About Me . . .

Reacting to photography, not just to what is photographed.

When I first realized there was a connection between what I was feeling and the way it was being presented, movies provided the photographic vehicle. I shot and edited short films in 16mm, and studied photographic principles in depth, especially while in attendance at Columbia College in Chicago. My interest in the animated form of light and shadow resulted in the national publication of an extended essay I wrote on the work of Alfred Hitchcock, a brilliant technician as well as a great artist. Few people ever elicited emotions through use of his camera more precisely than he.

That connection between seeing, feeling and the nature of photography has inspired me to apply those principles, and the result has been to gain greater control over the look of my photographs. Along the way, I've been enriched by more formal and informal training, the latest being intense daily experience, over the past couple of years, with digital imaging software. Accordingly, the art of digital Retouching is now a major part of my work, a service with enormous potential for those choosing to explore it. This passionate interest - a progressive one over the course of 28 years - has lead, inevitably, to Capture Your Best - Portraits & Retouching, a business designed not only around excellence of product, but dedicated to resurrecting the traditional, bygone relationship between merchant and customer in which I accommodate you.

On the technical side, for the better part of two decades, a Nikon camera helped me learn everything I needed to know. Having now made the transition to digital, I use Canon and Sekonic professional equipment, and employ the completely unprocessed Raw file format when I shoot, which affords me enormous control over the final image. All my images go through a rigorous refinement process, beginning with Raw, then to Photoshop's .PSD format, and finally to the format of your choice, such as .JPEG or .TIFF. My studio is home-based, but fully equipped with a formidable array of state-of-the-art lighting equipment - including Fresnel lenses and versatile lighting configurations - significant factors in determining the outcome of your portrait . . . in the right hands.

When I purchase goods or services from a business, and do so knowing that I have a choice, I tend to expect a certain degree of gratitude in the form of accommodation, at least in terms of attitude; a willingness to help, to go the extra mile if need be. It is only fitting, then, that I exercise the standards I expect from a business when I conduct business. And so I urge all potential customers to raise their expectations, and contact me as the first step in creating outstanding images that will immortalize your memories. Sometimes those fleeting moments in life are too precious for just a snapshot; sometimes, often times, you deserve to Capture Your Best!

Dennis Michael Zirnite

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