I’m still here! Still photographing. Still working with other photographers. Still winning awards!

It seems as if many of us are in a new world, with changes to our personal lives, our businesses, and the environment around us.

Feel free to drop me an email – aaron@hockleyphoto.com – if you’d love to have some great photos for your new world.

The post A Summer 2022 Update appeared first on Hockley Photography.

While not directly related to the sort of photography or services I show on this website, I did complete and release my first book in September. With my background in technology and photography, I wrote The Computer Ate My Photos: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Photography as a look at the state of technology in the photography world.

Those of you into photography (whether that’s as a hobbyist or a professional) will find it’s a look at where we are today and my take on where we’re poised to go in the future. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is involved with the capture, editing, and management of our photos, and savvy photographers will understand how they can use it to their advantage.

If you’ve been a Hockley Photography client in the last few years, you’ve certainly benefitted from some AI as part of my capture and workflow. I fully endorse using robot powers for good! Interested in learning more about how the photography world is evolving with technology? I think you’ll find the book is a fun tour through the current and future possibilities.

Buy it from Amazon as paperback or Kindle.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post It’s Quiet Here, But I Wrote a Book appeared first on Hockley Photography.

Amidst the various forms of suffering over the last year, things (at least in my area of the United States) are slowly coming back. At this point I’m fully vaccinated and while I’m still taking precautions, I’m feeling a bit more comfortable out and about. I’ve resumed some photography, both personally and a few gigs for clients such a business portraits.

My thoughts are shifting to event photography.

The last event photography gig I had before the pandemic was typical of my event work: a multi-day conference and trade show, this one for a nonprofit client. The image above was a local youth dance group that performed following lunch on the first day of the event.

Conference event photography often involves speakers at podiums and that’s part of telling the story of the event, but that’s not the entire story.

As we move beyond the pandemic, gradually we’ll start seeing more in-person events on our calendars. I suspect we’ll start seeing small groups and meetups where things can be safely distanced and plans can be more flexible.

I’m ready to get to work: if you’re planning an event in the Portland/Vancouver area, let’s chat. I realize that things are up in the air and plans may need to change. I’m flexible; let’s make it work. Whether you’re looking for something casual at an informal meetup, or more formal images from a more structured event, let’s talk about how we can safely make some great images together.

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This year’s board of directors featured many new faces and they didn’t realize as they took on their roles that 2020 would be a year like no other. Like every other organization, OPPA was forced to adapt its activities in response to COVID-19 and the resulting guidelines for safety.

Last Friday, OPPA’s President abruptly resigned from her position citing this year’s challenging environment and making reference to problematic relationships among the board. This left the organization’s board needing to appoint a new leader as the organization approaches the busiest time of its year with respect to education, competition, and other activities.

In chatting with a few folks who are currently active in the organization I realized that I could be of service, and extended and offer to the board to step in as interim President for the remainder of 2020, with the current Vice President assuming the President role in January as planned.

On Monday, the Board of Directors voted unanimously to name me as President for the remainder of 2020, and to serve as Immediate Past President in 2021. I thank them for their trust in me to lead OPPA at this challenging time, and I’m looking forward to refocusing the organization’s efforts on its core mission of providing professional development for serious photographers.

Let’s make that happen.

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While a lot of my event business has been across the river in Portland, I always get a bit of extra enjoyment about serving clients in Vancouver because this is my hometown, and it’s nice to see when Vancouver, Washington businesses choose a Vancouver photographer. I’ve made business headshots in a variety of environments and with varying looks – we can always go for a studio background look against a solid color, there are options for outdoor portraits, we can drop a consistent background in via Photoshop, or in this case, we took advantage of a nice window background at the client’s location.

On-location business portraits mean that I come to you and you don’t have the disruption of having to travel elsewhere; we can work things into your schedule to make it as easy as possible to make a great headshot without having to rearrange your workday. If you’re looking for an updated business portrait, contact me and let’s set something up whether it’s for you as an individual or for multiple folks in your office.

The post Back to Work: Business Headshots in Vancouver, Washington appeared first on Hockley Photography.

While we all have our own take on things, I’m fairly certain that as an event photographer the impacts of COVID-19 and the resulting “stay at home” orders and restrictions on gatherings have had about as severe of an impact on that particular line of business as any.

In early March I photographed a conference at the Hilton in Downtown Portland with about 500 attendees from around the country. At that point, folks were doing elbow bumps instead of handshakes, but there was no notion of social distancing and while making photos of the conference I came into contact with a ton of people. Thankfully, I’m healthy, and hopefully everyone else that was there is in the same situation.

Later that same week, I got my first cancellation for an upcoming event. Then another event decided they were going to do an audience-less livestream but they still wanted me to photography it. Then, a few days later, that event moved entirely online.

Beyond event cancellations, I’m not really out doing any photography work for my small business clients either. I’d been chatting with a legal firm about refreshing their organization’s headshots for around fifty individuals, but as you can imagine, that deal has been shelved indefinitely as well. As has a few other pending opportunities.

So… now what?

Honestly? I don’t know.

I don’t know what this means for my photography business. As someone whose two main lines of professional photography were special events and small business commercial work, everything is all upside down right now.

If we look at realistic projections for a world where we don’t have reliable testing or a vaccine against the novel coronavirus, I don’t foresee large events such as conferences, trade shows, or launch gatherings happening for months, if not well into 2021.

When can I safely work with my business clients again?

When will I be able to walk into a law firm and safely have an all-day headshot session for dozens of folks?

The most important thing is that we stay safe.

But my photography ventures? Who knows what this means. I don’t know any more than you do at this point.

Know that I’m still here, and I still want to make pictures. When it’s safe to make pictures, I’m going to appreciate that more than I ever have. Let’s make some photographic goodness together. Drop me an email and let’s make plans.

Stay safe, everyone. We’re all in this together. Apart.

The post Event Photography: Now What? appeared first on Hockley Photography.

This work came as a referral from another photographer colleague who had done the firm’s Spokane images. My goal was to create multiple images of my subject in his home, then edit those images such that they appeared against a the same background as other images of the other personnel. These were two of the resulting photos, which fit nicely into the overall corporate look and feel of the firm and use backgrounds consistent with those being presented of their other attorneys.

If it’s time to update your business portrait to reflect the current you, or to make a consistent set of portraits for your workgroup, get in touch and let’s make it happen!

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You invite Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, who drops by to say a few words about Portland’s startup scene, and of course PIE General Manager Rick Turoczy has some remarks as well.

You hold the event in a cool new space – The Glass Lab – and find that it provides plenty of room for interesting conversations.

You have some cool swag for folks to play with, making for some interesting opportunities for an event photographer.

You have the event catered with some great food including Fabo’s Tacos. People are happy, they have great conversations, business connections are made, and the event photographer walks away happy.

Hosting a fun event such as this one? Whether it’s startup photography, another business event, or a charity, contact me and let’s make some great photos!

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Presented by PPA President Stephen Thetford, the degree indicates that I have met the standards of excellence set by PPA. The degree is awarded in recognition of superior photographic competence demonstrated through photographic competition, advanced education and service to the profession.

Along with my Photographic Craftsman degree, I feel this helps set me apart as not just another guy on the internet with a camera, but someone who has demonstrated excellence and has been recognized as such in the industry.

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I was named the Commercial/Illustrative Division WinnerTechnical Excellence in the large year-end competition.

Finally, the plaque shown above is a high honor indeed: the PPA National Award. This award is given for service to the photography industry, and was presented to me by 2018-2019 PPA President Stephen Thetford. I’m truly honored to join the relatively small number of photographers nationwide who have received this honor, and am thankful that I’ve been able help give back to the industry and help others along the photographic path.

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