Michael Nelson
Atlanta, GA, United States
The first thing you should know about me is that my only fear is mediocrity, and my approach to life and work is the same — full of humor, spontaneity, and a lot of passion.
I've been photographing for 30 years, had the big commercial studio where we photographed everything from paint buckets to Grammy winning singers. Learned a heck of a lot about shooting in the process.
Moved out of the studio, bought a huge grip trailer - a la the movie industry - and take my gear wherever I want to shoot, mostly between Georgia and the Chesapeake Bay.
After years of shooting what I had to, I now focus on telling neat stories about neat people and celebrating femininity and intimacy.
I shoot digital and film - still shoot my boxes of Polaroid 665 from my work with them - depending on the project. 35 mm, medium format, 4x5 - I like them all.
Lighting is intuitive to me, but I don't like it overdone. Headlights, streetlights, candlelight, strobe lights, tungsten lights, all of the above - it works.
I've been a firefighter/EMT, delivered babies, run into burning buildings, had people die in my arms, breathed life back into people, flown planes, scuba dived, taken my sailboat to the Caribbean for a month, driven a big rig, and taught myself photography in my spare time.
I married an incredible woman who became my business partner/producer, survived cancer and don’t want to waste moment of my life.
I love shooting, would do it every day if I could. I hope they have to pry the camera out of my hands when I die.
Let’s get to work!
- Advertising
- Arts
- Editorial
- Environment
- Landscape
- Portrait