Welcome to JGp. I'm Greg Johnston, photographer and owner of JGp. As my wife Kathy says, I'm the tall guy with the goofey looking hat and the expensive looking camera. She is right on only one of those comments. Please browse and enjoy the galleries! You can click on the information link above to view my services. Keep checking back often as I add galleries every few weeks.

I have enjoyed photography all my life, and I've been a part-time professional photographer for the past 3 years. Photography to me is so much more than just capturing an image. Photography is about capturing an emotion, a special moment or memory for you that you will treasure for a lifetime. One of the greatest rewards in my business is being able to capture and share those special moments with you and seeing the look of joy when you see your photographs for the first time.

When not doing portrait, wedding, or event work, my artistic interests tend toward nature photography and landscapes. I live in the Hickory, NC area and work anywhere! I'm a member of The Professional Photographers of America and The National Association of Photoshop Professionals.

My wonderful wife Kathy is often my trusted assistant when she is not teaching at St. Stephens High School where she is also the cheerleading coach. As a result of her involvement in SSHS athletics, you will notice an abundance of SSHS sports photography in the sports gallery. All net proceeds from the St Stephens High School sports photography galleries in the galleries link above are donated back to the sports program from which the photograph was taken. What better way to support the sports program in which your family member or friend participates while enjoying the photograph for years to come?


Kathy and I are active members of Lakeview Baptist Church. I am but one of many talented photographers in our congregation. The photos under the Lakeview Baptist link are posted here for the members and visitors of our congregation to enjoy and for the use in our many outreach areas. If you would like more information on our body of believers, please visit Lakeview Baptist Church



Photography Style

My preferred or natural style of photography is what some call photojournalism or a photojournalistic stlye. Photojournalism is nothing more than an attempt to tell a story through a photograph. It is a casual style that tries to convey a message in the photograph or capture the emotion of the moment. Typically it is not photography that is posed, but photography that is more natural and spontaneous.

Of course there are also images that require a more traditional approach such as the family portrait or the wedding party. Settings and poses are critical to your ultimate enjoyment of this style of photography.

JGp offers both of these photography styles to meet your photography needs.




Equipment

Have you noticed that the JGp logo is red? (sorta hard to miss that one...) In the world of photography equipment this red mark is an indication of the best lenses and camera bodies a photographer can own.... a Canon. The red ring on the end of Canon lens is the trademark of their professional lenses and they capture phenomenal photographs. The only camera equipment I use is from the Canon professional product line so hopefully now you get the connection. If not keep reading.

So about now you are saying...."Oh that's cute Greg, but what does this mean to me?"

I prefer to shoot photography using available light. I believe this provides the most natural photos and you do not have the distracting flash going off on every shot. Canon's "L" series lenses will capture natural looking photographs in settings where the available light is very low such as a church wedding. In short I can capture just about any photograph in an indoor setting without a distracting flash. In normal lighting situations, these lens deliver exceptional sharpness and color reproduction.


Digital camera bodies used are the latest in the series of Canon's professional line. Digital images are easy to share and can be viewed from the internet or from DVD's and CD's. Digital images can also be easily viewed from slide shows or Mpeg movies. Images sizes can go as high as 12 megabytes, and can be printed in as large as you desire with no loss in image quality.

Post image processing is done through Adobe Photoshop CS3 and Adobe Lightroom, the industry standards in post processing software. Adobe CS3 and Lightroom provide an unlimited number of post processing options.

Photographs are professionally developed and printed using either White House Custom Color if ordered directly through JGp, Smug Mug using a professional lab in Georgia (if ordered on line), or locally on a HP B9180 Professional Printer.