Writing an about you for your website

I have been trying to write an "About Me" for my website. I have always found it a difficult exercise to write about myself. If you look around you have the third-person approach that goes something like this "Jarrell is an award-winning photographer known for his landscapes " (which is essentially true I love my landscapes), but that is my hobby, during work hours I am a commercial photographer. Then I need to say something about my uniqueness and uncompromising eye for detail" I tried this approach and it is just not for me. So I wrote something in the first person that I hope portrays my personality and work ethic. 

Hi, my name is Jarrell, I am the principal photographer of Elemental Photography and JarrellWhisken.com. That is me in the "selfie" above, taken during the perpetual gloom of mid-winter.

About me: I am a Canadian-born, South African-raised coffee, jeans and black t-shirt kind of guy (there are practical reasons for this, see the end of this article). I am a commercial photographer specializing in urban landscapes and the structures and elements that make up this ecosystem. I am based in Halifax, Nova Scotia where I have operated my photography studio – Elemental Photography - for over a decade (fourteen years in 2025).

Previously, I worked as a project manager and pixel peeping satellite analyzing geospatial data scientist specializing in the built environment at a national institution. The last project I managed involved creating and implementing a spatial information system in 263 organizations, it was both fun and exhausting. Life today is slightly different but managing photography and visual media projects incorporates the same principles as large projects although the process and scale may differ. Creative projects have goals, deliverables and timetables but the process of getting there is often more nebulous and explorative, which is OK; with a good communication process, and some positive energy things tend to work out.

Given my background, it's not surprising that I primarily photograph elements of the built environment from structures and infrastructure to the use of spaces and their interaction with other environments.  I love to photograph human-made structures and document their uses. I like good design, the use of materials, and the engineering ingenuity that goes into making buildings and structures, I like the patterns they create and the way they are used, and adapt and evolve creating recognizable urban and rural landscapes.

As a commercial photographer, I prefer imagery to have a practical application, whether it promotes a concept such as green space at an institutional level or capturing images of buildings and spaces for architects, interior designers, builders, realtors, business owners, marketing specialists, or the people they are designed to serve. The list of applications and users is long; from simply selling an asset or marketing (a location, process, product) to creating portfolio images for a public institution, developer, business, architect, builder, or manufacturer. I like imagery to have value not just from an aesthetic perspective but from a business and personal perspective, as such I work with clients to help craft images that fulfill a need, this means that my photographs may not always follow the same formula to produce a strikingly recognizable look but a client’s needs are not always the same and neither are my photographs.

I do have a style and preferences, for me it is a feeling of warmth and individuality, spaces that make you feel comfortable like big old farm kitchens with the smell of bread wafting through the air and comfortable crafted wooden furniture. Good photographs are not just good to look at, they can make you think, they can make you feel and as a result, they can be effective for marketing things, that is when you call or send me a message and we can create something together, or if you want I can just run with it and provide you with the results. I like to work with clients to craft images that they can be proud of but if it is left to me I am happy to produce photographs for clients that I like and hopefully, they like them as well.

Back to black. My friends joke about me always wearing a black t-shirt and jeans, it is a habit that goes back to the 90s – it is a comfortable uniform that requires no thought when dressing in the morning and I have worked in environments that value thought and actions over formal dress codes (not that there is anything wrong with those garments if that is what makes you feel good, there are times when I have had to put on my big boy pants and dress for the occasion). Feeling good allows you to concentrate on more important things (according to Steve Jobs anyway). As a photographer I find that black is a great colour to minimize reflections and the comfort factor is necessary for physical labour, it is amazing how far I walk during a typical photoshoot or how much paraphernalia I have to move, so next time you see me in jeans and black t-shirt you now know that I thought about it 30 years ago and now it is just a habit with benefits.