“The world is my muse, the lens is my brush, and the computer is my canvas.” — Jaymes Williams

About: Photographer, Artist, Developer, and all-around Technophile, Jaymes Williams is a graduate of Oregon State University, where he earned a BA from the College of Liberal Arts.
In addition to constantly having a camera in his hand since the age of 10, he served in the USAF throughout the 1990’s. During his Air Force years, he got the travel bug and stumbled into an Information Technology career. He has also worked in the Information Security field for over 20 years.
Jaymes is a self-taught photographer and photography has been a major focus in his life, especially for the past 20 years. Probably because of his technology background, he was an early adopter of digital. It allowed him to blend his two loves of photography and technology.
He is the Owner and Chief Photographer of Jaymes Williams Fotografi. The unusual spelling of ‘photography’ is the Norwegian spelling which reflects part of his family’s background.
Jaymes’ artistic style is hard to define. He simply follows what attracts his eye. In the same shoot, he may make photos of architecture, street life, or abstract shapes found in man-made or natural settings. Jaymes loves nothing more than to go on a photo-walk with no subject in mind and just enjoy the surprises that come along the way.
Being an artist who strives for continual improvement in the technical aspects of photography and continual exploration in his artistic direction, he has taken training from the New York Institute of Photography, Kelby Training, and absorbed many books.

Influences: A few of the influences in his life which are reflected in his work include the following:
The Man-made world — Until recently, he believed the days of buildings and bridges as art had ended. Fortunately, that has changed and there is a new era in architecture where the structure is again art instead of mere function. Finding and photographing the beauty of man’s creations documents the good things we humans are capable of. In these times, he believes that message needs to be communicated more.
The Natural world — Plants, animals and terrain are the beauty of God’s creation and should be respected as such. While he will never have a green thumb, having a ‘green’ lens may help compensate.
Faith — All people, regardless of culture, have a need for ‘something more.’ Yet, we humans always try to fill that gap with the things of this world which constantly fail to satisfy us. No matter how much we can obtain, we are never satisfied by material possessions, food, drink, etc. In Jaymes’ experience, the only things that fills that hole in our souls is faith.
Time — Time is the most valuable commodity. We only have a finite amount of it and there never seems to be enough. So, how we use the time we’re given is of immense importance.
Artists — Artists he has long appreciated and may have had some influence in the way he sees the world include: Kandinsky, Warhol, Miro, Picasso, Klein, Rothko and Max.

Projects: Gallery Shows: He has had several small gallery shows in Portland, OR and Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Fotopedia: Before Fotopedia.com went dark during the Summer of 2014, Jaymes was a ‘Fotopedian’ and there were several hundred of his images available for view on Fotopedia.com. A number of them were also featured in some of their award-winning iOS applications: Fotopedia Paris, Fotopedia Italy and Fotopedia Heritage. The Fotopedia Heritage app was selected as one of the top 50 apps of all time in Apple’s Hall of Fame. The app was created in cooperation with UNESCO’s World Heritage Center, and provided a virtual passport to hundred’s of sites that are considered the word’s collective cultural legacy.
Prints: Prints of his works are also available on a number of retail websites. Please see the Store section of this website for links.
iOS Applications: Before starting Jaymes Williams Fotografi in 2012, Jaymes’ previous project was Enigma Fotografi. He was one of the very first to release an iPhone app of his own photography in 2009. However, he was quite likely the first photographer who actually coded his own app.

Kit:

Jaymes uses and can recommend the following brands:
Cameras & Lenses: Nikon, Tamron, Lensbaby
Camera Bags: LowePro, ThinkTank
Camera Straps: Black Rapid
Computers & Mobile Devices: Apple
Photography Software: Adobe, DxO, Nik, Nikon, OnOne,
He is not compensated for using these brands; rather, he just likes them and thinks they’re the best.