While Cream City’s founder, Scott Patrick, wasn’t born with a camera in hand, he did start pursuing photography at a young age. In 1983, at age 15, he documented his first wedding. He started exploring the craft with hand-me-down cameras and his own small darkroom. Through high school and college, he developed his candid style of wedding photojournalism while also working for local newspapers and magazines, commercial photo studios and labs, and while pursuing his interest in street photography.
His first company, Scott Patrick Photography, was founded in 1988, and focused on documenting both social and corporate events in an unobtrusive style that brought much praise from the community. “I learned early on not to become part of the story but to let events and people reveal themselves. My goal as a photographer is to capture authentic images without a lot of manipulation and by putting my subjects at ease in front of the camera,” Scott states.
“As an introvert myself, the camera lets me get out of my comfort zone and explore the world. I love just capturing what goes on out on the streets as well as events from large corporate conventions, to the most intimate of personal ceremonies in someone’s backyard. I’ve had the honor of photographing political leaders such as President Bill Clinton, Governor Tommy Thompson and Justice Elana Kaegan to business leaders like Jack Welch, Jeff Immelt and Herb Kohler III. It’s been just as interesting to follow and document these leaders as it has been to document the over 2000 families I’ve worked with to capture their family milestones such as weddings, birthdays and anniversaries.
In this high-tech, digital age, photography has become an “everyone’s vocation.” I take pride in the discipline, skill and artistry I’ve cultivated over the years harnessing light to chisel the perfect portrait for my clients. I take time to let you relax into the experience yet work efficiently to capture all the nuances. I also invite my clients to be co-creators in the process to give them a portrait or series of images that go far beyond a snap-shot.”
In 2011, Scott founded Cream City Photo Video to provide a collection of quality, creative services under one roof. With Cream City, it’s not just about Scott’s talents but those of his entire team of skilled photographers, videographers, album and graphic designers, DJs, officiants and event planners. The focus, however, is still the same, to collaborate with clients to create top quality images that tell the story of their business, social event, or family milestone.
To create a base of operations for his life and his business, in 1999 Scott and his wife Noreena followed another passion of theirs, historic preservation. They purchased an abandoned 1875 corner grocery store in Milwaukee’s Walker’s Point National Historic District. They used their skills and talents to completely rebuild and restore the building into their home, gallery and studio. They also created an urban oasis next to their building which acts as an outdoor studio, garden wedding venue and playground for their gray tabbies, chickens and honey bees.
“If you’re looking for authentic, creative, documentary-styled images for your business or event, please contact us. We’ll collaborate with you to create an amazing set of images to tell your story.”