Baltimore, MD – January 19, 2010 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced Bradley Images, inc. has been selected to receive the 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™ for Photography and Video!

The annual Bride’s Choice Awards™ recognizes and celebrates excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry, as determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 500,000 newlyweds.

Bradley Images, inc. is among the top five percent of all vendors in the WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding professionals across the US and Canada. Awards were given to winners across 19 different service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers.

“We are excited to recognize and honor the success of the top wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Community” said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “The annual Bride’s Choice Awards™ program has given us the unique opportunity to highlight the best wedding professionals in each region as reviewed by brides and grooms who have utilized their services in the past year.”

We are happy to announce that Bradley Images, inc. is among the very best Photographers and Videographers within the WeddingWire Network, which includes WeddingWire and Martha Stewart Weddings. We would like to thank our past newlyweds for nominating us for the 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™.

For more information, please visit http:www.bradleyimages.com

Bradley Zisow photographed his first wedding at age 17, and 15 years later has built a successful business, which employs eight other photographers in his hometown of Baltimore, MD. “I always loved art, painting, drawing and 3-D sculpting. I could draw anything I could see but had a hard time making up things from my mind that didn’t exist. My love for photography really grew because I could take a traditional photo and then paint over the image and make it more surreal.” While in college, Bradley majored in photography, marketing and management while working full time at Ritz Camera. Clients would have to come to his parents’ home where Bradley met with them in the kitchen. Soon thereafter, he moved to an apartment using his dining room as a shooting studio and meeting clients in his living room. His wedding business grew so rapidly that he had to quit school and his job at Ritz Camera. He bought a three-bedroom townhouse where, at age 25, he ran his business, which was comprised of weddings, events, photo restoration, video, web and graphics. Bradley says, “I want to do it all. I liked the versatility. I never just wanted to do one thing.”

Bradley learned his work ethic from his father and believes if something is worth doing it is worth doing right. He always bought the best cameras and lenses even though it cut into his profit a bit. “I was shooting with Hasselblads while some of my competition were shooting with 35mm.” Bradley was one of the first photographers to embrace digital cameras and in 2001 made the switch to only shooting digital. He says, “Everyone thought I was nuts. I figured, keep evolving; keep looking for something different. Never stay the same.” He has also mastered Photoshop from the very beginning when “most photographers weren’t even using computers.” He says if you can think of an idea, he can create it in Photoshop.

In 2002 he opened his first storefront studio on a major highway in the Baltimore area, which he remodeled. This is where his crew of eight photographers makes everything happen. Bradley Images, which photographs 120 weddings and events a year, charges the same fees for weddings and events no matter who the photographer is. Bradley says he has assembled his team over the last 15 years and is very happy with their talents and their love of the profession. “Everyone who works here is fun, energetic, hard working and young at heart. They know when to take control and they know when to be quiet. This is truly a hard thing to find.” It wasn’t easy to find great employees. Bradley looks for employees who are talented and have good personalities, but are eager to learn and grow and can accept his critiques on their work. Some of them start off working in the studio on Photoshop and Lightroom production. He feels blessed to have such a wonderful staff and is not looking to grow any larger at this time.

Bradley meets with every client, even if he won’t be the photographer. He likes to get to know his clients and get an idea of what they want before he assigns them to one of his staff photographers. He sees every album design before it goes to the lab. He wants to do an amazing job for every client at the wedding or event and the difference in what they pay comes from the size and type of album they order. He interacts and builds a relationship with every client in hopes of forming what will be a lifetime bond with them.

Bradley Images receives most of their business by word-of-mouth. Bradley says, “I form a bond with my clients. I go above-and-beyond. I know my title is photographer but if I can give any advice that will take stress off the bride or family I am willing to try. I sometimes coordinate the entire wedding or help the parents of the bar/bat mitzvah come up with themes for their child’s event. I never charge for my time. The happier I can make them and keep them happy, the better.” He does do some direct mail advertising as well as full-page ads in a wedding guide, which he says, works very well. He works closely with his vendors and gives them images. Bradley says, “Keep a good network. Out of sight, out of mind. Vendors will tend to recommend the photographer they worked with last. I do not pay for leads or give kickbacks. I want vendors to use us because we work hard and give a great product.”

Bradley uses Nikon D3, D2x, D300 and D700 cameras with an arsenal of lenses. He says, “Right now I love shooting the traditional sharp pictures with the 3-D backlight and the wide open 85mm f/1.4 with just a kiss of ambient light. To top if off I use video lights and strobes on occasion. Giving the client a nice mixture is just such a fantastic way to tell a story.” He incorporates fashion techniques in his weddings and mitzvahs to lend a different look to a traditional event. He has used many labs over the years but finally found in Nations Photo Lab (www.nationsphotolab.com) a company he attributes much of his success. “I only use Kodak paper and it’s hard to find a consistent lab that can get great prints all the time. For 10 years I was using three labs: one for proofing, one for enlargements and one for mounting. Now Nations does everything and I just started using them for albums. It helps so much with production and as we know that is the hardest part of the business. They do proofs, put them online, get the prints out, design and print the layout and give me a finished album. They have some cool new acrylic, metallic and leather wrap covers and all the traditional covers too.”

Bradley is expanding his photography business to include motion picture production by partnering with JBV Media. He has purchased a RED digital camera system (www.red.com) and the two companies are now producing commercial content for local and regional businesses and nonprofit organizations. One of his senior photographers says that the images coming from this camera are outstanding and it is like shooting a DSLR at 24 frames per second with the same sharpness, color and depth of field. Bradley always wants to be on top of rapidly changing technology and this is just another example of his dedication.

Bradley has been a member of WPPI for over five years and also belongs to PPA, PMA and ISIS. He attends the WPPI convention each year to keep up on the changes and to get answers for any questions he may have. He has been successful in WPPI’s print competition and has won many awards for his photography. He won the 2007–2008 Eventpix Best of Weddings grand prize. “I like competition a lot but it really does come down to making the clients happy tomorrow and not what I won yesterday.”

Bradley teaches private photography classes and is hoping to start doing seminars next summer. He would like to teach other photographers the dos and don’ts of wedding and event photography; from capture and process, storage and backup, Photoshop and design, to finding the best albums. He lives by his motto, “Shoot first, then live, laugh and love.” To see the fine images of Bradley Images go to www.bradleyimages.com. Caresse Muir is a Certified Professional Photographer and a Master Photographer. She specializes in family, high school senior and children’s portraits. She is a member of the Professional Photographers of America, Wedding and Portrait Photographers International, the Professional Photographers of California and the Professional Photographers of San Diego County where she served as president for two years. She has won awards for her photography on the national, state and local level. ]]> http://bradleyimages.net/blog/photography-news/shoot-first-then-live-laugh-and-love.html/feed 0 http://bradleyimages.net/blog/photography-news/press/2008-pick-the-knot-best-of-weddings-2.html http://bradleyimages.net/blog/photography-news/press/2008-pick-the-knot-best-of-weddings-2.html#comments Mon, 21 Apr 2008 06:40:28 +0000 Bradley Images http://bradleyimages.com/photoblog/2008/04/21/2008-pick-the-knot-best-of-weddings-2/ Bradley Images, Inc. RECOGNIZED IN
THE KNOT BEST OF WEDDING MAGAZINE

Annual Survey of Recently Married Couples in Maryland and Washington D.C.
Reveals Top Wedding Vendors

Bradley Images is pleased to announce it has been selected as a 2008 Pick for The Knot Best of Weddings magazine, a coast-to-coast, by-brides-for-brides guide to the top wedding sites, photographers,videographers, and more in over 40 key cities across the United States published by The Knot Inc. (www.theknot.com), the #1 wedding website and most trusted wedding resource.

The Knot conducted its second annual survey of over 20,000 recent brides to capture detailed feedback on every business that couples hired for their wedding celebration.

Maryland and Washington D.C. newlyweds contributed their raves and reviews on the area’s wedding professionals. The newlyweds were asked to rate their vendors on multiple criteria, from creativity to professionalism, and to comment on their experiences. The resulting ratings—and detailed feedback—were aggregated by the editors of The Knot to create this one-of-a-kind publication highlighting the best wedding resources in each region according to local brides. The survey was administered by Harris Interactive.

We hope you will join us in celebrating this tremendous accolade.

Sincerely,
Bradley Zisow

Bradley Images appeared on the popular reality-tv show “A Wedding Story” on The Learning Channel (TLC). In January of 2001 Brad Zisow and his team photographed the wedding of Jodi Goroff and Jason Green at the Ner Tamid Synagogue in Baltimore, Maryland. This episode of “A Wedding Story” chronicled the event which Bradley Images captured.

AN AMERICAN WEDDING, 2005

Bradley Images was featured in the filming of “An American Wedding” in Washington, DC. A real-life wedding was documented for this upcoming reality-tv show, air date TBA. Bradley Images was selected to work in conjunction with The Premier Bridal Mall and a number of other local wedding vendors to execute this event. The episode was filmed at the Evermay Mansion located at 1623 28th Street in Georgetown, in August of 2005.

FRESH CHOICES
What’s Your Photographic Style?
By Lana White Austin

Although some consider classic portraiture the preeminent choice for wedding photographs, photojournalism has become increasingly fashionable. Candid shots offer a new perspective.
Many prospective brides, in an effort to define their own styles, choose a combination of time-honored poses and spontaneous documentation. Along with a resurgence of black & white photography, these offer couples fresh choices for wedding photography.
“I incorporate innovation and new technologies into my wedding photography,” said Bradley Zisow of Bradley Images & Photography Inc., in Towson, Maryland. “Wedding photography is not a formal photo shoot anymore. Today’s bride wants to get it done quickly and quietly. She wants to get on with her day. And the photographer wants to capture the day as it happens.”
Zisow said he likes to capture facial expressions and people enjoying themselves. He said he shoots both traditional and photojournalistic pictures, offering brides the best of both worlds. He believes wedding albums should have formal and candid shots to tell the whole story of the wedding.
“Brides like some black & white pictures, and they add nostalgia to an album,” Zisow said. “I do a lot of graphic design. I can take a color picture and make parts of it black & white. A color picture of the bride with flowers can be made to appear black & white while the flowers remain colored. This used to be done with black & white film and hand painting.”

CAPTURING THE MOMENT
Owings Mills’ Bradley Zisow, 25, has his own photography firm.
By Linda L. Esterson
Special to the Jewish Times,
December 29, 2000

He’s young, he’s confident, he’s energetic. At the age of 25, Bradley Zisow owns and operates Bradley Images, a professional photography company based out of his townhouse in Owings Mills’ McDonogh Township. For seven-plus years, Mr. Zisow has captured the moment professionally at more than 700 events, the last three years as Bradley Images.
His work is not limited to social affairs. Modeling portfolios, digital imaging and restoration, commercial photography, digital videography, and Web site design are all part of his services.
Mr. Zisow became interested in photography early. A graduate of Friends School, during his free periods he’d visit the photo lab instead of the study hall. “I lived in the photo lab,” recalls Mr. Zisow, who subsequently attended Villa Julie College to study photography, marketing and management.
Initially, he went into the photography business with two friends, but later branched out on his own. Mr. Zisow estimates he now spends more than 80 hours a week working. How about something as mundane as sleep? “Who needs to?” he retorts. “Work now, retire early. I’m young, I can do it. I need to keep it up while I’m enthusiastic.”
Enthusiastic is an understatement. Just watch him light up as he discusses his method for taking photographs at, for example, a wedding. “I’m not there to change the moment; I’m there to capture the moment,” he says. “When you’re dancing or cutting the cake, I don’t tell you to tilt your head. I capture it as it happens.”
His method includes not interrupting the bridal couple as they participate in the activities around them. “We’ll ask them but don’t drag them,” he says. “If the bride and groom don’t want to leave the reception, we don’t make them.”
So unobtrusively does Mr. Zisow work that, says Michelle Goodman, who used him for her wedding two years ago, “I didn’t even know he was around once the portraits were done.”
“I like the way he takes pictures,” says Jason Porter, who hired MR. Zisow for his April wedding. “They’re a little different, they’re edgier. He’s good with the camera.”
Mr. Zisow was one of the first in Baltimore to give newlywed couples and b’nai mitzvoth their proofs within days of their events – online. Using a security code on his website, clients and their families and friends can view the complete set of photos and select what they’d like to order. Ultimately, he predicts, proofs “in hand” will become a thing of the past. Everyone will view their proofs online.
With a staff of eight photographers and six videographers, Bradley Images can handle up to three events a day. Mr. Zisow feels that’s the maximum number of events the company can cover and still maintain its quality level. Mr. Zisow trains his employees to “shoot my way,” and he looks for people like himself – young and energetic.
“You can train technical but you can’t teach personality,” he says of his employees.
Mr. Zisow’s youth sometimes causes comment. “My favorite thing is when I walk into a job and I hear under [people’s] breath, ‘God he’s young,’” he says. On occasion, he adds, his youth also works to his benefit, especially in putting bar and bat mitzvah children he’s photographing at ease.
Mr. Zisow’s aspirations are high. They include, he said, “being as good as Shlomo [Cohen]. He’s an artist. Hid lighting, technical skills are excellent, his eye is excellent.”
Richard Dalcin, owner of Richard Dalcin Studios, a Pikesville photographer for 20 years, praises Mr. Zisow. “He reminds me of myself when I got started. You can see it in him that eh loves what he does and is excited about what he does.”

-Linda L. Esterson is a local free-lance writer.