Professional photographer and college professor Lisa Means is a frequent freelance team member on Bookhouse book projects.
When asked about her collaboration with Lisa on a recent project, Bookhouse Project Manager Stacy Moser had this to say:
“When I first met Lisa, I’d been told she was a masterful photographer and that I’d really enjoy working with her. That turned out to be an understatement.
Last year, we faced one of our biggest challenges yet—a large commemorative book project for the Marion County Cultural Alliance in Ocala, Florida, which had been sidelined by the pandemic. When work on the project resumed, hundreds of photo assignments were to be completed in the space of three ten-day trips to Florida during the hottest months of the year. Lisa cheerfully shouldered the responsibility and threw herself into the project with her characteristic grace and professionalism. No matter how strenuous the shoots I assigned her, she traveled the length and breadth of Marion County in one-hundred-degree temps and severe, almost-daily thunderstorms to photograph everything from school children to Thoroughbred competitions to professional athletes to local festivals to corporate executives and beyond. She was hoisted into treetops to photograph zip-liners, perched in a kayak to stalk alligators in a foggy bayou, slipped through the crowd to reach concert main stages, and even tucked into a truck bed to race ahead of Harley riders to catch a shot of their approach.
Her warm, Texas-charming sense of humor combined with deep experience in the industry is rolled up into one capable package. Make no mistake, Ms. Means may look and sound “aw-shucks” unassuming, but she bites into a challenge like a tough-as-nails champion—letting nothing stand in her way as she maneuvers for the best photo possible. At one shoot during a softball game in Ocala, she was beaned in the back of her head by an errant ball, but continued to photograph the action until she finally succumbed to the pain and went to the hotel to nurse a concussion.
In a word, she is priceless. The result of our Ocala project is a fast friendship and a drop-dead gorgeous book.”
Last month, four of Lisa’s photographs from the Ocala project were entered in the 2023 State Fair of Texas Photography Contest. She won one first-place and three second-place prizes for her work.
We look forward to collaborating on many more book projects with this talented photographer!
Color portrait first-place winner, Double Diamond Farm jockey
Color landscape second-place winner, Silver Springs, Ocala, Florida
Black-and-white child portrait second-place winner, Skate-Away Skate Park, Ocala, Florida
