About Steve Silverman
Visual narratives: people, places, and spaces. Commercial architectural photography, corporate architectural photography, education architectural photography, and civic architectural photography. Residential architectural photography, interiors photography, and residential landscape photography. Business portraits, and headshots. Corporate lifestyle photography also known as In Your Space™ captured moments of people at work, and environmental business portraits. Corporate event photography.
Clients include professional services firms such as architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape designers, banks, law firms, accounting firms, and real estate developers. At any one time, I have at least one active pro bono project for a non-profit.
IMPORTANT NOTE: All images displayed on this web site are owned by the photographer and are available for licensing.
Steve Silverman
Owner and Principal Photographer
Steve’s love for photography began when he was 12 and received a camera from his father, who recognized his visual sensitivity and unique perspectives. Steve was fascinated by the idea of capturing people and places through photographs. Years later, as a freshman in college, a friend encouraged him to purchase his first SLR camera to capture the urban landscape of Philadelphia. The moment his first print came out of the developing bath, he knew he had found his passion. Nevertheless, he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and a major in Accounting. Steve initially worked as a photo journalist for more than 30 Philadelphia area newspapers.
In the '80's and '90's he ran his family’s retail business while pursuing photography on the side until 1994 when he made the decision to evolve his love into a career as a professional photographer.
A random encounter and a surprise blue ribbon helped shape his career as a photographer. On a trip to Scotland, he came upon a bagpiper in full regalia playing his instrument alongside the road. Steve asked the bagpiper to pose for him. Months later, he built up enough courage to enter several landscape photos in the State Fair. He was pleased to find out all of them had received some recognition but was surprised to discover his bagpiper photo had won the grand champion award. He was surprised, not because he had not developed confidence in his portraits as he had in his landscape and architectural photography, but because he did not submit the photo—his wife did!
Steve's diverse career has included several stops along the way. He brought Monte Zucker's pioneering style of photojournalistic wedding photography to the Midwest, transforming this genre. He mentored under Gerry Kopelow, considered one of North America's foremost architectural photographers. As a landscape photographer, he collaborated with his wife Robin Silverman to produce the hard cover coffee table book, The Land of Tranquility: Visions of the Secret Beauty of North Dakota. This book has been sold in all 50 states and 37 foreign countries. In addition, his images have appeared in numerous books and magazines.
Todd Donery
Assistant Photographer
Todd Donery is a freelance photographer, photographic assistant, video camera operator, and stage technician in the Minneapolis area. Todd holds an Associates Degree in Photography and Digital Imaging from Minneapolis Community and Technical College. He also attended Minneapolis College of Art and Design and studied film making at Minneapolis Community College. Since 2013 he has photo assisted at large photo studios, as well as with individual photographers on shoots ranging from large and small product shoots, food, industrial, life style, fashion, architecture, and portrait. As a free lance photographer Todd has worked with businesses, writers, musicians, artists, and non profit organizations, photographing products, artwork, portraits, and events. He is also a fine art photographer and his work has been featured in various exhibits and publications.
Todd also works for numerous production companies and the local stagehand union on a wide range of productions including concerts, plays, broadcast events, corporate events, and even the Super Bowl. On these productions he works as a camera operator and spot light operator, setting up sound, lighting, visual displays, staging, sets, and props. www.todddoneryphotography.com.
Nicole Schneider
Assistant Photographer
Nicole Schneider is a photographer specializing in fine art, portrait, landscape and real estate photography. Nicole started assisting Steve Silverman in 2022. She was previously a photo assistant for Galop Studio and a News Photographer for WDIO ABC-TV in Duluth, Minnesota. She currently works for Silverman Be Remarkable and JFuerst Real Estate Media, while freelancing in her spare time to start up her personal photography business N.Schneider Photography.
Nicole attended the University of Minnesota Duluth where she studied digital art and photography. In 2021 Nicole obtained her BFA in Studio Arts with an emphasis on Digital Art and Photography as well as her BA in Art and Design with honors. Nicole’s art has been exhibited in many shows and galleries around Minnesota.
Recently she was a featured guest artist for the University of Minnesota Women’s Art exhibition, and named an up and coming photographer by the DIA. Nicole’s fine art work largely focuses on the human body, exploring ideas of ideal beauty and self-image. In contrast, her portraiture style captures the candid, raw, and beautiful moments she is able to bring out of her subjects by connecting with them and making them feel comfortable.
https://www.nicoleschneider.space
Zoe Olson
Photo Editor/Portrait Retoucher
Zoe is a professional photo editor who works with architectural, real estate, wedding, portrait, and product photographers across the country.
Since graduating from Minnesota State University Moorhead with a Graphic Communications degree she has spent 20 years editing, retouching, and manipulating images for professional photographers.
For seven years Zoe managed the Photography Post Production department at Bellagala, a wedding services provider, where her department was responsible for editing 500 weddings each year.
In 2013 she started Izzy Images, a photo editing & retouching business. This allows her to spend time with her two young daughters while continuing to provide photographers with her valued services. www.izzyimages.com
Architectural Photography Services
Steve Silverman is a commercial photographer in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, specializing in architectural photography. He serves clients through the Midwest, United States, Canada, and western Europe. His clients usually hire him for architectural photography on a project basis or under contract. He also works with selected clients on retainer.
His clients include architects and architecture firms, residential architecture firms and residential architects, interior designers, landscape designers and landscape architects, engineering firms, construction companies, construction management firms, and real estate development companies. He also serves firms that design and build project components such as those involved in furniture design, office furniture, and office design. He also works for companies that design and manufacture flooring materials, ceiling components, lighting designers, and sound designer.
Working as an architecture photographer with a broad range of experience as a Minneapolis commercial photographer, SILVERMAN has photographed many types of projects. His corporate architecture work includes office photography, other interior photography as well as building exterior photography. He also shoot civic architecture including city hall architecture, fire hall design, police department and other law enforcement facilities, as well as public works projects. He has created images for firms that design civic amenities such as swimming pools and splash pads, visitor center architecture, and community center designs. He has a strong background in taking pictures of multi-family apartment projects and condominium apartment projects.
Half of Steve Silverman's work as an architect photographer is in the field of residential architectural photography. He is skilled as an interiors photographer with a strong understanding of both lighting and composition. He incorporates HDR architecture photography techniques using his own custom designed photo realistic HDR processing for a natural look. His twilight exterior photography or night architecture has a dramatic look. For example, he uses apps that provide exact information on the time of sunset or sunrise. One of the apps also provides information about the angle of shade caused by nearby elements such as trees and other buildings.
Since home remodeling is such a large part of the residential architecture field, he also works for numerous contractors and design-build firms that build home additions as well as reimagine the interiors of homes.
Since Steve Silverman has a long history of shooting landscape photography, he enjoys photographing residential landscapes. This sector has enjoyed long term growth. People invest significant amounts of money in their residential properties with swimming pools, outdoor kitchens, outdoor entertainment, as well as a robust amount of plants and flowers. With a strong background in horticulture, SILVERMAN knows how to work with designers to create images that enhance the beauty of the outdoor built spaces.
Executive Headshots
SILVERMAN is a commercial photographer in Minneapolis who shoots a wide range of professional headshots for business. He creates professional business portraits in his studio. In addition, more than half of his work taking executive headshots is performed on location. He frequently sets up a portrait studio at client offices. Steve Silverman also shoots environmental headshots and corporate lifestyle photography also known as In Your Space™ captured moments of people at work.
His clients include professional services firms such as architects, engineers, banks, law firms, accounting firms, manufacturers, and real estate developers. He photographs a lot of men but specializes in women's professional headshots.
People who want a professional business headshot are look for a portrait that is authentic and natural. The challenge: they’re often uncertain about what “authentic” or “natural” means. They wonder if they should look concerned, studious, confident, happy, or friendly. Perhaps they should consider looking warm, empathetic and deeply understanding.
This makes it more challenging and interesting for SILVERMAN to make the kind of professional business headshot that he believes is the most effective: a visual narrative. Simply put, he wants to create executive headshots that express the real, authentic character of the individual so that potential clients, customers, or employers get a clear feeling that who that person is.
Process.
Rather than a snapshot in time, as a photographer for headshots Steve Silverman approaches the creation of a portrait as discovery into the heart of his subject. For example, if you approach someone as a lawyer, then you get a typical “lawyer” portrait—staid and unfeeling. SILVERMAN goes deeper by taking the time before he even picks up the camera to find out more about that person. People are more than their job: they may be a foodie, craftsman, actor, hiker, hunter, mother, or even a Sunday school teacher. All of these are more dynamic than just, “lawyer” or "CPA" because they represent the whole person, not just a job title.
Setting the stage.
When people book a photo shoot, SILVERMAN sends them a guide to help them prepare. It includes information about what to wear for a professional headshot. See it here: click.
People come to a portrait shoot with some common feelings of dread. My favorite quote: “I’d rather have a root canal.” Many have well-constructed protective walls built around their persona. Steve Silverman is an experienced Minneapolis portrait photographer. He makes it a point to be ready for his clients: camera and studio strobes ready to go, background set up, and music playing in the background. With overhead lights turned off, he creates an almost theatrical scene with a lit stage surrounded by darkness. The idea is to let the subject know they are entering a special space, one different from where they just came from, and where the potential exists for a new expression.
Prelude.
Before the subject gets in front of the camera, Steve talks about simple things like the weather or traffic. He stays away from talking about their work, since that can be distracting. Eventually, he will ask something like: “What matters to you most in your life?” Or, “What do you most enjoy out of the office?” That’s when everything changes. The conversation becomes all about being a foodie, as an example, and the business persona starts to peel away.
The Photo Shoot.
During pauses in the shooting, he shows the subject some of the shots which are automatically downloaded to an iPad. They have the chance to see the direction the shoot is going, which increases their buy in and enjoyment of the business portrait experience.
After the Photo Shoot.
Integral to corporate photography is the creation of a web gallery of proofs from the photo shoot. A professional photo editor culls the images (usually 50-60 shutter clicks) down to a select number of images by eliminating blinks and redundant photos. Through that link, the client can review the images from the shoot and share them with others.
Once final selections are made, the photo editor fully retouches the images and they are sent to the client.