Carl Bower Photographs
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Introduction: As a former photojournalist and Pulitzer finalist, I do environmental, editorial and corporate work. I'll produce headshots to give you the look you need for avatars, or more interpretive images similar to my magazine work.
I like telling stories and communicating a vision. In terms of more personal commissions, I like conveying a sense of the individual, and my approach is more similar to my magazine work than a traditional portrait studio.
I'll help you look your best, stand out from the crowd, and meet your deadlines. Tell me your objectives and your intended audience, and we'll make it happen. If you contact me via Thumbtack, I can give a more informed response if you provide some details on what you need. To avoid spam, I only respond to direct queries that reflect that you've viewed my profile, but promise to do so promptly.
Carl
Overview
Hired 6 times
24 years in business
Payment methods
This pro accepts payments via Cash, Credit card, PayPal, Square cash app, and Venmo.
Social media
Featured Projects
43 photos
Dispatch Health
Portrait Photography
Specialties
Photoshoot location
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Reviews
Customers rated this pro highly for responsiveness, work quality, and professionalism.
Exceptional 5.0
14 reviews
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Mary F.
May 7, 2019
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Hired on Thumbtack
Hired on Thumbtack
Details: Professional / business • Photo studio • 1 person • No outfit changes • 6 - 10 shots • Professional use • Digital or online download • I travel to the headshot photographer
Headshot Photography
Brooke W.
Mar 6, 2017
Carl photographed our wedding at the Brown Palace in Denver. We were initially drawn to Carl because of the amazing portfolio he has on his website. We loved his modern and unique style, and his keen eye and ability to capture the most incredible moments. Carl did just that for us on our wedding day. Our photographs are amazing. We continue to look over them and say "how did he get that shot?!?", but he did. All the moments that we talked about the days to follow, he caught on camera with his distinctive viewpoint and style. He also did it in a completely inconspicuous and unobtrusive way.
We were told when we got engaged that there are only a few things you should really invest in, one being your wedding photographer. Carl is an investment well made. The album he created for us post-wedding was also perfect--modern and beautiful. I can't recommend Carl highly enough. He is an astute documentarian, and he will give you the most awesome wedding photographs. You won't be sorry.
Yoshimi M.
Mar 9, 2017
If you are looking for beautiful photos that will capture both the essence and emotions of the day in equal servings, giving permanent life to those oh-so-fleeting life's-best moments, then you can do no better than Carl Bower.
We were lucky enough to have Carl photograph our wedding in Vail, Colorado. While it was a spectacular backdrop, it was the unique and intimate moments that Carl captured in our photos that show the true beauty of the day. He exceeded even our high-expectations in the final collection of photos, in which he was able to capture the intimacy of the day, not just between us but among all of our guests. Very simply, we loved each and every single photo.
He is an incredibly talented photographer whose professionalism, work ethic, experience, and eye for detail are all represented in his work. We could not be happier to have these photos serve as our daily reminder of the warmth and love of our special day.
Eric L.
Mar 12, 2017
We found Carl's website and were struck by his ability to capture emotion and sentiment in his photography. This was evident in both his photojournalistic work as well as his (photojournalistic style) wedding photography. When we emailed Carl and several other photographers, Carl's prices were competitive with other photographers in the area, but slightly higher than some of the less experienced ones. Wanting to keep our wedding to a modest budget, it took some convincing from my better half to agree to spend the money on Carl. I could not be happier with our decision to hire Carl as our wedding photographer, and recommend him unequivocally to anyone looking for a photojournalistic-style wedding photographer.
Make no mistake, Carl is a professional, and he takes his work seriously -- and in turn he took our wedding seriously. Yet he complements this professionalism with an engaging personality and dry humor that made us enjoy all of our interactions with him. Prior to hiring him to shoot our wedding in Longmont, CO, we met with him (over Skype since we live in Seattle) to talk about how the ceremony and reception would work, and what we wanted from a photographer. He made it clear that he had a particular photographic style, where he would try to stay "out of the way" as much as possible. While he was willing to take a limited number of staged photographs, his goal was to spend the vast majority of time taking candid photographs of people's experiences during the wedding -- this was exactly what we wanted. He offered us some optional yet helpful advice for things we could do during the ceremony and reception that would improve both the photos and guests' experiences at the wedding. He also asked us about people he should focus on, had us send him a seating chart so he could know where people were, etc.
I think in one of our pre-wedding meetings, Carl said something along the lines of, "At your wedding, if you don't notice that I'm there, then I've done my job." Aside from the few formal family/bridal party/newlywed photos Carl organized immediately following the ceremony, on the rare occasion I did notice Carl he was slinking around in the background of the action (dancing, people talking, cake cutting, etc.) staying out of the way somewhere. To be honest, I wondered how he could have gotten good photographs.
The photographs turned out amazing. When our pictures arrived a couple weeks after our wedding, and we were blown away at how he managed to capture both obvious and subtle important moments at our wedding. With all the events of the day flying by so quickly, some moments I had already forgotten that I had -- laughing with my groomsmen, waiting to start the ceremony with my mother, father, and sister -- came to life through his work. And many parts of the wedding I couldn't see on the big day -- my future wife getting ready, my aunts and uncles joking around -- I got to experience through his work.
Three years after our wedding, we still get comments from friends and family about how much they like our photos. There are a number of photos in the album that, each time I see them, I still find myself saying "wow, that really captures *us*", referring to how it reveals the personalities of my wife and I, as well as how we feel about one another. I couldn't ask for anything more from our wedding photos.
Liz C.
Mar 14, 2017
Carl is an outstanding photographer. The intimate, revealing moments which will never be experienced again were captured in unique and unexpected ways. We chose Carl because of his ability to capture original, priceless moments, and for his ability to highlight the emotions that were expressed between people. He is a true artist and is clearly incredibly passionate about his work which shines through in the photographs. To this day his photographs still make me laugh, cry, and fill me with joy; I am able to re-live my wedding over and over again through the story he told so creatively.
My husband absolutely hates getting his picture taken and becomes incredibly awkward when asked to pose, so I knew I wanted a photographer who could capture spontaneous moments and who did not ask us to pose in cheesy, boring, false ways. It is very easy for a photographer to ask a couple to pose by looking into each other's eye and smiling. If I asked my husband to do this, he would have frozen. Instead, Carl was able to capture the instances when my husband looked lovingly at me, or when my best friend gave me a look that only she can give, or when my 4 year-old nephew was inspecting my wedding dress. Moments to me which are so incredibly honest and tell the true story of our wedding day. The pictures he produced transported me back in time so that I am able to re-live not only the experience but the feelings I was having at each particular moment. That is what I hoped to get from a wedding photographer - the ability to capture pure, unadulterated, genuine emotion, and that is what Carl delivered, and then some.
Carl was also able to tell a beautiful story through his pictures. He was able to capture both the breadth and the depth of the wedding. He managed to include pictures of everyone who was important to me: good friends, cousins I hadn't seen in years, and my nephew who means so much to me and who refuses to have his picture taken. Carl was also able to capture the wide range of emotions we were feeling that day: anxiety, excitement, sadness, exuberance, and joy. In terms of depth Carl was able to tell a beautiful story in unanticipated and unimagined ways: from my ornery nephew who got a little too riled up dancing, and eventually collapsed in his father's loving embrace (reminiscent of a Madonna and her child), to the anxiety and even sadness my father and I experienced before I walked down the aisle to our joyous dancing. Three months later I am still looking at the pictures almost every day. I cherish them, and I could not be happier with the photos which are so original and unique.