Picture Detroit Behind the Scenes

There are now 100's of people walking around Detroit taking the types of pictures I've been shooting for the past 10 years, so the fact that you're here means a lot. What I have to offer that the majority of the others can't is a connection and history with Detroit stemming back to the 80's when I used to visit with my family, and the 90's as a student at CCS, where I graduated with a degree in advertising and a focus on art direction. I have also been very fortunate to work with some of the most amazing companies in the city: the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau; Bedrock Detroit; The Detroit Experience Factory; Build Institute; and Cobo (now Huntington Place) Center. 

I founded Picture Detroit in 2012, when media at home and across the globe focused only on the negative and used the least flattering images possible, I had only one goal: to let the world know the beauty of the city and the positive things happening here. The name “Picture Detroit” came from my hope that someday, when people searched for “pictures of Detroit”, my images highlighting the beauty of the city would be what they see rather than the negative depictions of Detroit popular during that time. Picture Detroit has come to be recognized as a valuable tool connecting people to what is happening in the city and specializes in fine art street photography. Some photos are left as-is with a minimal amount of editing, while others combine mixed media, paint, and found objects. Picture Detroit has been featured by numerous sources such as Channel 4, Visit Detroit, and Detroit Homecoming. You can find my photography for purchase at the Detroit Metro Airport in the Detroit! store (McNamara Terminal) in addition to local hotels and homes and offices around the world. Picture Detroit’s mission is to build community and connect people, especially Detroit ex-pats, with the city they love by highlighting the wonderful things happening here. Each original and limited edition image is personally hand-signed, and also comes with a signed, logo-stamped description of the image and an artist’s statement.​

In March of 2020, I had to relocate to Flint in order to be closer to my Dad and Grandma, who has since passed from cancer. It was a scary time to be making such a big transition, with everything in the state shutting down and I wasn't even sure if the sale of the house I was purchasing near downtown Flint was going to go through. Thankfully it did, and I am now proud to call this place of resilient folks and one of the strongest underground + public art movements in the country, home. 

How I give back: Two small Detroit organizations changed my life as a small business owner, and I am so excited to be able to give back ~ a portion of all sales go to: Build Institute, and Kiva Detroit. Also, I recently learned that Flint has a "SOUP" event, which Flint SOUP is a quarterly dinner that raises seed money for start-ups in the Flint community. Each of these organizations is a life-line for entrepreneurs; many of the businesses are minority-owned and each organization not only procures funding for small businesses just starting out, but allows the business to grow in the community and also strengthen their business resources. I was personally the recipient of a Kiva loan and can speak to the power that the organization gives small business owners to go further in realizing their dreams.  

Thank you for your support, Picture Detroit could not exist without you!