Bob Caldwell Photography—Memorializing Our Community for 28 Years
Story by Sam Calhoun
Talking. Chatting. Listening.
These aren’t the first activities that come to mind when you think about having a photographer memorialize your family, yourself or a special occasion. Instead you may think in terms of a snap of a picture here and there, awkward poses in a studio foreign to you, or the uncomfortable feeling that does little to help produce memorable and cherished photographs.
But that’s not the case at Bob Caldwell Photography.
Before any pictures are taken, before any location is chosen for a backdrop, before Bob Caldwell even lets patrons choose him as a photographer, he listens to what they want from the photographs and lets the customer decide if he is the right photographer.
Bob invites customers to his home office at 211 Keystone Drive in Boone where they peruse albums and check out projection images—some as big as 40 by 50 inches—to see if Bob meets their expectations.
“We keep it relaxing for people,” said Bob’s wife and business partner Sharon Caldwell who has taken care of the wedding photography portion of Bob Caldwell Photography for the past nine years. “We try to keep it more natural.”
“If we take care of them, they take care of us. It’s not a pressured situation,” added Bob.
As opposed to shooting all of their photos in a studio, Bob and Sharon take pictures where patrons are most comfortable—whether outdoors, which is often the case in the High Country, at people’s homes or at a special location that holds meaning for them.
“We want them to like the work, so we want them to be genuinely involved in a portrait situation,” said Bob, 56. “We want to have time for everyone. We want to accommodate.”
Bob and Sharon don’t discuss prices with their clients until after everything is completed. They usually have a one-month or less turnaround with their work—sometimes faster for business-related work.
Everything Bob and Sharon do through their business is “people related,” said Bob.
From family portraits to weddings, from pictures of children to bridal photos, from environmental portraits to studio portraits, from business photos to commercial shots, from sports pictures to real estate photos to headshots—matching local people with photographs they can cherish has been Bob Caldwell Photography’s mission for 28 years.
Born in Charlotte in 1950, Bob grew up in Gastonia, finishing high school in 1968. Then he came to the mountains, attending ASU from 1968 to 1972 and graduating with a BSBA in business administration. After living in the High Country for a few years, he headed to Asheville to attend the Randolph Technical Institute, a trade school for photography. Returning to Boone after graduation in 1978, he took a job with George Flowers, a well-known local photographer. By shooting commercial and wedding photos, Bob gathered an idea of what owning his own small business would be like—and he enjoyed it. Bob Caldwell Photography was born in the summer of 1978.
From the beginning, he always wanted a small business, a business that was low volume—not a “quick” business, according to Bob—and a business that fostered repeat customers. He got it. Bob estimates that he has taken thousands and thousands of photographs, and he cherishes the fact that he’s watched some of his subjects go from playing tee-ball to being lawyers in the High Country.
“You get to know a lot of people being in the photography business,” said Bob.
One of those people is his wife of 23 years, Sharon.
Sharon grew up in New Haven, Conn., where she graduated from high school and immediately “jumped into the work world,” said Sharon. Working as an accountant and volunteer, Sharon’s work brought her to Boone in 1981. She and Bob met at church.
“We have a lot in common,” said Sharon, who shares a love for photography and religion with Bob, and also has worked for a decade as the office manager of Precision Printing. “We have similar personalities.”
The two were married on September 10, 1983. Sharon joined Bob Caldwell Photography shortly thereafter.
For the next 20-plus years, the duo operated their business out of a leased house at 130 Highway 105 Extension, on the corner of Highway 421 and Highway 105 Extension. Last year, they learned that the owner of the house had sold it to make way for Boone Pointe—a 3-story, $6 million complex.
“We figured that one or the other would get us,” laughed Bob, speaking about development or the widening of Highway 421. “It wasn’t a tragic situation.”
The two moved the bones of their operation to 211 Keystone Drive in Boone and set up shop. Sharon does her computer work with the digital images in the basement, and a living room is set up for customers upstairs. But no photographs are taken there—that task takes place wherever customers feel most comfortable or at “Studio B,” as Bob refers to it, at 130 North Depot Street in downtown Boone.
Adapting to the changing technology of the business, Bob and Sharon have gone all digital with their operation—no more film—and they constantly try to learn more about their art through reading, watching informational videos and talking to other photographers.
But what’s their secret to success?
“We try to treat people reasonably and fairly,” said Sharon, who added that they attempt to make photo shoots of any kind as stress free as possible. If something goes awry during a planned shoot, they don’t hesitate to reschedule for a different time at no extra charge.
Bob said that in a business class at ASU, he was taught to be ordinary, reasonable and prudent when dealing with people. He attempts to hold himself to those standards while adhering to the golden rule—to treat others as you would like to be treated.
So what does the future hold?
Both Sharon and Bob said they love what they do, they love the town they call home and they will both continue to do the work they do as long as they are physically able.
Many families and individuals in the High Country will be happy to hear that.
Bob Caldwell Photography’s home office is located at 211 Keystone Drive in Boone and his studio is located at 130 North Depot Street in the High Country Press office. Bob Caldwell Photography conducts photo shoots all over the High Country. To contact Bob Caldwell Photography, call Bob at 828-264-9026 or Sharon at 828-719-5300. The photographic duo operates their business from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, but will work on Saturdays if needed. For more information, click to www.bobcaldwellphotography.com.
Community Interest
News & Notes
Events
Arts & Entertainment
