Bio
For me, photography is all about capturing authentic moments of human connection. Add some beautiful light and the right composition, and it’s magical.
I’ve been shooting professionally for almost 20 years and can’t imagine doing anything else. The best part of being a photographer is getting to work with other creative professionals and forging connections with my subjects. I bring a documentary approach to my lifestyle and portrait work, and over the years have learned that the best results come from an environment of trust and collaboration. I love the process of visual story-telling, the problem solving, and the teamwork that goes into successfully communicating the deeper ideas behind a brand. This approach has served me well, as I’ve been fortunate enough to develop long standing relationships with numerous national clients, both directly and through their agencies.
Whether the project calls for a full scale production, just me with a camera bag, or something in-between, I have found in the end it always comes around to capturing genuine human moments in a natural, uncontrived way. That’s what I do - I hope you enjoy my work and maybe someday I’ll get the chance to help you tell your story, too. -Chris
Selected Agencies and Brands:
Abbott Labs - Accenture - Allstate - American Lawyer Media - Arc Worldwide - Art Institute of Chicago - Blufish - Brightline - CVS Caremark - Cancer Treatment Centers of America - Chase - Chicago Magazine - Cimaglia Productions - Civilian - ClearChoice Dental - Conjure Design Country Financial - Cramer Krasselt - DDB - DeVry University - Dominican University - Eastern Florida State College - Energy BBDO - Fast Company - Federal Reserve of the United States - Florida Trend - Grey Healthcare - Hightower Partners - Home Depot - Hospira - Humane Society of the United Sates Inc. - Intouch Solutions - Jim Beam - Johnson & Johnson - Leo Burnett - McKinney - Meade Johnson Nutrition - MetLife - Monogram Group - NDP Agency - Northern Trust - Otherwise Design - PwC - Sarasota Magazine - Seven Design - St. Francis Hospitals - Taylor Morrison - The Johnson Group - The Richards Group - University of Chicago -Walton Isaacson
Testimonials:
“When I was at Arc/Leo Burnett, I worked with Chris on a great shoot for DeVry University. As usual, it was chaotic with a less than optimal timeline but Chris never lost his cool. He rolled with everything like a pro and made sure we had every beautiful image we needed. We photographed an absurd number of athletes in two days but I was thrilled with the results. I’d work with Chris again anytime.”
— Sandra Skrzycki - Senior Manager - Visual Design, Manifest Digital
“I love working with Chris. Great eye. Insightful collaborator. Thorough. Shows up early and stays until you have everything you need and then some. His photos have emotion and depth. The audience has no choice, but to pay attention. I look at every opportunity to hire Chris and recommend him enthusiastically.”
— Len Khodorkovsky - Creative Director at Jamestown Associates
“Chris Lake’s work is extraordinary on every level. Chris was assigned to me on a high level Allstate marketing/recruitment assignment. Despite time constraints, Chris immediately got to work, seamlessly worked with my video crews and captured everything I needed and more. Due to his many years of experience, Chris only needs to take a few pictures and knows immediately when he has what he needs. There is no need to endlessly direct someone to ‘do this’, ‘smile like this’, ‘look that way’, ‘tilt your head up’ etc. His affable and professional style puts people at ease immediately and you then end up with images which have captured a true sense of the person. I can not recommend him enough. I wish he could be on every single assignment with me because his work is an inspiration to anyone with a creative bone in their body.”
— Christiana Arvetis Tye - Award winning Television Producer/Writer/Field Director
“Chris is a gifted photographer with a keen eye for detail. In addition, he’s a pleasure to work with and is especially great at making his subjects comfortable and relaxed as he masterfully does his thing. I would describe his photography work as stunningly beautiful, whether it’s on-location documentary style or corporate portraits, his pictures are worth more than a thousand words.”
— Beverly Price - Director at the Beverly Price Company
“I first worked with Chris Lake last year on an annual report. The results were fantastic and really elevated the story we wanted to tell. The client was so pleased with the final output, that they’ve requested Chris again for this year’s annual. He’s genuine quality of work and personality left a great impression.”
— Christina Steva - Creative Director at Gerard Agency
“I’ve booked Chris for several projects that involved locations with “real” people talent. He did an incredible job. He’s patient and thoughtful and is truly a problem solver. The clients on the various projects were thrilled with the final ads and appreciative that Chris was able to work within their budgets while still producing beautiful images.”
— Julia Cunningham - Art Buyer at Euro RSCG