Custom portraiture is no for everyone. It is definitely a luxury! The price is sometime shocking when you start looking into hiring a professional photographer. Then you start thinking, it would be more cost effective to go to a one-hour supermart or you remember that your friend has a nice camera. Heck, I was that person when my first child was born. I bought my nice camera and was just going to take my own! Ha! I just smile and shake my head when I look back at pictures when I just started out. I quickly learned that the lens that came with the camera isn't even a professional quality lens and those cost more than the camera itself! There is so much more to it than just taking pictures. Through the years, I have invested so much time and more money than I even care to think about into the art of photograpy. You learn to see light, the best compositions, and develop and appreciation for the art. Which is what a professional portraiture is, AN ART! You are not just paying for a print on a pice of paper, which is much most people think of when they envision what the price for photography should be. You are paying for the artist's time and talent, training, thousands of dollars worth of equipment, insurance, taxes, supplies, travels, archival quality products, customization and consultation.... That is just the beginning! I take pride in my art and I am the biggest critic of my own work. I constantly invest and learn to improve upon my skill as a photographer. I strive to be greater than my previous session. I want my clients to appreciate the art they have invested in and most of all, I want them to be proud of what they are handing on their walls. I spend an average of 10-20 hours on each client through consultations, the session, EDITING, prepping, ordering and packaging, etc. All of these variables, combined with the one on one attention, make up the cost of a custom portrait session. Some people still may not agree with the pricing and that is okay because like I said before, custom portraiture is not for everyone. I just wanted to give some insight, so that people can understand and appreciate what goes into the art and see that it is truly a worthy investment!