I offer 1-hour portrait sessions starting at $250, shot on 35mm film. But I’ll also take photos of just about anything; protests, families, couples, pets, buildings. If you like what you see on my website and have a specific project in mind, I encourage you to contact me to chat more about it. My email is ryantschaefer@gmail.com.

This can be a tricky question to answer, because every photographer is different. I’m a big nerd and I get a lot of enjoyment from the process of making photographs. I love documentary style photography and portraiture that tells a story about the subject. I’ve found that most people don’t like getting their picture taken, including myself! I try to make the process easy. I want my clients to feel comfortable knowing the burden of getting the shot is on me, the photographer, and not on them. I can provide some artistic direction, and help with posing to make you look and feel your best. It’s all a collaboration based on what you’re comfortable with. I view this process as us making art together.

I’m based in Washington DC and am open to travel, whether that’s in the DMV area or in different parts of the country! Travel is a big priority for me in life, and I always get excited when that opportunity to visit a new place arises.

Once you fill out the interest form I’ll reach out over email to set up a consultation call with you. The goal of this call is for me to learn more about you and your vision for the photoshoot – and also it’s an opportunity for you to ask me any questions!

I prefer to schedule the photoshoot while we’re on the phone together, so have your calendar handy. A $100 deposit is due upon scheduling. The remaining amount is due the day of the photoshoot.

Life happens! Sometimes we plan for an outdoor shoot and the weather has other things in mind, or one of us might fall ill. If we need to reschedule – please communicate with me as far in advance as you’re able, and we’ll work together to find a new date.

Yes, I do. I understand that photos are a personal investment, and that film – just like everything else these days – is expensive. I’m happy to work out a payment plan during our consultation call.

I accept payments through cashapp, venmo, or zelle :)

I unfortunately don’t have my own studio space (I’d love to one day). But until that day – we must shoot out in the world. If you’d like to have your photos taken in a studio, there will be an additional fee for renting the space.

I can guarantee that at least 30 final images will be delivered to you after the shoot. Most of the time I will deliver more than 30 images, but that depends on how many rolls of film we use – and how the photos turn out.

After our shoot, I mail the film to the lab ASAP. Upon receiving the scans from the lab, I edit the photos pretty much immediately so that I can deliver them as soon as possible. I get the majority of my film developed and scanned at Indie Film Lab. On their FAQ page, they state that during peak season (June to December) turnaround times may be extended. In my experience this can be anywhere from 2-3 weeks. During the non-peak season (January to May), customers can expect scans within 5-7 business days.

If for some reason you need the photos rushed, I can rush order them from the lab for a 100% upcharge.

Yes, a little bit. When I was starting out in photography, for a long time I didn’t have editing software. I feel as though this limitation accidentally made me a better photographer. I had to take better photos because I couldn’t edit the images afterwards. Even now, I don’t edit photos a lot in general. I may touch up the lighting and saturation – and will crop images slightly. I’m able to remove minor skin blemishes, but the majority of the time I prefer not to overly edit my photos.

You’ll receive the final images through a dropbox link delivered to your inbox.

Absolutely! I order high resolution scans so that images can be enlarged for printing. I have a few places I can recommend ordering prints from, depending on what you’re looking for. If you’d just like to have your photos printed on standard photo paper and you’re local to Washington DC, District Camera and Imaging offers photo printing services.

If you’re not based in DC, or are looking to order prints on fine art paper, I recommend Indie Print Co – the printing arm of Indie Film Lab.

Please contact me at ryantschaefer@gmail.com!