About Damon
Photography runs in my family — three generations deep. My grandfather was a WWII combat photographer who parachuted into Normandy. My father ran a commercial photo studio for decades. I grew up surrounded by cameras, lights, and the smell of darkroom chemicals. Before I ever turned the lens professional, I spent 35 years in corporate leadership. That combination — the craft inherited, the boardroom earned — is what I bring to every session.
Three Generations Behind the Lens
Jim Bates, 165th Photo Signal Company, 82nd Airborne
On D-Day 1944, my grandfather Jim Bates parachuted into Normandy with the 82nd Airborne Division as a combat photographer with the 165th Photo Signal Company — reportedly in the second plane over the drop zone, the generals wanting photographers on the ground first. He went on to film the Battle of the Bulge and the Cologne cathedral tank duel, some of the most iconic tank battle footage of World War II. He received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. His footage is featured in Spearhead, Adam Makos' New York Times bestseller about the Battle of the Bulge.
His son — my father — ran the Bamberger's photo studio for Macy's for decades, shooting catalog and commercial photography with large-format cameras. I grew up in that studio, surrounded by lights, lenses, and the mechanics of making people look their best on camera.
Leadership & Coaching
Before I came back to photography professionally, I spent 35 years in corporate leadership — at MassMutual, MetLife, and Manulife Financial — leading teams, driving product strategy, and serving as a company media spokesperson. I was involved in product design and development, led the MassMutual acquisition of MetLife's agency distribution, and our team's work earned patents and was featured in national television advertising. Along the way I was quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Business Insider.
For the last decade I've worked as a leadership consultant and executive coach, writing on leadership effectiveness — including a piece for The Enterprisers Project — and specializing in executive presence and team effectiveness. I hold an MBA from Boston University's Questrom School of Business and am a certified Bates ExPI™ coach. Read more about how the ExPI works →
Behind the Lens — Underwater
When I'm not photographing professionals, you'll find me underwater with a camera rig, photographing sharks, open-water pelagics, coral reef ecosystems, and shipwrecks. It's a completely different discipline — you can't rush or direct wildlife. You position yourself, read the environment, and be ready when the moment arrives. That patience translates directly to the studio.
What This Means for Your Session
I've sat in the chair my clients sit in. I've managed perception, built credibility, and made high-stakes first impressions in boardrooms and executive suites. I know firsthand how much a single image can shape how someone is received — before they say a word.
The ExPI framework I used to coach C-suite leaders on executive presence is the same lens I bring to understanding how presence translates through the camera. It's why sessions here aren't just about posing — they're about coaching you into an expression that's genuinely yours, and that reads the way you want to be read.
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