Crackerjack Photography
“It is just life, alert, awake, whole-hearted, unburdened, moment after moment, emancipated from right and wrong, continuously as it is.” – Dogen Zenji
Once in a while, real-life puts on pig-tails and a happy smile, but more often than not she looks very different. Real-life gets a black eye while learning how to walk and breaks an arm playing football. Real-life gets a cute new hairstyle just in time for relentless winds to blow it to pieces. Real-life puts on 10 extra pounds. She loves her partner to her core, but sometimes, just can’t muster a nice word for him. Real-life gets hangry when he hasn’t eaten in a while. He rarely gets enough sleep and has a hard time getting away from work. Real-life doesn’t stop, real-life is perpetual, non-stop, ever-changing.
Don’t let real-life stop you from making memories. I’m not talking about that perfect pose, impeccable timing, flawless hair, designer clothing, a majestic location or a disciplined child, but rather authentic memories. A priceless memory, a memory that is worth more than words can say, it's your child playing in the dirt, your partner joining in, laughing out loud, playing peek-a-boo, sharing slobbery dog kisses, running in the streets with hair blowing in the wind and exchanging looks of joy and amazement.
Crackerjack Photography helps to minimize your fears of scheduling a portrait session, makes each session fun and memorable, captures those real-life, spontaneous moments, and preserves how beautiful your life is with all its inevitable imperfections. Your precious family, captured at a single point in time, will never look the same again. Family photographs are always the ones you look back on wondering how time has passed you by so quickly.
I’m Jamie and I would love to photograph your family having fun creating memories! I am an optimist who loves life and all its imperfections. I call myself a photographer (but have also been called a magician) and I love capturing intimate, spontaneous moments found within family relationships in colorful, emotional and fun images.
I embrace real-life and seek to redefine “picture perfect”. By remaining flexible, fluid and engaged, I produce beautiful, authentic images that perfectly reflect each family. My clients feel comfortable, like we are just taking an afternoon walk together, going on a date or playing a game and having the time of our lives. Families aren’t perfect and I don’t need things to just go smoothly. After all, it’s real-life and it is filled with unexpected, yet beautiful moments worth capturing.
Client feedback…
- “You’re a magician!” exclaimed a friend and mother of three when she saw the photos we created during their five person family session including twin toddlers.
- Following a session in the park, two four-year-old brothers I photograph asked their mom when they could “get pictures again and play with Jamie”!
- “My favorite part was being able to have quality time with my husband.It kind of felt like a date!The bonus was that Jamie was able to capture us being authentic and having fun.”
Crack-er-jack [krak-ER-jak]
noun
- A person or thing that shows marked ability or excellence.
My dad assigns a nickname to everyone he meets. The origins of these nicknames usually go unknown. My prescribed alias has always been "Cracky" or "Crackerjack". Maybe my dad is just weird, but I prefer to believe he knew I would be great!
My love of photography started when I was very young; I dressed my little sister up in different outfits and posed her around our house for photo sessions. In high school, I fell in love with the art of image-making and went on to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in photography from Grand Valley State University, building skills in image composition and digital editing. Experience as an assistant photographer and working in a retail portrait studio strengthened my skills in posing, communication and lighting. In 2009, I started Crackerjack Photography with a dream of capturing real-life images of people as they are in the present moment. While raising a family of my own, my understanding of family dynamics and desire to communicate the intricacies of intimate relationships through pictures continues to grow. I embrace the challenge of depicting each distinct personality within the family as well as the family dynamics as a whole. Building relationships with my clients and creating interesting images is my passion.