C j Duncan Photography

It's easy to brag on all the great things--Photographer of the Year, Album of the Year, Best Bridal Image in Texas--but that isn't what this is about. This is all about you. Your love. Your wedding. Your vision.

Spend a little time with us (Cris and Deanna Duncan) and soon you will find that you have some new friends for life. Since we can't teleport you to us right now, we thought we might invade your space a little with some Q/A so you can get to know us a little.

Why Photography? It's our passion. Simple. Cris dug ditches all summer when he was 13 to buy his first set of darkroom equipment. At 7, Deanna used an entire roll of film shooting the tires on her grandma's car. (I could see the vision--I was just trying to make sure I got it.) After college we took "real jobs" and began to build the business on the side. God was very gracious to us and allowed us to make some mistakes and grow to be what we are today. For the last eight years it has been our "full time" joy.

What is your wedding philosophy? We believe weddings are about faith, family and friends and FUN! You have to laugh on your wedding day--and we make sure you do. We are often asked about our wedding style. Honestly, it changes throughout the day. Nothing can replace natural laughs and smiles, so we often take a photojournalistic approach to much of the day. For the wedding party and the two of you, we may "set up a scene" (that means do a bit of posing) and then let it naturally flow. There are times (like formal family images) that are "camera aware." We set it up (quickly and painlessly) and give you images where you can see Aunt Gertrude's face. Now, we do love the details too, but our favorite things to photograph are people. To us, connections are everything. Things will pass, but the people who shape your life will always have a special place in your heart and that is what we really want to capture on your wedding day.

Are you guys married? Yes. It is crazy how often we are asked this--especially at weddings. We often wondered why until it hit us that when working together we always play opposite roles. If Cris is the outgoing, funny dynamic guy getting the energy up at the wedding, Deanna is the quiet, detail person. If Deanna is coordinating, chatting and setting things up, Cris is the quiet guy working with the equipment. After 14 years of marriage (and 4 years of dating before that) we can almost read each other's minds--suspicious cough from Cris. As C j Duncan Photography has developed (and the demand for Cris in the commercial field has grown) it would have been easy to transition away from weddings. But we just can't. (We now limit them.) You see, we love weddings because when you see others deeply in love and exchanging their promises of forever, it makes you celebrate your own promises. We love looking at each other across a sanctuary and sharing a private smile. The best part of working together is that we always leave weddings with someone special. It just doesn't get any better than that.

Do you watch infomercials? Absolutely. Some of our best (and worse) purchases have come off of a 2am sales pitch. You have to admit, the Soda Stream is pretty cool.

Okay, so my mom wanted to know if you are really professional? There is a time and place for everything. At your love story engagement session we may be getting our fun on, sporting the Miss Me jeans and laughing until depends may be needed. However, when we show up on your wedding day Cris will don a really nice suit (Geno at Dillards loves him) and Deanna will be wearing a black dress or suit. Everything will be appropriate for your day. If your mom wants more info you can tell her that Cris is a Certified Professional Photographer, a Photographic Craftsman and an International Photographic Award recipient. Both Cris and Deanna are members of Professional Photographers of America, Texas Professional Photographer's Association, South Plains Professional Photographer's Association, Cris is the President and both Cris and Deanna speak on the national and state levels. We carry insurance. In fact, God forbid something happen to your images after the wedding, but in the most horrible situation imaginable, our insurance will cover the cost to recreate your wedding day. It's never happened (not with Cris the MacGuyver of all equipment) but we like to have our bases covered.

Does that mean you are...old? We shudder at the thought. We aren't in our teens, but playing Rock Band until all hours of the night, doing what we love and taking regular trips to Disneyland make us feel like we are.

So if we want to meet you will it be in a coffee shop? We adore coffee and believe that the greatest gift ever is a Starbucks gift card. However, we like to meet at our studio. It's fun to watch dreams grow and we like to share ours with you. Two years ago we bought our dream property and built a 1700 sq foot Nantucket Cottage style studio. This is where you will view your images, have your consults and just hang out in general. Typically we are here Tuesday-Friday from 10am-5pm. You can visit us at 2402 Slide Rd--Rear. Sometimes, though, if the little one is at school we like to sneak off for a lunch date so it is always a good idea to call us at 806.781.0123 before you drop by.

You have a little one? We've been blessed with an incredible daughter who have a true gift for serving. She might even bring you one of her fresh baked cookies while you are here. You may also meet Buddy--our studio dog. He is a beautiful Golden Retriever and the friendliest dog you will ever meet. So, if you are wondering if you can include your four legged loves in any of your images the answer is YES! After all, they are members of your family.

Back to my list from the magazine. Have you shot at ______? After eight years of shooting 20 weddings a year, we have shot at most places in the West Texas area and a good number of places in Dallas, Houston and places with no names.

You travel? Absolutely. It always adds to the adventure.

Do you shoot formal pictures of my family? Yes, we do photograph your family, but we do it in a fun, quick, painless way. Although our favorite image from your wedding will be when your grandparents look at each other on the dance floor and smile that smile that only comes after a lifetime of love or it may be the one of your wedding party laughing like crazy, we know that 10 or 20 years from now you may really value that image of your whole family. We include them because they tell the story of a relationship.

Are you expensive? We are an investment. Typically our brides invest anywhere from 20-40% of their wedding budget on photography. We offer payment plans and really help you get exactly what you want. When we got married, we were dirt poor, but we knew we wanted incredible images. Our photographer had a very simple package that with a bit of bleeding we could make work. Because of what he did for us, we always try to have one offering that will work with even the tightest of budgets. That offering is $3000. We offer the highest quality books (handcrafted in Italy), true museum grade portraits and use the finest tools available to insure that your investment yields beautiful returns.

Will I like you? You have to really like your photographer. You almost have to love him or her. The only way to see if we really click is to set up a time to meet together. Photography is the one thing (other than the dress and ring) that lasts past the wedding day. You want to really get it right. You want to look relaxed and happy in the images. You need to be confident that your photographer knows what he/she is doing and that they are capturing the story of the day as you see it. You need to trust your photographer. For us, the wedding journey is like going on a trip to France with some friends. You have a fabulous time, laugh a lot, eat too much and come back with a lifetime of memories. After a few weeks some things hit you: "I don't know French." "How did we find all those great places to eat?" "I don't remember planning anything. I just remember having fun." Alas, that is our secret. You have so much fun with the whole process--engagement session, bridal session, wedding day, planning coffees and even dates with us--that you just enjoy yourself.(We worry about and take care of the details.) You just get to have fun and make some new friends for life. So, will you like us? Let's get together and find out.