FREE Toronto Photography
ISO? Who knows. Focus depth? Out of your depth. From shutter speed to aperture, to the F-Stops and Photoshop. Who wants to bother learning all that nonsense just to get a great picture?
Me. I do. That’s why I’m offering my FREE Pre-Professional Photography services in Toronto in order to expand my portfolio.
There’s no small print or hidden catch between the lines. All I ask is that you fully read this page before contacting me to fully understand what I’m looking for and the scope of what I can offer (and what little I expect in return).
I’m currently aspiring to be a photographer professionally, as such I am still learning the intricacies of the innumerable situations that present themselves in the field, all the while deciding where my focus of interest is before upgrading and finalizing my equipment. The more I can shoot and the more varied the subjects, the better I can become overall. Thus, my offering to help out those looking for some fantastic shots. In return you’ll sign a model release/contract allowing me to use the resulting work in my portfolio/social media/website, which at the time of writing has precisely zero likes or followers.
There’s no guarantee that I’ll want to use whatever the resulting photos are, as even though they might be great and we both might like them, not everything is suitable an examples to pitch for work. But, it is my intention to get photos to with the intent on sharing them and you must be comfortable with that possibility.
Subjects of interest that I’m looking to work on:
Portraiture (professional head shots for Linkedin/acting, dating profile pictures, family portraits for holiday cards, cosplay)
Business (restaurants, product demonstration/sale, technical, showcasing unique locations, work events)
Projects (art displays, special events, bands, “Reportage” photojournalism as in do you have a story you want told to SOMEONE)
Special personal interests (food, martial arts, horror, videogames, comics, kink, urban exploration, macro/micro)
Limitations of my gear/availability:
To the size queens out there I’ll have you know that while my gear might not be of the largest, most professional grade, what’s most important to you is whether or not I can use it well. To which I say...who the hell knows? Art is subjective and I’m my toughest critic. I’m in no place to tell you if I’m a good photographer. But I will let you in on a dirty little secret that I’m learning as I explore this field, is that for the most part, for the majority of people even entry level DSLR/mirrorless cameras nowadays can far outperform what the average person needs.
A lot of cell phones now are approaching similar quality of what used to be considered “professional” grade, with experts estimating top of the line camera phones will eclipse single-lens cameras by 2025. At the highest specialty end professional cameras now reach a 100 megapixels. Does anyone else remember when a 12 MP camera was something technologically impressive? Did you also know that the majority of social media sites put a limitation on how big the file you upload is before they automatically decrease the quality? It is usually under 5 MP. My camera is 24 MP, which is more than enough for standard use, and suits most professional circumstances.
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The roadblock between most people and the pictures of their dreams isn’t JUST the considerable cost investment of buying the gear, but the broader technical scope required to get the most out of their work. The time learning the intricacies of a surprisingly broad craft is high when taking into account things like learning lighting (and deeply about the literal science of light), the varied and different brands and types of cameras/lenses/equipment, exposure triangles for optimal results, the post processing, etc. That’s before even getting into the creative aspects of having an “eye” for good photos and being able to apply an artistic flair.
This has been a round-about way to say don’t make fun of me for my gear. I have sensitive feels. If for some reason my camera isn’t capable of shooting what you’re looking for, you’re probably at a level in which you should be paying a professional anyway.
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Technical Gibberish you can skip if it's not relevant to your interests:
I'm shooting on an 24 MP Canon mirrorless. I shoot in Canon RAW, with the pictures given to the “client” (that’s you) in the highest quality unedited Canon processed JPEG completely free, via private digital drop box. If you want another delivery option or if you want the RAW files to yourself for editing, that can be discussed with the incurring costs shifting over to you which are dependent on the delivery method you want (if I have to buy USBs, discs, drop box space, etc).
My current gear is capable of performing with a minimal focal distance of 3.7 inches (macro/micro, wide angle lens ), to moderate-long range of 45mm-200mm, all of which covers most needs from product photography to portraiture. What it is not good at is high speed action shots or dark/night time scenes. My camera is also not built with videography in mind, nor am I interested in getting into that field, so it’s photographs only (outside of special situations).
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Who Needs Free Photography?
I’m looking for all types of people regardless of your experience, race, age (must be 18+ unless a parent/guardian attends with you), looks, political affiliation, whatever. I sincerely don’t care. You want photo. I want to take photo. Let’s keep this simple. I’m willing to hear out all pitches, so if there’s something you want done, shoot me a message with some details. Preference will be given to those within a closer proximity to downtown Toronto and those with the most “creative” projects as they arise. Pending my availability I’m game for just about everything.
At the current moment I am not interested in shooting subjects that are wearing masks, nor will I be wearing one myself. In case it needs to be stated, I’m just the guy with the camera, I am not a private bank. If you require anything such as outfits, props, access to locations, etc, those are your responsibility to sort prior to our scheduled shoot. Absolutely zero dollars need to be spent unless it’s something you feel is critical to the results and you want to invest in a specific concept.
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I am usually working a full time job, so my availability is limited around that. My priority will be given to those located or able to meet-up within the range of the downtown Toronto area, as that best allows me to schedule multiple appointments without jeopardizing my other commitments. If that doesn’t work for what you’d like done, sorry, there are professionals you can still pay to work on your schedule.
We can meet and shoot entirely outside in public for safety purposes if desired, pending what the actual project is. As an additional safety step, please feel free to provide my information and what you’re doing to a trusted friend as a further precaution prior to meeting. As far as I’m concerned it’s free advertising. Tell them to like and subscribe to my social media while they’re at it.
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Slightly Awkward "Trigger" Warning (especially after the above safety meeting):
I can be considered an “intimidating” guy. It’s weird for me to have to explain this in writing, but I’m fully cognizant of the fact that I’m not going to be what most people expect when they see my content, given both my preferred subject matter and the general perception of photography hobbyists. No matter how cuddly the bear seems, it’s still natural to be wary it’ll eat your face. I get it. All I can say is I’m not usually hungry enough to do that, nor are most of you tasty enough to bother. If you’re the type that’s unnerved by the idea of even hanging out with a slightly scary looking guy let alone meeting with one, let’s do us both a favour and don’t bother reaching out.
That might sound harsh. But you need to be comfortable working with people to get the best results out of any project, and I do photography because I find it fun and enjoy how it positively affects people. I don’t need the stress of volunteering my free time only to be stared at uncomfortably while I try to work like I’ve got a giant alien slug siphoning out the back of my skull. I’m a big, tattooed, intense kind of guy and I understand why that might be too much for some. But I’m also a huge nerd, quite personable, and dedicated to doing my best to achieve quality work. You decide which of those dynamics outweighs the other.
And to be overly cautious, anyone with severe peanut allergies should also stay away. I’m almost always carrying various types of food to feed to animals, namely squirrels. I will have, or had, peanuts near pretty much everything I own at this point. In the rodent community I’m actually well regarded for my nutting proclivities.
If you’ve managed to read all the way to the bottom and I’ve yet to scare you off, then you should definitely send me a message. Because either you’re still here because you like what you’ve seen and think we can make something interesting happen or because you’re absolutely desperate for help and any random will do. My ego isn’t fragile. I couldn’t care less about the reason as to why you’re reaching out to me as long as you and I can get some stunning shots out of it.
The more I know (such as you needing a business style portrait, you’d like to take them downtown around Bay and College, Wednesday at 1230pm on your lunch break) the better able I am to judge whether or not I can assist you. So please look for the email address conveniently placed directly below this paragraph and drop me a message with some details about who you are and what you need help with and I’ll get back to you as soon as I’m able.
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Email:
PressButtonToSquee@Protonmail.com
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