Mark Mitchell/Photography bio picture
  • Mark Mitchell Photography

    I've been a photographer since 1968. While studying story and advertising Illustration at The Art Institute of Boston, I discovered the camera. Using a camera freed me from pen and brush drawings on a board in the studio, and started the authentic experience with the subject, which is the process of making photographs.

    Over the years I've had the opportunity to photograph many different things. Somewhere along the way I remember being advised to shoot "what interests you most", and what has always interested me most, since childhood, is people - their environments and what makes them unique.

    So, my work reflects this interest - whether I'm working with professional talent, celebrities, or regular folks in my pictures, I am always striving to create a personal connection which satisfies my need and creates an atmosphere that results in a successful photo shoot.

    Cheers!

    MM
    804-539-2065

The Portrait As Illustration

I enjoy photographing people in their personal or business spaces.  These portraits give me a chance to tell a story by creating lighting and locations that bring a significance to the person.

It’s Hip To Be Artificial

Our work in hospitals allows us to photograph some of the newest advances in health care.  I enjoy the challenge of seeking new ways to photograph these breakthroughs.  Here a nurse brings one of the latest versions of an artificial hip to the operating room!

Addy Award!/Cardiac Campaign

We’re asked to photograph many projects for Franklin Street Marketing who specialize in the healthcare advertising.  We are proud to announce that last year their ‘Evolution’ campaign for Martin Memorial Hospital won an Addy Award!  For those of you not familiar with “The Addys”, they are the world’s largest advertising competition.  Here are a couple photos from the print materials:

 

 

Recently, we photographed the cardiac campaign for Chattanooga Heart Institute for Franklin Street.  It was touching to learn the stories of their patients – our subjects – and how the Heart Institute improved their health.  I feel like the photos convey the emotion that comes along with dealing with serious health issues.  We worked together with Franklin Street’s creative team to design an appropriate photographic treatment for these stories.

 

 

RebeccaMay 17, 2011 - 6:38 pm

Very nice work, congratulations! I love the layout & lighting of the portraits!

March Update

Hi Everybody!

March has been a busy month for us.  We have been traveling for work, yet we still found time to work on some personal projects that we want to share with you.

Cheers,
MM

Veterans Series

 

Largely as a result of my travels photographing for health care and retirement marketing, I have become fascinated with the Veterans of WWII and Korea. Many of the Vets have their old uniforms, medals, photos and ball caps that celebrate their service.

I am beginning a long term personal project – to make portraits of as many of these Vets I can find, and photograph them using a “portable studio” with as much of the attire and artifacts as they have.

In addition to the portrait, I intend to write a short description of the individual’s service. I hope to end up with a body of images that I will either exhibit or possibly publish as a dedication to these individuals.  We have started here in Virginia and plan to do shoots all over the Country.

Some of the Veterans brought portraits of themselves taken during their service.  I didn’t realize how provocative these pictures would be in the portraits I was making. Even with the differences that aging has created, the similarities of expressions from their youth still exists.  The men (we hope to have some women as well) are pleased to share their experiences with us.

If anyone knows of any opportunities to photograph Veterans, please let us know.

 

 

Jack MacKay KauffmanMay 31, 2011 - 3:39 pm

Mark… I know a woman whose dad was a guard/military policeman at the Nuremberg Trials. She and he are both in the Williamsburg area. If you’re interested, I can put you in touch with them (or visa-versa).
-JMK

Jack MacKay KauffmanMay 18, 2011 - 9:30 am

Nice images! To me, the veterans portraits are the most interesting… and poignant. I may have one or two leads regarding photographing some other WWII or Korean War vets. I’ll let you know.
_Jack MacKay Kauffman

ShaunMay 18, 2011 - 9:16 am

Love the photographs of the veterans. The use of memorabilia is a nice touch.

Stephen MoeglingApril 1, 2011 - 2:17 pm

Really wonderful work with the veterans! Amazing to see these men with pictures of them from “back in the day.” You can see the pride on their faces. Thank you for doing this. Very inspirational.

Dean RuthApril 1, 2011 - 12:05 pm

Great images Mark! What a great idea to showcase these heros. Best of luck in your search to add to this wonderful collection. I will definitely be checking back often to see if you have any updates on this project.

-Dean

Mark Martin Redux

When we first photographed Mark Martin in mid-season 2009, he was leading the NASCAR points race.  Besides being one of NASCAR’s top drivers, he was also very professional in front of the camera.  Mark had agreed to be a spokesperson for a national hospital’s emergency room centers.

Click here to see a short video of the shoot: http://www.vimeo.com/18961456

Imagine our amusement as Jamie and I were driving around in Punta Gorda, FL for another project, when we spotted our Ad on a billboard!  It is always exciting to see your work displayed!!

We’re preparing and planning for another photo shoot with the well-known driver.  Testing equipment, trying out different lighting scenarios, and meeting with the Ad Agency to look at comps for the new campaign is all part of the pre-production process.  Next week we’ll be in Charlotte once again to photograph the new print Ad with Mark.

Stay tuned for details from the 2011 campaign…

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Studio shoot January 24th, 2011

Mark took some off time this week from testing the Daytona car to come to Charlotte to be photographed for the 2011 Ad campaign.

As you can see from the photos we get along well, as I have raced some of the same tracks that Mark runs on, though I am on a motorcycle.  What you don’t see is the work that Jamie did keeping us on track with the shot list to make sure we got everything we needed.  She did this despite me having too much fun and maybe not paying as much attention to the clock as we should have.

Stephen MoeglingJanuary 29, 2011 - 6:22 pm

Awesome photos! Mark’s manager said it was one of the easiest, most enjoyable shoots of Mark’s career. Congrats to you and Jamie!

Rebecca DobynsJanuary 26, 2011 - 3:50 pm

I swear he’s you long lost little brother!

Rebecca DobynsJanuary 19, 2011 - 7:35 pm

Suuweeeet! Mark X Mark, the transition to video works great and fits well with this presentation.