Bay Area Family Photographer

Who Is Lisa Winner

Hi, I’m Lisa, nice to meet you. I’m an award winning family documentary photographer whose lived in the Bay Area for almost 20 years. I have two children and a husband. I like them most of the time.

I’m a lover of dogs (I love them almost as much as my children. They already know – the children I mean. Probably the dogs too).

One of my core values is living. What does that mean? I will choose experiences over material possessions any day of the week. I crave to be outside and adventure into the unknown. It’s probably why I gravitate towards documentary photography so much – because there really is nothing better than real life.

Lisa Winner laughing in a kitchen in Marathon, FL

I’m Puerto Rican by birth, but speak only the basics of Spanish. My love of the culture and community runs deep, and as I get older, I wish I had embraced my heritage more as a young child.

My son is on the autism spectrum.  He is high functioning, meaning you probably wouldn’t notice his uniqueness straight away until you spent a bit of time with him.

Parenting in general, beyond having a child with special needs, has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Every year presents new challenges, and I’m just positive I’m screwing them up for life. Then my daughter gives me a birthday sign that says “#1 Mom” and how she loves me more than anything, and I think “Whew, dodged a bullet, for this year at least”.

Boy sits under a towel poolside
A young boy lays down on a bench to rest while his family waits for him in Yellowstone National Park
A boy lays down on the back at Fort Funston in San Francisco, CA
A boy smiles as he boogie boards in Stinson Beach, CA

But your real question should be – why should we work together?

Two children engage in a water fight in front of their home in Alameda, CA
Legs of young boy at pool
A little hand helps a baby up the slide in Alameda, CA
A father plays with his sons at the park in Kennesaw, GA

1. I’m not interested in creating photos that look like everyone else’s.

This is an important statement for a couple of reasons: with the proliferation of photographers on social media, it is very easy to get caught up with the latest trends and say: I want that too.

I aim to make timeless and imaginative images that you will enjoy for years to come. And while yes, I want you to come back to me next year for another documentary session, I want it to be because you’re ready to continue updating the story of your life, not because the lifestyle images you took last year no longer fit with the “current trend”.

2. I go beyond the surface and get to know my clients.

While I am a business, I am also a human being. I do not subscribe to the “churn and burn” model. There’s no way I would be successful at point #1 if we didn’t get to know each other.

Do we need to be best friends? No. Though that would be nice. I like best friends.

But will we talk and chat, and have a laugh or three throughout the day? Absolutely. I might even tell you what I originally wanted to be when I grew up. (Hint: it was not a data scientist).

3. I’m sincere and honest, and funny (sometimes to a fault).

For most of my adult life, I’ve been a creative of numbers in the corporate world. My job was to craft sales stories from data analysis and market research. I learned a lot about who I was as a person and how I wanted to be viewed within an organization. And that came down to two points: Good at my job, and funny.

I never took myself too seriously. Sooooo many people think that being professional = being boring, and it doesn’t have to be that way.

Customer Service is about meeting the client where they are at, and providing a deliverable that A) the client needs and B) in a way that makes them want to come back to you, again and again.

Do I take my art form seriously? You bet I do. Because when you recommend me to your friends and family, I want that recommendation to be because you’re crazy about your photographs, and you loved our time together (and now we’re besties – see #2).

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FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHY

 

 

event photography

 

 

SCHOOL PORTRAITS

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