TFPI Creed / Central California

Everyone deserves
beautiful portraits.

Whether you're in-between jobs, or struggling to get by while raising kids as a single mom or dad, or you've hit a tough spot in your life and you're on government assistance, I think you deserve some beautiful photos. Scroll right to read more. CLICK HERE TO VIEW TFPI IMAGES

The Free Portrait Initiative

I’m trying to give back to my community, one portrait session at a time. I'm big on donating my services. In fact, in 2023, I donated my photography 74 different times to central coast families, businesses, schools and non-profits - and that's not counting TFPI sessions!

Custom portrait photography can be very, very expensive. Even the “cheap” sessions aren’t really that cheap. Some people have plenty of money to spend on photography, but many don’t have any (or very little) “extra” money, which is why so many people end up with bland, low quality pictures from mall studios, or worse, nothing at all. So many families go through life never having a professional family portrait to hang on their walls.

When I was 12 years old, I lost my mother and step-father when our house burned down on Christmas morning. Everything we owned burned in the fire, too. Because of that, I have almost no photos of my mom. I think of that every time I give portrait sessions to a new family. Memories are all we have in the end, and having lovely photos to help you remember your loved ones shouldn’t be out of reach just because you don’t make a lot of money.

How do I get free portraits for my family?

Just sign up for my email newsletter and you’ll be notified whenever I offer free session days. Each family can sign up for a timeslot on that day, you'll arrive at the time you chose and we'll shoot for 15 minutes. You'll receive an online gallery within 3 business days (but often same or next day!). It's that simple!

No verification required, no sign up process, no need to prove you’re struggling. If you’re reaching out asking for free portraits, I’ll take your word for it that you’re struggling. Sure, some people will try to get free photos when they can actually afford to hire me, but that’s OK. It will all balance out in the end. 🙂

Zero Cost To You

There are no fees for you at all!

If you would like to tip me, it's always appreciated, but you don't have to and no need to feel bad if you don't.

What You Receive

You’ll get 5 gorgeous, fully-edited, custom images in full resolution! There are no prints included, but you are welcome to print the images anywhere you like. I shoot these sessions with the same care and professionalism I give to clients paying hundreds of dollars, so you’ll be sure to get shots you’ll love.

If you don’t think you need free portraits but my full $500 sessions are too expensive, I also offer a $250 session, with 15 images and a half hour session length.

How Did This All Come To Be?

Not long after the pandemic was announced, I joined a Facebook group dedicated to “sponsoring” kids with gift baskets – many of them had to skip graduation ceremonies and were feeling down because of the pandemic. At the time, I didn’t have the money to sponsor kids, but I knew I wanted to do something to pitch in. It didn’t take long for me to realize I could help in a big way – I made a post committing to donate portrait sessions to every family in that group. The response was huge and immediate, and after seeing all the happiness and smiles these new photos were causing, I knew this was something I wanted to offer forever.

Not Just For Families!

If you are a non-profit organization that focuses on low income, under-served or at-risk youth and their families, I’d love to offer your organization free photography as well! Whether it’s portrait sessions for the people you serve, staff photos for your organization or event photography, I’m happy to help when and where I can.

Thank you for reading, and I look forward to serving you!

Namu