Who am I to you?  Are my photographs the only evidence I was here? Have my images brought you a smile or laugh, help you remember a special time?

 

Have some of the images that I’ve created change, or make you question your perception?  Maybe cementing something you know in your heart to be true.

 

I recently spoke to someone who told me my work is beautiful, but what is it that I specialize in?  What is my favorite image that I have taken?  Those two questions took me by surprise.  I then realized there is not one area that I would solely like to photograph. 

 

For me its not about what I am photographing, its about the people I photograph.  I can be shooting a small child, family,  a high school senior…  all of which can be the most incredible things at that moment.  Not because I like shooting that group, but because I feel something.  

 

Who am I… my name is David Schlatter. My best guess is that I have taken millions of images in my lifetime.  I’ve shot nature, architecture, portraits, products… I’ve pretty much shot it all at one time or another.  But it’s the people I love and keep coming back too.  It’s the individual faces that tell a story.

 

Recently I have been photographing dance and sports.  I just can’t get enough.   What I enjoy, is the fact that these groups of people are passionate about what they do.  I get caught up in their passion.  When I work with someone who loves what they do, I want to create images showcasing that passion.

 

Digital photography has given me the tools; to give people an insight to the way I see them.  

Now there are no constraints holding me back, more than ever I am able to push my boundaries.  Step outside my box… I find that photography for me begins at the end of my comfort zone.

 

I've heard it said a good photographer captures the subject.  But I don’t think that’s true; I feel it’s the subject that captures the photographer.  It is a strange thing when I click with someone I am photographing. There’s a synergy created.  I believe each person senses they are playing a role in something very powerful. 

 

I want my images to make you feel something, to move you.  

 

What footprints have I left behind? Will they endure?  Or has the vast ocean of photography washed them away already? 

 

How many lives have I touched over the years? Have I touched yours? 

 

So what is it I specialize in…  I specialize in people.

 

My life's work… The question isn't who am I to you, but have I turned out to be the person I thought I would be?

 

So what’s my favorite image…  it’s the one I will be taking tomorrow?