ST. JOHN PHOTOGRAPHY BIOS

Wayne St. John, Owner

Wayne St. John, who founded St. John Photography with his wife Mary, believes in one cardinal rule: “Never ASK anyone to smile – MAKE them smile!”   “Smiles,” Wayne says, “should be genuine, not forced; poses should be relaxed and natural.”Easing people into this space is Wayne’s forte… especially when it comes to children.   “Kids look you in the eye,” says Wayne, “and within seconds, they know if you’re a phony or if you are one of them… it’s a connection that’s spiritual… you either have it or you don’t.”

Throughout the years, Wayne has photographed thousands of families and children, but his relaxed and natural style with people has carried over into commercial photography, as well. National clients looking for candid-looking lifestyle photography have turned to Wayne to produce catalog images and eye- catching ad campaigns.

View some of Wayne’s creations on the commercial part of our site, schedule a short meeting with Wayne, and you’ll know right away, too!

Laura Hawkins,  Director of Operations

Laura moved to Charlotte with her husband and three children from the DC Metro area. She has been with SJP since 2008 and has over 25 years of experience in business, customer service & client relations. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, shopping and watching her youngest play soccer.

Stephanie Sanders, Customer Relations

The fabulous voice you hear when calling St John Photography is the wonderful Stephanie! Her job is to make you smile even when you aren’t having your picture taken. Stephanie is a Charlotte Native and currently lives in Matthews with her son Kylan. Stephanie enjoys being a social butterfly and spending her time with her friends and family.

Jolyane Vaillancourt, Client Manager

Jolyane is one of the newest additions to St John Photography. She was born and raised inQuebec, Canada, fluent in French, English and Spanish. Jolyane graduated from Winthrop University with Bachelors of Fine Arts in Interior design. Jolyane’s eye for detail and spunky personality is definitely an asset at St John Photography! 

Brandon Johnson, Photoshop Manager, School Division 

Brandon has lived in Pennsylvania, Oregon, and North Carolina. He is a land owner once, a father twice, a husband always, and a photographic artist even in his sleep.

Crystal Witmore, Photoshop Manager, Commercial Division 

Crystal is a Carolina native with a passion for sass!   She feels she is a   digital wizard in the land of Photoshop!

Mckenzie Ghantt, Photo Sorter 

Mckenzie is a stay at home mom who works seasonally in the sorting department.  She loves music, hanging out with her daughter, Lauren, and dancing crazy with her husband Jamie! 

 Cindy McCoy, Photographer 

Cindy is a Superhero kid photographer who’s been taking pictures since she was a kid! 

Dana Arndt Johnson, Photographer 

Dana graduated from Appalachian State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies with a Concentration in Fine Art Photography and a Minor in Computer Information Systems. Dana has been working with St John Photography since 2008 but also does a great deal of wedding photography. Currently, Dana resides in Ballantyne with her husband Chris, her dog Roxanne and cat Bernard.

Jen Murless, Photographer 

Jen picked up a camera before she was a teen and was hooked on nature photography. The irony is that she always kicked people out of her pictures back then, and today, ninety percent of her photography is children and families!Though her formal education led her to a Master’s in counseling, she has continually taken classes and workshops to improve her knowledge of photography and to improve her skills.   This past fall, as her youngest child headed to Kindergarten, she decided it was time to find a weekday outlet for her art, which lead her to St. John Photography.   “I truly enjoy photographing children outdoors at their schools whether it be color semi-formals or crazy BW candids.  How lucky I am to be able to do something I truly enjoy!!

Kelli Brinkley, Photographer 

When I was 12 years old my Dad gave me his old 35mm camera and I have been taking pictures ever since. There was something about seeing the world through the lens of a camera that felt incredibly natural to me. That passion led me to graduate from UNC-Charlotte with a BFA in Photography. My motivation for taking pictures is to capture those elusive, quiet moments that are so full of stories yet so fleeting and forgotten. For me, it’s within those seemingly quiet moments that my camera finds the truth.

Krista Faulkner, Photographer 

Krista’s love of photography began when she got her first camera at the age of 8 (a nice red Kodak 110).   She earned a BFA in Photography from BYU in 2003.  She has worked all over the country photographing everything from cars and architecture to weddings and landscapes.   She now enjoys life in North Carolina with her husband and twin boys and focuses her photography on children, babies and weddings.