Self Portrait, Menton,France 2022
My name is James Arzente, a portrait photographer living in Bellevue, Washington, moving to the Pacific Northwest in 2010 from Boston. I began my artistic career as a painter in 1992 after moving from France to the United States and attending the Museum School in Boston. My work is in various private and public collections, including the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon. In 2014 feeling that painting had run its course and wanting a new challenge, I turned to photography.
I'm a self-taught photographer who enjoys people, listening to their stories, and challenging myself to express that individual visually. My visual sensibilities come from travel, people I've met, and having worked in the fashion industry. A pivotal period in my life was living and working in France. During these ten years, I attended The Marchutz School of Fine Arts, located in Aix-en-Provence. Completing school, moving back to Paris, finding work painting backdrops for shows of the couturier Kenzo Takada, known as the brand Kenzo. Kenzo's signature was mixing prints and materials, giving them a Japanese inspired look. After several months I was hired as a textile assistant working there for three years.
This experience, along with many others, formed both my personality as well as my visual sensibilities. One can only be who one is based on the skills they bring to whatever occupation you choose. "If you've lived a life of many experiences you bring those experiences with you when you enter whatever occupation you pursue, the opposite is also true."
Photo sessions tend to be in the two to three-hour range depending on the complexity. The shoots begin by getting a sense of one another, reviewing concepts, shooting, reviewing images, editing images, finally settling on the final images desired by the client. My studio setup is straightforward, consisting of an eight-foot-wide black background, various lights, fans, reflectors, and several cameras. The reasoning behind this is that it gives the individual being photographed the ability to focus on form and very little else. I like to say there is no place to hide in that environment. I view each shoot on its own merits and each individual the same way. Modeling experience is desired but not necessary once again, depending on the type of service needed. I'm looking for individuals that may not have had the freedom or opportunity to work in this manner.
This is who I am and how I perceive my working style, if you're interested in this way of working or have questions, please feel free to reach me through my website
Schedule a Portrait Session
Pricing
The basic package costs $850, including a two-hour photoshoot, a one-week turn-around of all unedited low-resolution images online, and five edited high-resolution photos. You get to pick your five favorites from the collection of all photos taken. Additional high-resolution edited photos are $35 per photo. Other packages I can negotiate in advance.
Scheduling
I require a $100 non-refundable deposit at the time of scheduling.
Cancellations
Cancellations must be made five days in advance of your appointment to apply your deposit to another session. Emergencies, illnesses, and weather will be into consideration. The deposit will be forfeited if a meeting is canceled and rescheduled more than once. Another deposit will be required to secure a new session.
Contact
If you have any questions, feel free to send me an email. I’m happy to discuss pricing, procedures, policies, and any other questions. Starting up a conversation can also be useful to get a feel for what type and style of photographs you desire to prepare for our photo session.
Photo Retouching and Artistic Photo Manipulation
If you have photographs that need repair or would like to have altered in any way, please contact me via the contact page with a brief description of the issue.
Retouches to a digital image require a high-resolution file, preferably a RAW file, but a Jpeg will work but is not preferred.