Falling in love with photography is easy. Turning that passion into a successful career takes works.
The world of commercial photography can seem a little strange from the outside. Unlike wedding, family and other retail photographers, commercial photographers work mostly out of sight, creating images that expose, celebrate, and inform the world. While we see the images everywhere–online, in print, on walls and even billboards–how the images are made often remains a mystery. What does a food photographer really do? How do become an architectural photographer? Who pays you to make portraits of people? Can you really make a living photographing doing this stuff?
In this introductory panel discussion we’ll meet five photographers representing different fields in the industry. We’ll learn what their “average” week looks like, how s/he got started, and what skills it takes to be successful. Along the way we’ll learn a bit about the basics of running a business, what licensing means, and how photographers market themselves.
This is a free event for anyone who is interested in learning more about the world of commercial photography and is a pre-requisite to our mentorship program.
This free event is Thursday, March 25, 6-8 pm on Zoom.
MEET THE PANELISTS
LAURA CHASE DE FORMIGNY
Laura Chase de Formigny an editorial and commercial photographer who specializes in food and food culture. She has been a freelancer since 2012 and re-focused her career onto food photography in 2018. Laura Chase is a regular contributor to the Washington Post food section and a frequent collaborator on restaurant reviews as well as a studio photographer for the Washington Post’s recipe section, Voraciously.
AARON CLAMAGE
Whether capturing an intimate portrait, shooting an advertising campaign, or documenting a corporate event, Aaron believes there is always a scene to be painted and a story to be told. Born and raised in Washington, DC, he’ll go anywhere for an interesting photoshoot. Some of his clients include NBC, The Kennedy Center Honors, Scholastic Magazine, PBS, Linkedin, The Sierra Club, L’Oreal and The National Academy of Sciences. When not creating content for magazines or businesses, he can be found photographing my favorite subjects — my beautiful wife and children.
MARISA GUZMAN-ALOIA
Marisa Guzmán-Aloia is a Washington, DC based portrait and lifestyle photographer. A graduate of the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, Marisa's work is about capturing the stories in front of her lens. Marisa's clients include Compass Real Estate Brokerage, Keller Williams Realty, TTR Sotheby's Realty, CARR Properties, The Washingtonian, Virtuoso Magazine, Boston University Alumni Magazine, Rutgers Alumni Magazine, IBM Power Systems Magazine, Southbay Magazine and Terranea Resort Magazine.
BARRY HARLEY
Barry Harley is a photographer specializing in Hotel, Architectural, and Portrait Photography. His architectural photography has extended geographically from Duns Castles in Scotland to the infamous Grey Gardens (home of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s cousins) in East Hampton, NY to extensive shooting in his home country Jamaica.
STEPHEN VOSS
Stephen Voss creates engaging portraits of some of the most prominent figures of our time. Politicians, journalists, scientists, artists and thinkers, he has spent much of his career documenting those who both make and shape the news. His editorial clients include Time Magazine (multiple covers), CNN, Politico, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and many others. He has been recognized by the American Photography Annual, Communication Arts Annual, APA, PDN and has images in the permanent collection of the Library of Congress.