Great product, great service, great price!
Those are our goals, and those are what we provide!
Douglas MacFarland
My interest in photography began at an early age. My father was a commercial photographer, and I spent time with him as he worked on site, in the studio, and in the darkroom. I learned quite a bit about the whole photographic process from him. More importantly, I learned that attention to detail produces better results, and "good enough" usually isn't. These principles became fundamental to my entire work ethic.
While in the Navy I bought a good camera and some lenses, and soon found myself immersed in photography as a hobby, an enjoyment that continues to this day. I never did have a traditional 'wet' darkroom of my own, but when my first personal computer and Adobe Photoshop TM opened up an electronic darkroom, I knew that I'd found the missing piece - the way to finish the images I'd been taking for years.
I really enjoy working in Photoshop. It is a powerful and complex program, and I expect to continue learning about it for many years to come.
I worked briefly as an industrial photographer. I and loved it and learned a lot, but when the contract ran out, so did the job. Needing a more reliable way to make a living, I got a BS in Computer Science and worked as a software developer for long enough to burn out (but here I am, doing it again). I worked as a commercial picture framer for a few years. As much as I enjoyed the actual 'doing' of it, the pay was lousy and I found that I didn't enjoy working in the corporate ("More, Faster, Good Enough") environment anymore.
Doug's Photo Shop
Thus was born Douglas Digital Imaging, my first website, which has become Doug's Photo Shop in this latest incarnation. Doug's Photo Shop is a home office venture: one person doing what I enjoy, according to my rules, my schedule, and most importantly, my standards. I don't sub-contract work to someone else who may or may not have the skills and attitude necessary for the best results. I don't outsource your project to some anonymous email address. I also don't have to support the high overhead of a staff and a separate facility.
This allows me to offer my services at very competitive rates. Although I have begun to offer some inexpensive package services to compete with some of the other basic services that are out there, my preferred project is a fully-collaborative custom service. My hourly rate is very reasonable and I quote the time I think I should be able to do a job in, which is usually less time than I actually spend. There are companies offering good quality, customized services at considerably higher rates. Mostly, I fit somewhere between the big shops and the robot shops.
The artistic, business, and personal aspects of my life get mixed together in a weird brew of flexible hours and unpredictable days. It wouldn't work for everyone, but I'm having fun!
About my tools
As you may have guessed from this website's name, the image editing program I use is Adobe PhotoshopTM, paired with graphics tablets from Wacom, Canon scanner, and Apple computers. My 'good' camera and lenses are Nikon. Various compact cameras and even the camera in my iPhone also make an occasional appearance.
About this website
I designed and built it myself. It is not as sophisticated or feature-laden as many sites; some of the 'goodies' will just have to wait for later updates. I'm trying to keep this simple, so some of those items will probably never make my ToDo list anyway. The tools and languages are considerably different than those I worked with in my 'professional' days, and I don't have the time or interest to become really proficient in them. Been there, done that - I'd rather be working on photos!
Having said that, my plans for the near future include expanding the set of templates for Memory Montages, adding automated email forms, and a shopping cart and purchase options for my own pictures. The services I offer for your pictures are still my most important focus.
The primary tool I've used in building this site is WebDesign® from RAGE Software. I can only imagine the frustration of undertaking a project like this without it or something similar.
I also must thank the generous folks at 'Ricocheting.com' for the slideshow script I've used in several places. It is one of the free downloads offered on their website, and saved me many hours of frustrating work. I modified it substantially, but the core is theirs, and I am grateful to them.
Whatever pluses or minuses accrue to the site are mine alone.
I should also mention
I've used 'The Royal We' and the personal 'I' pretty much interchangably throughout the text of this website - not to mislead, but because I want my small company to have a professional identity of its own. Either way, it's just me, and I will give your project the same dedication and attention to detail that I give my own.
