A Little Bit About Me

My name is Merritt Johnson and I love taking photographs. I have been taking photos for fun since my mom, or "Santa", gave me a Polaroid instant camera as a Christmas present. I want to say that all the pictures I took then were the best pictures any 12 year old has ever captured; but since I have not been able to find any of these great pictures in the family photo album I can only assume they were great photos of blurry animals and close ups of my finger carefully placed on the lens.

Over the next couple of years I developed my skills and learned to keep my finger off of the lens. About this time my sister started a photography class while she attended college. She even set up a small dark room in our house. The dark room had some very clear rules:

1: Stay out.
2: Do not enter unless you are in college taking a photography class.
3: Merritt, stay out!

While these rules seemed clear and defined I could not help myself from entering her makeshift darkroom. I had to see and explore this forbidden room. I found it amazing how she could develop film right in our house. Side note: I think my sister found it less amazing when I exposed her homework and ruined all of her images, but that’s what little brothers are for…. right?

After working in a variety of trades, I decided to go to photography school. I attended and graduated from the Ohio Institute of Photography and Technology in 2004. There, I learned how to use and understand light. I found it amazing the dimensions and the emotions that light could create with subtle changes in placement, intensity, and color. I learned all about apertures, shutter speed, and film speed. With the help of some great teachers and talented classmates I found what I really loved, photography.

After college I started off shooting extreme sports and live music events. I have been lucky enough to take photos of National bands like Atreyu, Filter, (Hed)PE, Bobaflex, Alice in Chains, to name a few and hundreds of unsigned bands. I have photographed NHRA Drag Racing, AMA Motocross, behind the scenes for the Travel Channel television series, Ghost Adventures and more. I have been blessed with the opportunities to capture engagements, weddings, family portraits, senior photos and other special events.

I often work with my wife Jessie who is a valuable part of our photography team. We hope that you will choose to hire Stillframe Photography for your next event or portrait session. We understand how important it is to have a quality photographer capture special events and portraits that will last a lifetime. We are available for weddings, events, portraits and more. We offer a wide variety of photography packages and prices. Contact us with any questions, concerns, and the details of your next event.

Thank you, Merritt