About Jim Harris Studios

Jim Harris Studios is an intimate photography studio located in the Roxborough/Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia. Jim specializes in documentary and photojournalistic wedding and event photography. With a background in documentary and news photography, he approaches each wedding as a unique photo essay and narrative.

About Jim Harris

When I started my own business it was the most important decision I ever made regarding my career. It made photography and story-telling my sole objective. I've always been a documentary photographer and the first wedding I shot was already 15 years ago now. Photography in general was different then. I was the B&W darkroom guy that had about 3 or 4 different documentary and/or Fine Art projects going. Some funded with grants and fellowships, some were not. When I shot weddings they were generally all B&W with hand-developed prints. I'd tell people they were photojournalist style and less traditional. 'Wedding Photojournalism' wasn't the buzzword that it is today and before digital cameras, there weren't as many people claiming to be such.

When I started shooting weddings and events for Jack Caputo Photography in LA, we were bridging from analog to digital photography in the wedding industry. Jack was a premier wedding and portrait photographer in Los Angeles and was known for his upscale celebrity clientele. Like a lot of photographers that do what I do, I worked my way up as second photographer and then as one of his Associate Photographers. His was a solid combination of the Traditional Portrait and Candid approach that I was already used to shooting. I was no longer exclusively the B&W artsy guy shooting my documentary weddings... or maybe I was a little, but had to adapt to a more all-around photography approach in regard to color portraiture and the new world of digital imagery. I loved the darkroom and the skills that I developed in there, but to my benefit; I never fought the digital revolution and have progressed and moved forward with my craft.

I think you could tell by my website portfolio that my love for color imagery now equals my passion for the classic black and white. My love for photojournalist shooting is now complemented with the elegance of classic portraiture and artistic still-life detail photography. But ultimately it comes down to the ability to tell a story and capture the moment as it happens. Some of it is experience and a sense of anticipation. Some of it technical, but mostly it's just capturing those special moments on a blank canvas and creating a personalized photographic narrative for your client.

When I opened up my own studio I was able to bring all of my experience to one place and call it my own. It's story telling. All of the exhibitions I have shown over the years. My news photography assignments, and published photographs are stories. All of the travel and editorial assignment work that I've done and the portraits, event and wedding photography I have shot over the years. It's all story telling. It's my job and it's ultimately the job of every photographer.

Pricing and Investment Weddings

Congratulations on your engagement and upcoming wedding and thank you for considering our studio for your wedding day. We shoot a beautiful combination of fun candid photography and timeless artistic portraiture. Our package rates start at around $3200 and we offer many a'la carte options and custom packages to meet your individual needs. Most packages include a second photographer for additional coverage and a DVD slideshow of your images. All packages offer high-resolution files for you to own and online posting of all your images for you and your guests to view and purchase images.

As I have told many of my clients over the years, there are essentially three parts to commissioning the right photographer for you. The first, as with everything in life, is budget. If you feel we are in the neighborhood of your budget, don't hesitate to call and talk about it. There are some dates throughout the season that we have some flexibility with our pricing. The second is the quality and craftsmanship of the photographic images. If you browsed our galleries, our featured wedding and our blog, you can see our style, approach and philosophy in regard to capturing the moment as it happens. The third is the personality of your photographer/s. Now this is the tough one to do through a website. My sense is that when most potential couples schedule a consultation with us, they feel somewhat comfortable with my rates and the quality of work, but want to get a sense of our personality. I think that most are relieved at my easy approach and general forthright nature in taking you through our presentation. Our appointments are scheduled with a lot of flexibility around your schedule and usually don't take more than an hour. It's an opportunity to put our sample albums and books in front of you and show you a recent wedding from start to finish. It's a chance to take you through our products and talk a little about what specifically you're looking for in regard to your photography. The personality of your photographer is HUGE. This is someone that will be with you throughout one of the biggest days of your lives. It goes without saying that you would want someone considerate, discrete and unobtrusive in addition to capturing great moments throughout the day.

You'll leave our appointment with an information packet with all of our packages and the contract information for later. (I have yet to ask anyone to sign one on the spot.) You'll be welcome to follow up with any questions and hopefully you'll have a better sense of our studio's personality and approach.

I've forged many lasting friendships from shooting weddings. Some call on me to photograph children and family portraits later and some keep in touch through our blog and some of our other social networking outlets.

Pricing and Investment

Non-Wedding Commissions

Jim Harris Studios accept event, editorial, portraiture, documentary, corporate, music and travel lifestyle and all types of photographic work. Rates Vary according to dates and the nature of the photographic work. Please call with details of the assignment and we'll be happy to put together a custom quote. Most jobs require a 2 hour minimum with half and full day rates available.