Photographer Lawrence Lauterborn

by Paula Philipps

Long Island native Lawrence Lauterborn delights in spontaneity. Lauterborn's style is born from his affable, approachable personality. He was first introduced to a camera when he was 11 years old. After showing his black and white photography to his enthused college professor, Lauterborn went on a photo tour through Europe, returning to the U.S. to settle in San Francisco in 1976. “I lived with several creative types,” he said, “and started my career with fashion photography.”

In 1990, a long standing association with The Asian Art Museum began. “In 1991, I photographed the Dalai Lama who had come to San Francisco for the exhibit: Wisdom and Compassion.” Lawrence, an ardent fan of The San Francisco Giants , takes pride in the fact that he was able to talk the monks into blessing the team!... and they went on a winning streak !!!

Lauterborn's photojournalistic approach enables him to: “be ready for the moment, technically and otherwise.” He honed that skill while photographing thousands of people, among them Jimmy Carter, Neil Armstrong, Ronald Reagan, Nancy Pelosi, John Kerry, Alice Waters, Joe Montana, Dizzy Gillespie, Elvin Jones, Ron Dellums, Amy Tan, Paul Rodriguez, Richard Gere, and others at major events.

Lauterborn feels he has brought a new dimension to wedding photography. “ Wedding photography used to be staged and staid. Going to a bridal fair made it obvious to me that wedding photography needed to change. I like to be creative and have fun. I am unobtrusive and work quietly…so much so that I have been told “I love your pictures, but I don't remember you being at the wedding!”

Lauterborn's portraits greet you like good friends. He has also been told he's having way too much fun to be working! A bride driving a winery forklift, the groom playfully tugging at her veil, an exuberant young boy caught mid-air dancing at a reception, a couple in their wedding finery jumping into a golf sand trap or a family laughing together uninhibitedly, show Lauterborn's ease with his craft.

Lawrence Lauterborn has studios in San Francisco and Middletown, California .

For more information, call: (415) 863-1132 or browse www.lauterbornphoto.com