Mike Kemp Photography

02/03/2026

I'm behind in posting images from Ainzlee's senior session! She brought such wonderful energy to her portraits.

11/10/2025

This is the look that I feel like judges make when they see my images in print competition. However, I guess the judges liked this one enough, because they gave me a merit for it in the Professional Photographers of America's monthly merit image review. And with that merit, I had enough to earn the PPA's Master of Photography degree. I've been working toward it for a couple of years, but now I've finally earned it! And, thanks to Steven Lance for sitting and scowling for me.

09/16/2025

In addition to photography, I do a little writing, too! Here's a feature I did for the latest issue of 501 LIFE Magazine.

Story and photos by Mike Kemp My cousin’s voice rang through my helmet intercom, “Keep your speed up!” as he closed in on my rear wheel. I was slipping the clutch, making a switchback that was both incredibly sharp and steep while climbing one of the three mountains that make up a fun tour of ...

06/24/2025

Sometimes, you get one for yourself after you've met the client's needs.

Odie had a cool hat on when he arrived for his recent headshot for the local school district, which I asked him to remove for the headshot.

But, I knew he wasn't leaving without me getting a portrait with that hat on. It just fit his demeanor. And, I knew it would be a black and white portrait, too.

01/13/2025

Even though I have a smaller role with 501 Life magazine than I have in the past, I still get to join in on special projects, such as this set of portraits I did for their "Five-Oh-Ones to Watch" issue. I enjoy the challenge of telling a story with my photos!

12/04/2024

When you have a niece that knocks her senior portraits out of the park, you make a point to break your drought of posting and get some of these shots out into the world. I can't believe she's already a senior!

07/23/2024

Since my last post, I've played with Ben's photos some more with competition in mind. A little flip, darkening and a conversion to black and white, and I came up with "I Just Need a Moment to Think."

This weekend, in the Arkansas Professional Photographers Association's Capture annual convention, it was awarded "Best Photograph of a High School Senior", a distinguished print award and was also awarded a Judge's Choice award by Terri Whittaker. I'm pleased that I was able to produce an award-winning portrait that can also be enjoyed by those who trust me with telling their stories!

05/02/2024

I make sure to get what the client wants, but I also sneak a couple to make me happy.

Two of my favorites from Ben’s senior portrait session.

04/09/2024

I really wasn't going to get too serious about photographing the eclipse today, but once I got going I couldn't help myself. It was an incredible thing to experience firsthand!

03/05/2024

I was flattered to by recognized by in the March issue of 501 LIFE Magazine for my bronze award in the International Photographic Competition, but the quote from A.J.'s mother was extremely humbling. Being able to tell the stories of our community is one of the most rewarding aspects of doing what I do!

01/08/2024

I scheduled Caleb for a late-afternoon shoot for 501 Life magazine, knowing that I had to work not only around my schedule and lighting concerns but his school routine as well. With the sun quickly setting, I got a text from him that he was about 10 minutes behind schedule. No worries, I just set the light and waited for him to arrive. Once he was there, I turned out several different looks in about 10 minutes' time.

I take pride in knowing that whether it's a teen tennis star or a busy CEO, I can produce results in a pretty short amount of time. Let me know if you need to fit me into your busy schedule!

09/29/2023

Mary Caroline was so much fun to photograph. She went with my ideas and had a few of her own, and provided the energy to match all of the things we tried. She made my job easy!