of course we all do, but putting aside the high school years and preparing to forge ahead with career plans is a special time in a person's life and I love it when someone asks me to capture a person at that moment in his or her life.





I had the opportunity to capture John in a place that he loves. He spent a lot of time running on the paths and roadways at this particular forest preserve in the Chicago northwest suburbs. No doubt thinking about things like the next thing on his schedule or his next musical composition or any one of a number of things going on in his life at the time. This time I caught him thinking about where he's going to go next. And if these pictures are any indication, he's going to go there with confidence, a good attitude and tons of character.





His future looks bright.

James Jordan - Chicago and suburbs senior portrait photographer

Oh, baby!

Newborn portrait photography by James Jordan.

Images © 2011 James Jordan

2010 in Portraits, Part 2

Families, high school seniors and corporate head shots were all part of the mix in 2010. On-location photography is my thing. I'll work with the lighting that's available, and can bring in some of my own if need be.

Looking forward to photographing many more interesting people again in 2011.











James Jordan Chicago Portrait Photography

All images © 2010 James Jordan

2010 in Portraits, Part 1

Looking back at the past year ... I had the privilege of shooting many portrait sessions. I take each portrait session as an opportunity to capture the character and personality of my subjects and present them in a visually compelling way. I'm looking forward to many more portrait sessions in 2011. More to come ...











James Jordan Chicago Portrait Photographer

All images © 2010 James Jordan

Feeling at home

Sylvia is a nutritional consultant. She contacted me recently to get some headshots and environmental portraits for her soon-to-be-renovated web site. Sylvia's office and client meeting space is in her home. Talking beforehand, we decided to feature her surroundings as part of the portrait making process.

Sylvia's place has a nice open airy space with lots of windows, and on the day of the shoot, lots of late afternoon sun streamed in through a bank of windows and a set of french doors on the west side of the house. Lots of light. My job was to bring in just enough fill light with a flash or two to keep the shadows from getting too dark and to provide nice catch lights in Sylvia's eyes.

We shot poses in her kitchen (what better place for a nutritionist?) and living room, projecting the warm and welcoming vibe of Sylvia's home and personality.

James Jordan Chicago Portrait Photographer

If nothing else, there's variety ...

Interesting day, photographically speaking. It ranged from capturing decorated alpaca clothing and artwork (on a real alpaca farm with all the sights -- and smells, no less) ...

To corporate headshots and environmental portraits in a clean, air conditioned setting ...

Can't say the job is boring.

No, really. Don't hold back. What do you think of me as a family portrait photographer?

I love getting good, honest feedback from my clients.

Actually, after an hour wrangling a couple of kids, a set of in-laws/grandparents and a large dog on a very warm summer afternoon, everyone needs to let off a little steam. If it can't be fun, why do it at all?

The best part? The family chose this shot as part of their finished package of pictures. Other, more restrained examples below:

Portrait Quiz

Take a look at the portraits below. Can you pick out which portraits were taken on location and which were taken in a studio?

OK, trick question. All of the portraits you see were taken on location. Top left: Taken at the subject's office; Middle Top: Taken in a park; Top Right: Taken at the subject's home; Bottom: Taken at a retail optical store.

You don't have to travel to sit for a professional portrait. I'll come to you, and bring whatever is needed to produce a pleasing portrait that puts you in your best light.

How do people see you?

If you can only focus on two things to build your business, those two things should be 1) credibility and 2) likeability. People choose to do business with people they trust and people they like.

Can you deliver on what you promise? Are you someone with whom people can relate? More and more businesses are discovering that the best way to assure future customers that the answers to those two questions are a resouding "Yes!" is to show them in pictures.

This series of photos were taken recently at an optical retailer for its online marketing. The photographs show the inside and outside of their location -- clean, accessible and organized.

They show the staff -- friendly, helpful and knowledgable.

They even show customers sampling the merchandise and having fun in the process. Who wouldn't want to do business with these folks when the time comes for eye exams?

You can put yourself in the same kind of positive light through photography. Let me show you how.

On-location: Your own backyard

You don't have to travel far to find a background for outdoor portraits. The best backdrops could be found right outside your door.

These mommie/baby portraits were taken in the sideyard of their home. Fences, swings and shrubbery provided familiar props and background items, and I worked hard to throw them slightly out of focus to keep the viewer's attention on our two subjects.

Thinking of getting some portraits made? I'll visit your home beforehand to discuss possible locations for pictures both inside and out, and will even take some sample shots so you can see how others see you home -- I'll bet you'll be pleasantly surprised at how good your home can look in a photo (not to mention you!).

On-location portrait: The big city

A location for a portrait could be a backyard, in the wide open spaces of expansive greenery. Or it could be within the confines of the big city. Good photo fodder is everywhere.

This portrait was shot at City Hall in Chicago. One of the nice things about shooting in the city is that at certain times of the day, streets and corners become wonderfully lit by a combination of direct light, ambient light and reflected light.

The sun was behind the subject here in the late afternoon. At the same time, a building half a block down the street acted as a natural reflector, throwing light toward the subject from the front. A large gold reflector added warmth to the subject and numerous pleasing images were made.

Mommie reunion

I received an e-mail from Idaho a couple of weeks ago. A group of four young women, fast friends who had gone their separate ways and became mommies, were reuniting in the Chicago area along with babies for an upcoming weekend. Would I be interested in taking some photos of the group? No thinking required here. I was on it.

On the day of the session, one of the little guys was not feeling up to par, and it was heartening to see the other mommies rally around the one mom whose child didn't have any smiles in him for the pictures. The other mommies had individual photos taken with (and of) their babies, and I offered to come back at no additional cost to photograph the local mom when her baby was feeling better.

It was a good day to get together with friends, sit and play in the grass and eat some dirt.

I'm sure the kids enjoyed it, too.

How to hold onto today and help a family somewhere else do the same

The reason for getting a family portrait, child’s portrait, senior portrait or photos of a special event is pretty simple. There’s something special about today that you’d love to hold onto if you could. Since the rushing flow of life quickly snatches each day from our grasp, we turn to ways to capture what we can. Photography is one of those ways.

I want to help you hold onto today, that’s why I’m in business. But at the same time, we both can help someone somewhere else do the same – hold onto today.

For every portrait print package that is purchased from me, I will donate a percentage off the top to the Make-A-Wish foundation. Somewhere, a child who is battling a life-threatening illness can look forward to a today worth holding onto.

Photograph © 2009 James Jordan