Lifelong pursuit leads to photography business at downtown
studio
Chris Black’s destiny started taking shape before he was old
enough to cross the street by himself.
Lifelong pursuit leads to photography business at downtown studio
Chris Black’s destiny started taking shape before he was old enough to cross the street by himself.
Black recently opened a fine art and portrait photography studio in downtown Hollister, but the 42-year-old Hollister man’s love affair with the camera dates back to when he was a boy living in Pacific Grove with his family.
“I’ve been taking photos since I was 4 years old,” Black said during a recent conversation at his Sixth Street studio. “My mother documented our lives through photography. My mother inspired me to do photography through the photos she did.”
Black turned his avocation into a full-time profession about four years ago, working from a studio in his home. A work-related injury prompted him to move from his former career, and given his lifelong love of photography, the choice was obvious.
Black’s move to his 335 Sixth St. studio downtown marks both a deeper commitment to his profession and a commitment to downtown Hollister.
“I like the charm of downtown,” he said. “It’s going to change – and I’m looking forward to that change.”
Already, Black has enlisted as photographer for the Hollister Downtown Association, contributing his work at local events free of charge.
Black has studied photography through University of California, Santa Cruz, and under several West Coast professionals.
His work, displayed on his Web site (chrisblackphotography.com) and on the walls of his studio, gives much about Black away.
Light plays across landscapes that illustrate his love of natural places. In his portraits, subjects look at ease and relaxed in front of Black’s camera.
A visitor’s first impression is that Black is a soft-spoken, easy-going man. But the magic of his photos is more than his manner.
“A photographer has to be patient,” Black said. “You can go to a beautiful location and just wait there for two to three hours just to get that one shot – the money shot.”
For Black, the “money shot” is the one that combines the elements of a photograph, light, setting and subject matter, into something greater than the sum of its parts.
Taking portraits requires the same dedication to patience, Black said.
A prospective client visiting Black’s studio next to Tranquility Day Spa enters a comfortable, softly lit office. The process begins with a conversation about what the client has in mind. “We get an idea about each other, and I can learn about their preferred locations, how many people will be in the photos, that kind of thing.”
While photos can be taken in his studio, Black most enjoys putting people in their favorite outdoor settings.
Once a contract is signed, a session is scheduled. Subjects will soon be able to review photos on a laptop at the photo shoot. Although his portrait work is digital, Black typically selects his favorites and has 4-by-6 proofs made, so that clients can review them at their leisure. Typically, clients have 15 days to make selections, picking the size of prints, and the material upon which they are to be printed. Black has the capacity to make prints as large as 17-by-22 in his studio, but works with another source for any other needs.
For portraits, Black charges for a sitting fee, but prints may be ordered individually in a variety of sizes. Weddings are presented as packages. Black also will sell fine art photography through his studio, and plans to make passport photos and commercial work available as well.
Chris Black Photography is located at 335 Sixth St., Hollister, CA, 95023. For more information call 524-4498 or visit www.chrisblackphotography.com.
