Photo by Pompano Bill
Born in Richmond, Virginia, Steven Shires first became enamored with photography about the age of 10. His parents were big on taking and keeping photographs, which led to his own passion.
At 17 he purchased his first 35 mm, to simply explore and make images that caught his eye. He seriously pursued this passion while in college at Old Dominion University; he worked for the Office of Public Information and the school newspaper as Photography Editor.
Putting his photography career on hold for the next 11 years Shires taught elementary school – and later, “retired” to Key West for 3 years. Realizing there was still the desire to learn about photography, he enrolled in The Art Institute of Ft Lauderdale in 1992 to truly pursue his passion.
With an Associate’s Degree in Photography, Steven worked as a custom color printer in a lab and became an expert color and density analyzer. He also traveled to Banos Ecuador and Havana, Cuba as a travel documentation photographer. In 2006 he traveled to Ponce, Puerto Rico to document a guesthouse and the surrounding mountain/coastal flora and fauna. In 2009, Steve Shires traveled to Valencia, Venezuela – to document the installation of lighting for a local casino. In 2009 Steve also travelled to Helen, Georgia to document a mountain resort.
By 1998 Shires Photography, Inc. was born, slowly making a name for himself in Ft Lauderdale’s gay community while working for various publications and media outlets. Purposely, Steven stayed away from the stereotypical gay male nude genre. He wanted his reputation to be based on the delivery of quality as well as diverse subjects.
Steven joined the Greater Ft. Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce in 2008. He joined the BPG, the Business Professional Group in 2009. His clientele continues to grow, and maintain it’s diversity.
Lately, Steven has been working for general contractors documenting their work – and probate attorneys to record property for court records.
Steven Shires brings to his work a unique compositional eye, unveiling hidden contours, colors, angles and shapes in every scene he captures. His photographs discover the emotional life of his subjects, and preserve them for all to see.
Steve began seriously showing his artwork in December 2007. Since that time, his body of work has been on loan for staging purposes, or on display in a variety of gallery settings. Steven continues to grow his body of work, by increasing his museum-mounted art by at least 6 pieces per every 6 months.
Shires Photography, Inc. offers a full range of photographic services – which include:
- Events – Private/Corporate
- Product Shots for: – web sites/ E-bay/brochures
- Interiors – real estate/yachts/homes/business
- Weddings/Unions
- Portraits/Headshots
- Restorations
- Fine Art
