PHOTOGRAPHER
SENIOR PHOTO RETOUCHER
DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER

Photographic promotions and advertising featuring Lifestyle, Activities, Products, Services & Events

Senior Retoucher, Photographer, and Digital Content Manager with extensive experience in visual communication and creative production. Adept at utilizing advanced tools like Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, CaptureOne and HeliconFocus to deliver high-quality visual solutions, while leading and mentoring teams to ensure exceptional image quality. Passionate about optimizing retouching processes and enhancing client imagery across diverse deliverables, such as advertising, social media, and e-commerce.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Craig Curtis Photo Montclair, NJ. 2000 to Present
Owner/Photographer/Sr. Retoucher

Lead photo content creation for top clients, enhancing brand visibility and engagement.

• Pioneer cutting-edge retouching techniques, integrating advanced color perfection methods to elevate image quality and meet evolving industry demands, including RAW processing and color management for RGB and CMYK color matching.

• Photograph still life product, fashion, beauty, and events to exceed client request for their visual needs for advertising, social media, and internal use, using a wide variety of equipment. Create RGB camera color management profiles for optimal e-com product matching.

• Revolutionize image asset management strategies and key-wording for over 1,000,000 images, implementing systems that optimize content for diverse platforms and efficiency, based on client needs.

• Foster seamless collaboration with clients, aligning creative vision with strategic marketing objectives to produce visually compelling and effective content.

• Lead and mentor a team of skilled retouchers, ensuring exceptional image quality over thousands of images, and timely project delivery while optimizing workflow efficiency.

• Manage time for photography for retouching over multiple clients to meet deadline criteria for final deliverables.

• Clients include Stoney Clover Lane, Victoria Secret/Pink, Quad Graphics, Armani Exchange, Hewlett-Packard, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Trish McEvoy Cosmetics, Vogue Magazine, PNY Technology, Clé de Peau, Fila, Ann Taylor, Tommy Hilfiger, K-Swiss, J Crew, and many others.

QUAD www.quad.com New York, NY 4/2022 to 11/2022 (Imaging services relocated to Wisconsin)

Key member of a single customer-focused team assigned to photograph, review, retouch & color-correct digital images for print and web presentation for Victoria Secret/PINK.

• Photographed fashion product on model to match angle, lighting, and pose of supplied advertising imagery.

• Executed comprehensive retouching and color correction processes using advanced Photoshop techniques, including layer manipulation and cloning; enhanced image quality for hundreds of images per month while maintaining high standards.

• Optimized digital image quality for Victoria Secret/PINK, ensuring precise color accuracy and adherence to specific requirements for print and web presentations.

• Create Asset-Management system to catalog images for local workflow, to create a library of product to assist with future retouching needs.

SHOOT DIGITAL New York, NY. 1999 to 2000

A key Leader of a customer-focused team assigned to review, prepare, edit, color correct, retouch and organize digital images for print and web presentation.

• Built successful client relationships with effective collaboration throughout the production life cycle.

• Introduced and implemented emerging digital camera technology to increase production, track projects, and samples, and reduce costs.

• Performed retouching and color corrections by applying Photoshop tools, including color corrections, layers, layer sets, path, so mask, cloning, extension filters, and actions.

• Scan film-based original material (film/print) to prepare for digital retouching via Heidelberg Tango Drum Scanner.

• Consulted with clients regarding image asset management, and image delivery across various distribution platforms.

• Captured all last-minute customer requests and performed final quality checks - resolving problems promptly.

• Lead first team to capture NY, Paris, London, and Milan fashion shows using all digital equipment for Vogue.com launch, turning a previous days-long process into an hour-long process, for both runway and backstage images.
  

EDUCATION, TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

Education:

Bachelor of Fine Arts in Commercial Photography and Digital Media

Rochester Institute of Technology • Rochester, NY

First student to graduate with focus on digital photography using new digital equipment, with focus on alternative use such as 3D, 360 degree product photography and environment walk-through, and digital retouching post-production.

Associate of Arts in Commercial Photography

Ohio Institute of Photography • Dayton, OH Graduated with "Outstanding Portfolio" award.

SKILLS

Software: Adobe Photoshop, Helicon Focus, Adobe Lightroom, CaptureOne Tethering and Processing, InDesign, Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Illustrator, Monday.com, Quickbooks Online, G-Suite, Google Sheets/Forms/Mail/Docs, Trello, Frame.io, Slack, Adobe Firefly AI, UI/UX with Adobe XD, Microsoft Office 365, Dropbox, Box, WeTransfer, Adobe Premiere, Adobe Premiere Rush, Adobe Media Encoder, Calibrate Customer photo profiles.

Photo and Camera: Canon, Sony, and Nikon cameras, PhaseOne, Hassleblad, Mamiya, Profoto, Godox, Elinchrome, Speedotron, Broncolor, i1, Eizo Monitors, Apple Mac