Aj Abelman

About Aj Abelman

I am a self-motivated, hard-working and energetic creative with a passion for communication, visual art, photography and social media. I am the owner and photography lead of AJ Abelman Photography, based out of Chicago, IL and specializing in wedding, portrait and family photography. Skilled in Photoshop, Aperture, Adobe Bridge, Adobe Lightroom, PhotoMechanic, Camera RAW, Microsoft Office, Google Docs, and InDesign. Experience as lead photographer, post-processor, private editor, image-retoucher, second shooter, and photo assistant. Skilled in interpersonal relations, social networking, social media content creation, wedding photography, child photography, family photography, portraits, headshots, lifestyle photography, event photography. Experience and skill in album design, production, data organization and archiving, image restoration and retouching.

Experience

1. Photographer

   Pals Programs

   Jun 2010 — Present

   Photography, photo-editing, team lead, Social media lead (blogging, Facebook, Twitter) for PALS programs, a 401c3 non-profit that creates immersive summer camp experiences for young adults with Down syndrome across the country. My position involved quickly fostering close and trust-based relationships with campers, counselors, volunteers media staff and director and management teams while delivering documentary and portrait-style imagery on a daily basis of all activities. Images were also created and utilized for fundraising and advertising purposes in pamphlets, online, in print and in directed email blasts and on social media.

Education

• Columbia College Chicago

  Bachelor's degree, Photography

  2009 — 2013