JGM VISUAL ARTS Portraiture
Jennifer Godwin Minto
With a professional photography career spanning over 35 years and having owned my own studio in San Marino, California, I now find immense joy in exploring the world of canine portraits and nature photography. Throughout my journey, I have had the privilege of capturing precious moments for families, children, executives, and covering weddings, special events, and political gatherings. Additionally, I have shared my expertise by teaching high school photography, while also documenting sports and school events for the past 25 years.
While my focus has shifted away from wedding photography, I still delight in capturing portraits of families, business professionals, and graduating seniors in my community.
One aspect I truly appreciate about being a photographer is the evolution of the craft over time. I began my journey using a medium format film camera, the Hasselblad, accompanied by manual strobe units. The hands-on experience of developing film and images in a darkroom was a cherished part of the process. As the digital age revolutionized photography, I adapted to the instant capabilities it offered, and my interests shifted towards exploring nature's beauty and the art of storytelling through simplicity. I now find fascination in utilizing shadows, silhouettes, leading lines, and ICM photography to convey unique perspectives.
As the photography landscape continues to change, I eagerly embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, eager to see where my evolving style will lead me next.
Outside of photography, I find fulfillment in competing in dog sports alongside my border collies, indulging in travel, and creating custom dog leashes in my spare time.
Emily Luxford
"Jennifer has been our family photographer for over 30 years. She produces frame worthy photos that we have cherished over the years. She is quick and wonderful with all ages. Jennifer is truly a one of a kind photographer and we are so grateful she has been able to capture many special moments for our family."
Elizabeth Sample
"My first experience working with Jennifer Godwin-Minto was in 1992. I had a formal portrait taken and it was exceptional. So when I needed to have another portrait taken THIRTY years later, I sought out Jennifer to take it. Truly Jennifer Godwin-Minto is an artist when it comes to photography. Her detailed approach to every single shot is distinctive -- light, angle, pose, etc. -- produces superior results. Jennifer possesses a gift for working with clients, she is able to make them feel relaxed and confident throughout the photo session no matter how challenging the subject may be! The final product is always first-rate and depicts the person at their best without compromising the subject's authenticity. I would not recommend anyone else to take my portrait no matter what the setting, circumstance or age."
Laura Huffman
Jennifer has taken family photos of us for over 25 years. We have always been very happy with the results. She has also taken the photos of my husband's work team for their brochures and website. Jennifer is delightful to work with! I highly recommend her for any photography needs.
Rachel Dunham
"We love having our family photos taken by Jennifer!
She's great at keeping our little one engaged, moving us around, and using the natural landscape of where we are as part of the photos. She makes it easy and fun -- even though we aren't "photo people" -- and the portraits are always gorgeous."
Suzanne Knox
"Working with Jennifer was a fantastic experience. Her proficiency in photography and her knack for seeing things in a special way and coming up with creative ideas really impresses me. Jennifer has skillfully captured moments of me with my dogs on multiple occasions, and I am excited for our next session together."
Sandy Scott
"Working with Jennifer as a photographer has been a wonderful positive experience. She is so kind and patient with photographing dogs and especially puppies. Photographing puppies is a challenge and Jennifer is patient and talented in capturing great photos of the puppies. She is also great with action shots which can be very difficult. I would highly recommend Jennifer as a photographer."
Laura Marion
"Because Jennifer took portraits of our family ever since the kids were in elementary school, we now have the most beautiful chronicle of our children's lives. The portraits she took of our children are stunning, year after year after year."
Serra Leroy
"Jennifer is so easy to work with and takes lovely family photos! When my littles struggled with a short photography session one day, she checked in with me to see if we wanted a family retake (which we did!). There is an air of ease, joy, and professionalism that Jennifer brings to each shoot--and that's exactly what we need for some sweet family pictures. Thank you so much for all you've done for our family!"
Rachel Countryman
"With her vast experience with and understanding of dogs—and people!—Jennifer brings a practiced eye to her photography. She is always able to put our nervous pups at ease, and she works patiently and skillfully to create varied and inventive settings for her shoots. But most importantly, Jennifer makes stunningly beautiful photographs that capture the emotional connection between people and their dogs."
Jackie Frome
"We were blown away by the incredible experience we had with Jennifer as our photographer. She was able to make us comfortable and brought our true personalities out in our session. She enticed our one year old to transform from shy at first to silly and outgoing and smiling ear to ear. We wish Jennifer could take our photos forever, because she is so warm, friendly, and patient. We hope to have another session with
Jennifer very soon."