Creating unforgettable, classic images for more than 30 years

Steve McGrath loves capturing unforgettable and classic moments whether photographing weddings, portraits, wildlife or nature and offers 30 years’ experience teaching and tutoring students.

Personable and passionate, Steve McGrath has created memorable images — weddings and portraiture, landscapes and wildlife — for more than 30 years and taught photography for nearly two decades.

He first began shooting sports photography for local high schools. Today, he captures those precious moments found in engagement parties, weddings and distinctive portraiture.
As a professional freelance photographer, he also teaches photography classes and one- or two-day workshops throughout New England.

McGrath is a 1996 graduate of the New York Institute of Photography.

Memorable wedding photography

“I love capturing the excitement,” McGrath said. “I challenge myself to get the perfect shots, including those candid moments when a guest has that compelling look or a child shows great expressiveness.”

McGrath offers customized wedding packages, an online password-protected gallery for viewing, classic panoramic images of wedding party groups and handcrafted wedding albums. Clients receive a convenient USB flash drive that contains his work.

Distinctive portraiture

McGrath engages studio time in either Framingham or Sudbury. However, he is happy to visit a client’s home, place of business or other location to capture their portraiture needs.
“I encourage clients to bring a change or two of clothing because we can fit a lot into our one-hour sessions,” McGrath said.

He spends time with clients before the photo shoot to gather a sense of what they are looking for, the tone and feeling of the final image, such as whether someone wants to be photographed wearing glasses or not.

“It’s all about your perception of the final portrait,” he said. “We can make anything happen.”

Wildlife, nature photography and workshops

An outdoors enthusiast, McGrath is passionate about photographing wildlife and nature.
“It’s great fun to capture an animal doing the unexpected,” he explained. “I meet my students at Southwick Zoo for photography workshops or private photo sessions and frequent many of the area wildlife sanctuaries and botanical gardens for floral work and photo tutoring.”

Lighting and composition are his biggest challenges in the field, but he works with photo-editing software to manipulate and fine-tune an image to his liking, if that’s needed.

“I always encourage my students to take the shot,” McGrath noted. “You’re in the moment. Don’t worry about telephone poles or power lines, those things may be taken out later.”

Classes, hands-on workshops and private tutorials are in high demand. He ensures each student understands their camera –— be it a smartphone, simple point-and-shoot or digital SLR model. He teaches through presentations, tips, photographing on location and homework assignments, so students can try out what they’ve learned. Students receive constructive criticism and ideas for improvement during critique sessions.

“There’s no better experience than trying something, firsthand,” McGrath said. “We all learn from our mistakes and get better with practice.”

McGrath is currently teaching a beginner’s digital photography class at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts.

Look for his upcoming classes and spring and summer workshops posted on mcgrathnaturephotos.com and weddingsbysteve.org. To make a studio appointment, book wedding photography or request private tutoring, call 508-816-2449.

Business Profiles are advertising features designed to provide information and background about Hopkinton Independent advertisers.