As a little boy I admired my father’s ability to capture great images. He was a diplomat and traveled around the world – I would follow him everywhere. My favorite shots of dad’s were always, without fail, photography of people.

In 1985, while studying photography at Claude Watson School for the Arts in Toronto, I was mesmerized by the most outstanding portrait photograph I have ever seen: National Geographic Magazine’s cover of June 1985 – the Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry. Little did I know that 30 years later, my mission would be to recreate the feeling of the Afghan Girl in every headshot, by capturing the spirit inside everyone who I have the honor to photograph.

In the 1990’s, I worked with troubled youth and their families for the Ministry of Children and Families, the Vancouver School Board and various nonprofit societies. During those 14 years as a youth worker and family therapist, I always wondered about working with people at their best rather than at their worst.

Counselling taught me to interact with my clients as if it was a session, bringing out their best throughout each interaction. Today, my clients have a mini session, just like family therapy, but it’s fun, easy and always produces great results. My dream came true through Art of Headshots.

My father’s passion for photography was infectious. He would have been an extraordinary photographer. In our last conversation, he asked me to never quit photography. I won’t.