WHAT'S IN A NAME?
EVERYTHING IS
IT'S EVERYTHING THAT YOU SEE
&
EVERYTHING THAT YOU DON'T
MY NAME IS MY SIGNATURE
&
TO AN ARTIST HIS OR HER SIGNATURE IS EVERYTHING.
I'VE WORKED INCREDIBLY HARD MY WHOLE ENTIRE LIFE TO MAKE MINE MEAN SOMETHING
TO MAKE IT MEAN EVERYTHING THAT MY WORK IS
& THAT IS
ORIGINAL
I CAN SEE & DO THINGS THAT MOST OTHERS CAN'T
MY EDUCATION, MY EXPERIENCE, MY ABILITY
THEY ALL HELP ME CREATE THE WORK THAT I LIVE TO CREATE.
I'VE DONE AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF ALL KINDS OF AMAZING & ADMIRED THINGS IN MY INDUSTRY & I'M ONLY 30 YEARS OLD.
AT THE END OF THE DAY ALL OF THE EXPERIENCE & KNOWLEDGE THAT I HAVE GAINED OVER ALL THESE YEARS IS WHAT I WALK UP TO EVERY SHOOT WITH.
THIS IS WHAT YOU SEE.
IT ALL STARTS RIGHT HERE.
FROM WITHIN MY BEING.
THIS IS MY OWN UNIQUE VIEW OF THE WORLD.
I Live For This.
A Moment From The Set of "Boss" Where I Was Hand Selected To Play "The Mayor's Photographer" Alongside Kelsey Grammer For Two Seasons in The Award Winning Tv Show About Chicago Politics.
A Moment From The Road
I Love To Travel.
I've Traveled Tens of Thousands of Miles All Across America To Tell The Story of The USA.
My Work Is My Life's Biggest Passion Project.
So Anyone Who Supports My Business Also Supports A Dream To Tell Stories That I Live To Pursue & Tell.
I Love Working With Clients To Create Original Work
No Matter What It Is.
While Photographing for Spike Lee's Film "Chiraq"
I Recently Photographed Michael Jordan
For The Pursuit of a Dream That Came True.
I
Am
I am incredibly thankful & a lot would say "lucky" that I knew what I wanted to do with my life at only 3 years old.I remember it all so clearly.I watched a couple of movies & fell in love with the process of storytelling.Cameras & Film Making.Acting - Writing - Directing - All of That Stuff & from that moment on I have truly and deeply admired,respected & cared for the craft of visual storytelling.I have worked incredibly hard my whole entire life to get to my current ability of being able to see the world in a my own true & very unique way.I truly enjoy and I am truly driven by what I do as an Artist.I live,eat,breathe and love creating the absolute best that I can. Every single day. My promise to you is that I'm going to give you everything I have. My mission is to make you see a life & a moment in a way that you never could see it before.I aim to help you feel what I felt or as a creator and architect to create what you would like me to.
I am forever a student. This is just how I feel about it. I push every single day to refine my definition of what being an Artist & Image Maker is. It's always all about getting stronger every single day and making The Absolute Best that I can Absolutely Better whenever I can.
That's not to say that I have't been classically trained and educated because I have. I've always truly respected education & have also worked incredibly hard my whole entire life to get the absolute best education in everything that I do wherever I went.
That list includes.
Mount Carmel High School
Chicago,IL
"Character Building For A Lifetime"
I am a third generation graduate and proud alumnus of The Caravan.
Worldly famous for both education & sports.
Accomplished Alumni Include
Chris Chelios (NHL) - Simeon Rice (NFL) -Donovan McNabb (NFL) - Antoine Walker (NBA) - Politicians - Actors & Tens of Thousands of Good Men of Character All Over The World.
I commuted 3 hours a day just to go to High School.
The School & Experience taught me so much.Much more then I what i can ever describe.I owe a lot of my success to the fundamentals & philosophies of 6410 S. Dante on Chicago's South Side.
Much of that along with my life experiences & wisdoms define the base of who I am today.
I was a 4 year varsity Athlete.
I am the first & only student in Mount Carmel's 100 + year history to have designed both the front and back covers of The Yearbook.
Newspaper
Writer - Photographer - Photo Editor
Yearbook
Photographer - Design - Layout
Columbia College Chicago
Chicago,IL
Still Photography
The World Famous Brooks Institute of Photography
The "Harvard" of Film Schools
Santa Barbara,CA
Still Photography
Brooks Taught Me A Deep Respect for Craft.
A Certain Kind of Respect That Has Never Left Me.
A Respect That Has Since Only Become Much More Powerful.
My Santa Barbara Days Were Filled With 35mm - 4x5 View Cameras Processing Films & Printing Images In Darkrooms for Many Hours A Day.
This Acute,Deep & Intricate Approach Is Deeply Woven Into My Work Today Even Though My World is All Digital.
My Methods - My Processes - My Approach
&
My Darkroom
Along With My Experience, Wisdom, Knowledge & Creative Talents & Ability Make My Work Everything That It Is Today.
Being a Photographer is Kind of Like Being a Pilot. My Camera is like My Jet.It's a Tool that I Fly with.
I want my work to be rock solid, sound & forever pushing to be magical when it flies.
I Love Flight
My Work Fuels My Life
My Work Is One With My Life
I Strive to Create Work That Emits Total Harmony In Many Ways.
Moments That Have Meaning & Images That Speak More Then A Billion Words.
This is Why I Do It.
This Is The Road of An Artist.
Always on The Pursuit of Creating Powerful Photographs.
Art is Not Only What I Do..It's Who I Am
My Name Is Ryan J. Bolger
&
I Am
An Artist.
My Experience Runs Deep.
I've been a photographer everyday for many many years.I have achieved a level of high success.
Driven by my own pursuits, my dreams and my own ambition
I have realized that anything is truly possible.
I've Photographed
Presidents
(Obama & The President of Ireland)
Mayors of Chicago
(Rich Daley & Rahm Emanuel)
Mega Athletes
(Derrick Rose - Iron Mike Ditka - Lebron James - David Beckham - Michael Jordan - Scottie Pippen & More)
Celebrities
(Johnny Depp - Nic Cage - Kanye West - Kim Kardashian - Britney Spears - Rihanna & More)
Alderman & Prime Ministers
I've traveled tens of thousands of miles all across American photographing Nature, Cities, People & Everything Life.
I've been hired by Brides & Grooms all Across the Country to Tell The Story of Their Most Cherished Wedding Day.
I've been hired by Big Brands
Levi Strauss & Co.
Overtsock.com
The City of Chicago
Spike Lee.
+ More
i
THIS IS MY AMERICAN DREAM
I REALLY LOVE AND APPRECIATE FINE DESIGN
I LOVE CREATING ART, APPLE, AIR JORDAN'S, TRAVELING & SOAKING UP KNOWLEDGE
BECAUSE
I'M ALWAYS PUSHING TO PURSUE EXCELLENCE.
I'M AN OLD FASHIONED KIND OF GUY
I CONNECT,I EXPLORE,I CARE.
I REALLY ENJOY CREATING ORIGINAL STORIES THAT ARE TAILORED TO MY CLIENTS WITH A VISION UNIQUE TO THE INTENT.
I AM INSPIRED BY MANY THINGS IN LIFE.
NATURE CERTAINLY IS A VERY BIG ONE.
Specializing in
Weddings - Drone Services - Commercial - Advertising - Lifestyle - Celebrity - Food - Family - Landscapes - Travel - Cities - Editorial - Street - Original Fine Art Prints
~ Ryan J. Bolger
Behind the Photographer - Ryan J. Bolger from rjbimagery on Vimeo.
I gave my soul to my art a long time ago. At the end of the day I live to create original and meaningful Photography.Thanks for your time.
For a Complete Look at my Background, Education,Experience, & Professional Accomplishments
Please Visit
For Press about Ryan
Please Visit
This all started long before you got here.
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"A Renaissance Man" ~ Shore Magazine
"One The Most Sought After Wedding Photographers In The Region" ~ TheBeachCoast.Com
"A World Class Photographer" ~ The News Dispatch
"Inspiring" ~ Irish American News Magazine
"One of the leading Entrepreneur Artists in Chicago" ~ Chicago Independent Artists
Has Been Featured By
The Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Sun Times
Shore Magazine
The International Business Times
& Many More
Work is Collected and Admired by
The Inventor of Apple's Siri
Movie Directors,Actors,and Cinematographers
Professional Athletes
And People From All Over The World.
Has Been Hired By Big Companies & VIP's
Including
The President of Ireland
Overstock.com
Levi Strauss & Co.
The City of Chicago
NBC
Windy City Limousine
Peepers Reading Specs
Among More.
Photography Experience
* Mount Carmel High School
- Newspaper and Yearbook Photographer
- Photo Editor
- 1st student in Mount Carmel's 100 year history to design the cover of the yearbook
* Columbia College Chicago - Still Photography
* The Brooks Instiute of Photography Santa Barbara, California - Still Photography
* Intern Photographer for Concierge Preferred a Chicago Lifestyle Magazine
* Photographer's Assistant to one of Chicago's best wedding photographers
* Photographer's Assistant to NBC/Universal's chief head photographer Mitchell Haaseth - Assisted on Photo shoots for the China Summer Olympic Games and NBC TV Shows
* National Studios Portrait Company - I traveled the country photographing people & families.Every couple days I traveled to a new city.I set up photo shoots photographed between 20-50 shoots a day then I would come back two weeks later with the final product.
* AP Portrait Company - I was in charge of running the entire photographic department for a traveling portrait studio.I managed gear, set ups,break downs, the entire on site post production process & the printing lab. I photographed people and families all day long.Every couple days we hit a new city and worked with major malls and retail outlets to provide professional photography shoots to a lot of people on a daily basis.
* The Ryan J. Bolger Photography Gallery
For almost 3 years I lived my dream of running & operating my own photography gallery.I specialized in Fine Art Landscape,Urban Photography & Fine Art Portraiture.I sold fine art photography to clients locally and around the World through the internet.I started my gallery as an eager dream driven & hungry professional creative to living and fulfilling my journey & my goals which paved the way to take it all in a better direction.I hosted & put together fundraisers.I hosted political events.My gallery and I took part in a great & wonderful movement to revitalize one of Michigan City Indiana's great historic neighborhoods.I was a part of something very special & historic.I spent my time being part of a solution.I inspired, I helped, I marketed ,I promoted, & I was written about by various forms of Press.I hosted and I spent my time giving everything I could to my business and the art movement that is The Uptown Arts District.I hosted monthly community events that drew hundreds of people from near and a far & Over it's time we inspired thousands and brought a sense of a community back to a once abandoned & run down part of town.I was part of a team that consisted of small business owners and community leaders that worked together because they believed that great change could come.Through our work and efforts we inspired new businesses to open up, we changed the community for the better & we made it fun for people to come out and enjoy a great time and a great neighborhood.We did it all through the Arts & Culture.Together we made it happen together we were very involved in a revitalization movement that is The Uptown Arts District. The movement planted a seed from which more could grow.It was also during this time that my career as a professional creative started to gain more momentum outside the gallery I was running.I started to gain more work in the entertainment industry, I started traveling more,I began to photograph more weddings,client commissions took me away from the space,more work on tv shows and movies popped up & my relationship with my art and quest began to deepen.My job of being a professional photographer & actor was colliding with my job of running a brick and mortar business and being a gallery owner.At the end of the day I am driven by my art.My vision & my goals started to shift as I was spent the whole time focusing & working towards the bigger picture of my quest & my ultimate goals as an artist. In November of 2012 I decided to close my gallery to bring my brand to a better & bigger level. Owning & running my own Gallery was the ultimate journey for me.It was a true reflection of everything that I had worked up to.I really can't tell you how much I learned, how much I was able to do,how much I grew, and how much I loved it. I believe in life that all of us are are working towards something so much more then what we even know....the key for me and what drives me is the belief I have within me to inspire the world through my art.I live to refine what I do as a creative individual.
* RJBIMAGERY (Present) for the past 5 years I've been running my own professional photography company.I specialize in Landscapes,Urban,Weddings,People,Places,and Photography Prints for People's homes and offices.
Some Clients include
The City of Chicago
The Boys and Girls Club
The Downtown Chicago St. Patricks Parade Committee
The Southside St. Patricks Parade Committee
NBC - Chicago Fire
Brides locally and across the country
Everyday People
Local Charities
* Official Photographer for both St. Patricks Day Parades.
* The Urban Times (Present) - I am a creative contributor in the form of Photographic Essays as both a Photographer & Writer.I create content for an optimistic & forward thinking online Magazine based out of London.I am responsible, trusted, & work with news editors to inspire and move through creativity,purpose,& depth from the Streets of Chicago for the World to see & enjoy.
Since 2007 Ryan has been working in the TV & Film Industry.Here are a few projects he has worked on. He's worked both behind & in front of the cameras as an actor & as part of the crew on almost every Chicago production filmed since then.Everything from a reporter in Michael Mann's "Public Enemies" to "The Mayor's Photographer" along side Kelsey Grammer in "Boss" for Starz. He's also worked behind the scenes for many productions in the Movies,TV shows, & commercials as part of the crew.From a set driver,location scout,cinematographer's assistant to a production assistant,script supervisor and more.Ryan lives a purpose driven life that is driven by his dreams.Ever since he was 4 years old Ryan wanted to work in the movies & through his hard work,dedication,expertise, & talent he has been able to make a name for himself in the entertainment industry.
Film Experience
* The Weatherman starring Nicolas Cage dorected by Gore Vabinski
* The Express starring Dennis Quaid
* NBC's ER
* Public Enemies directed by Michael Mann starring Johnny Depp,Marion Coltillard , and Christian Bale
* A&E's "The Beast"
* "Shameless" a pilot for Showtime starring William H. Macy and Emmy Rossum
* The Discoverey Channel
* The Biography Channel
* "The Line" a TV pilot for ABC starring Dylan Walsh (Nip Tuck) and Michael Rapaport about the life of ATF agents
* "Pleading Guilty" a TV pilot for FOX starring John Larroquette (Night Court, Boston Legal) a legal thriller about the goings - on inside a high powered law firm
* "Metadors" a TV pilot for ABC starring Michelle Borth of "The Forgotten" and Zach Gilford of "Friday Night Lights," is a melodrama in the vein of "Romeo and Juliet."
*"The Chicago Code" a TV show premiering in Febuary on FOX starring Jason Clarke, of "The Brotherhood," and Jennifer Beals about the Chicago Cop Scene. Ryan actually plays a news photojournalist in this one. Produced by Shawn Ryan (NCIS)
* "The Vow" starring Rachel Mcadams and Channing Tatum
* "The Dilemma" a film directed by Ron Howard starring Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Wynona Ryder,Channing Tatum, and Queen Latifah
* HBO Pilots
* Holder Productions - Set Driver, Location Scout, Camera assistant
* Chicago Motion Pictures - Cinematographer's assistant, set PA
* Script Supervisor for an Independant Feature
* "Cooper & Stone" The CW Network
* "Transformers 3" the blockbuster hit directed by Michael Bay
* "The Playboy Club" I play "The Playboy Club Photographer in this tv show that takes place in 1960's Chicago about Playboy infamous Club. This show airs in Oct 2011 on NBC. Think "Mad Men" but with Playboy Bunnies. The Same team is behind it.
* "Boss" starring Kelsey Grammer directed by Gus Van Sant. I am currently shooting this project in Chicago. I play "The Mayor's Photographer" in this epic tale about Chicago's Political Machine. Basically I'm Kelsey Grammer's shadow. This Role has been a dream come true. Stay Tuned.
* NBC's Chicago Fire
* Betrayal a Pilot of ABC
* An Online Campaign for US Cellular
* A TV Piece for The President of DeVry