Workshops at Howard Heights

Yesterday I had the pleasure of capturing Bill & Julie’s vision for Workshops at Howard Heights as part of an Annual Report for the SC Community Loan Fund.  From their profile at http://sccommunityloanfund.org/blog/2017/06/06/loan-closing-workshops-at-howard-heights/ we read:

SITUATION:
Bill Hussey is a custom woodworker. Bill and his wife, Julie, wanted to serve Charleston’s craftspeople by creating a shared workspace where custom makers could gather and practice their craft. The Husseys had already purchased land in the Howard Heights neighborhood and were ready to get started on construction when they approached SCCLF.

SOLUTION
Workshops at Howard Heights is situated in a neighborhood that is experiencing a rebirth, and the Husseys are committed to creating a physical space that celebrates the neighborhood’s history. SCCLF saw an opportunity to partner with a borrower who understands the role community businesses play in community development and worked closely with Workshops to finance their construction.

IMPACT
Workshops at Howard Heights is committed to honoring their neighborhood’s history while being part of it’s revitalization. Local artisans, often microbusiness owners themselves, will have a place to practice their trades. By joining the ranks of other light industrial businesses in what they call the Craftsmanship Zone, Workshops at Howard Heights is part of a movement to renew their community while fostering economic development.

Many thanks to Victoria for all her hard work in coordinating schedules, writing profiles, and making the magic happen!

Headshots for South Carolina Federal Credit Union

It’s been my pleasure to work with the SCFCU for many years now. Everyone there is always so nice, and so much fun to work with!  But more importantly, not only are we their photographer, but we’re also their customer.  Cami and I do all our banking, both business and personal, with SC Federal Credit Union.  If you’re looking for a new bank, we HIGHLY recommend them!!!

Yesterday, I had another photo shoot with them to update old head-shots, and photograph new head-shots for new staff members. When I was done with those, we also did a fun new group photo for the marketing team!  We had a blast and came away with some great shots.

Many thanks to Rebekah for all her hard work in coordinating these photo shoots!!!

St. Philips Episcopal Church

St. Philip’s Church is an historic church at 142 Church Street in Charleston. Built in 1836, this stuccoed brick church features an imposing tower designed in the Wren-Gibbs tradition.On November 7, 1973, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark.

Established in 1681, St. Philip’s is the oldest religious congregation in South Carolina. The first St. Philip’s Church, a wooden building, was built between 1680 and 1681 at the corner of Broad and Meeting streets on the present day site of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church. It was damaged in a hurricane in 1710 and a new St. Phillip’s Church was begun a few blocks away on Church Street. After being delayed it was finished in 1723 but burned to the ground in 1835. Work on the present church was begun that same year and completed the next. The steeple was added between 1848 and 1850.

I recently had the pleasure of photographing this aerial photograph featuring St. Philips Episcopal Church. In the foreground we find one of Charleston’s iconic horse-and-carriage tours ambling up Church Street as it approaches the imposing structure. The dramatic Arthur Ravenel Junior Bridge gracefully spans the Charleston Harbor in the distance.

Select Health Annual Report

“First Choice serves more than 355,0001 members in all 46 counties of the state and is the top-rated Medicaid health plan in South Carolina, according to the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s (NCQA’s) Medicaid Health Insurance Plan Ratings 2016 – 2017. The plan has held this distinguished position since 2010. First Choice is the first health plan in South Carolina to earn NCQA’s Multicultural Health Care Distinction, which recognizes our commitment to delivering culturally competent health care, and Select Health is the only managed Medicaid plan in the state with a five-star rating for overall customer satisfaction per the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®).”

I’m thrilled to have been able to provide most of the photography for this year’s Annual Report.  I’m particularly excited that the publication is up for an Aster Award…which is kind of like The Oscars when it comes to marketing material in the the world of health care.  But above all, I’m honored to call Select Health one of our favorite clients to partner with!!!

New Construction Drone Photography

It’s no secret that the Charleston real estate market is on fire. Charleston is at the top of many Best Of lists, feeding the “I want to move to Charleston” craze!

Growth of the aeronautics, automotive, and tech sectors has Lowcountry area home builders working hard to build homes fast enough to keep up with growing needs. Due to the high demand, Charleston has a lower number of available homes on the market than most areas of the country. The Charleston real estate market only has a three-month supply of homes available, unlike most markets with at least a six-month supply! It’s no wonder there are so many new developments, new neighborhoods, and new construction projects going up all over town!

If you’re a home builder, this is a great time to capitalize on your share of that business. With our licensed, insured, and FAA Certified Remote Pilot, we are here to help you attract your piece of the pie through dynamic aerial drone photographs. Let us capture beautiful images of your projects today before it’s too late!!!

Quest 2018

QUEST is Trident Technical College’s annual academic competition. It is open to Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester public school students in grades 6-12. The competition was developed by TTC to promote academic excellence, provide an academic challenge to students, and recognize top students, teachers and schools.

Approximately 1,100 students participated in this year’s Quest. It was an honor and a pleasure photographing this outstanding event for them. I’d like to say a big Thank You to my friend and colleague, Mic Smith, for kindly recommending me!

Aerial Assignments

More and more corporate clients are turning to us for our new Aerial Drone Photography. Why?

EXPERIENCE:
Much like buying a nice digital camera doesn’t instantly make one a great digital photographer, simply buying a drone doesn’t make one a great aerial photographer! Just because someone can fly a drone doesn’t mean they know how to capture a compelling image. Mastering the tried and true techniques of lighting, exposure, composition, color, (and the list is a mile long) takes time! Cami and I have professional photography degrees, which means we’ve truly studied the finer nuances of beautiful art and imagery. Plus we’ve been photographing professionally for over two decades! That’s a priceless amount of experience and training that you just can’t pick up in a weekend workshop. Think about the revolutions and changes that have taken place in 20+ years. From medium format to 35mm, from film to digital, from crop sensors to full-frame sensors, from megabytes to gigabytes…we’ve seen it all! Which is why our clients feel confident in our abilities to deliver more compelling images.

EQUIPMENT:
Sure, the latest drones are easy to fly and take descent photos in their dumbed-down-out-of-the-box settings. It takes a lot of studying and experimenting with the deeper nuances and internal settings to eek out that NEXT higher level of quality and detail. I wonder how many new drone pilots never even read the manual?!? Flying the latest quadcopters on the market, and setting them up to take full advantage of every pixel they offer, we’re able to deliver a superior quality product.

EDUCATION:
Everyone has seen one news story or another about crashed drones or near collisions with other aircraft. Unlike a highway where you can only go one of two directions, airspace is a wide open fronteir. For the safety of other aircraft, and the safety of people below, the Federal Aviation Administration has implimented strict rules and regulations. Unfortunately, very few UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) pilots have taken the time to study, train, and pass the FAA certification process. We are proud to have passed the exam with the highest grade in the class, on our way to obtaining the FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Licesnse! This means we are legal to fly our drones commercially, and will do so with safety as a primary concern.

For more information, check out https://chrisandcami.com/gallery/aerial/.  When it’s time for YOUR aerial photography assignment, please don’t hesitate to contact us! You’ll be in good hands…and you’ll be glad you did.

Beetlejuice Fashion Shoot

Reid is one of my FAVORITE “creative collaborators” in Charleston!!!  She is so artistic and has such a great sense of humor!

One day while out exploring on my motorcycle, I found this amazing old church ruins with a decaying piano in the middle of the sanctuary. I pitched the idea of a fun fashion shoot to Reid. She loved it!  Wrangling her three beautiful daughters, Sydney, Jackie, and Trinity to model for us, the game was on. They brought their beautiful pet boa constrictors, great props like the vase of old dead roses, and some outlandish outfits from places like Goodwill and who-knows-where!

We had an absolute BLAST and came away with a fun collection of images. Many thanks to Reid and our three gorgeous models!!!

Geocent

Geocent is an award winning business, providing technology and engineering solutions that help their clients improve their performance and achieve their goals. Since 1992,​ through experience, innovation, commitment, and reliability, they have steadily earned their clients’ trust. Each member of the Geocent team strives to be an invaluable part of their client’s organizations, advancing them beyond their expectations!

This morning it was my priviledge to photograph three core members of the Charleston team. Using a natural lifestyle aproach to their images, we created a number of headshots and executive portraits to be used in various marketing, social media, and promotional material. Each individual was a pleasure to work with, and their personalities really shone through!

THANK YOU Valerie, Hal, and Andie for your positive energy and friendly hospitality!!!

Citadel Square Baptist Church

Citadel Square Baptist Church was the fourth Baptist church established in Charleston, South Carolina. The original “Citadel Square Church” is a daughter of the First Baptist Church of Charleston (est. 1682), the “mother” church of Baptists in the South. In 1854, approximately a dozen members of the church sought to establish a new church for the Upper Peninsula, to be known as Fourth Baptist Church.

The construction of the church building at 328 Meeting Street began in June 1855. The new building was opened on November 23, 1856. A Sunday School building was added in 1891, then replaced in 1921. In April 1951, an educational building was added to the campus. The church was the first in Charleston to televise its services, doing so for more than 40 years until 1998. In its history, six churches have planted by Citadel Square: Cannon Street Baptist Church, Southside Baptist Church, FBC Mount Pleasant, Ashley River Baptist Church, James Island Baptist Church, and Folly Beach Baptist Church.

With a break in the programming at an event I was photographing nearby, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to fly my drone and get a gorgeous panoramic aerial view of this historic church in the golden rays of the setting sun. Visible in the background is the iconic Mother Emanuel AME Church. And beyond that, the elegant Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge spans the great Cooper River.

CresCom Bank

Photographing great aerial images with a quad-copter is tough. Photographing great aerial images with a quad-copter AT DUSK is nearly impossible!!!

With calm winds at my back, and clear skies ahead, I was able to keep the stick steady enough for the drone to capture several beautiful images of CresCom’s West Ashley location. The glowing windows and doors are representative of the banks warm customer service attitude and welcoming personality!  So the timing was critical.  And I’m very pleased with how it turned out!

CresCom Bank, a leader in community banking, is dedicated to providing exceptional customer service and quality products to the communities it calls home, and prides itself on its strong knowledge of local business and economic trends. Currently, CresCom Bank has 62 branch locations throughout the Carolinas and also owns Crescent Mortgage Company.  You should check them out!

Tim Waters for SCCLF

Earlier this week I had the distinct honor of photographing visionary (and a persistent one at that I might ad) Tim Waters at the future site of his healthy food retail store. I was truly blessed to spend time with this humble hero!

Check out the excellent article at http://sccommunityloanfund.org/blog/2017/10/25/loan-closing-elijah-craig/. Here are a few excerpts to give you some context:

The North Dargan Street and Darlington Street corridor, a neighborhood in Florence, SC, is deemed “blighted” by city officials. It is also located in a food desert, meaning residents lack access to fresh and nutritious foods. Tim Waters, owner of Elijah Craig, LLC and a lifelong resident of the neighborhood, wanted to help his community by bringing a full-service grocery store to the area. However, Tim struggled to secure financing and lacked the specialized experience grocery store operators need to secure a franchise deal.

The Elijah Craig, LLC Save-A-Lot will initially create 20 new jobs for community members, 12 of which will be full time and the number of employees will increase to 30 as the store grows. Families in the North Dargan Street community will finally have the ability to purchase fresh, healthy food in their neighborhood. Further, a neighborhood currently defined by the city as blighted will have a revitalization effort led in part by a lifelong resident with a vision of community change. “I see the store as building up the community in a healthy way,” says Tim. “I want it to be a beacon for healthy change.”

Many thanks to the SC Community Loan Fund for this amazing opportunity!