Tex Kelly Productions
Editorial photography portfolio image from Point Arena Lighthouse in Point Arena, California

Photographer · Point Arena, California

Photographer in Point Arena, California.

Editorial, commercial, and lifestyle photography. Award-winning, FAA Part 107 aerial-capable.

Inquire Call (707) 382-1108
Tex Kelly, photography for Point Arena, California

Hi. I'm Tex.

Welcome to editorial photography, Point Arena edition.

I'm a North Coast filmmaker and photographer, voted Humboldt County's Best. Editorial, commercial, and brand photography in Point Arena runs across portrait sessions, hospitality and restaurant brand work, real estate listings, and the kind of long-form editorial that turns a small business into a recognizable local brand.

My job is to put you, your team, or your space in front of the most cinematic light Point Arena and the surrounding Mendocino County have to offer, and to do it in a way that doesn't feel staged. No corporate-stock smiles. No templated compositions. Just real, intentional, editorial photography that reads as a brand asset, not a stock photo.

Now booking Point Arena photography sessions and brand campaigns.

Book your Point Arena session →
Photography in Point Arena, California. Tex Kelly Productions

A note from Point Arena

Editorial photography in Point Arena, California, the Point Arena Lighthouse, Stornetta Public Lands sea-bluff cliffs, and Manchester State Beach. The southernmost stretch of the Mendocino coast, with dramatic Pacific overlooks rivaling Big Sur. Voted Humboldt County's Best Filmmaker.

The Approach

Photography in Point Arena. Made for this place.

The Point Arena location

Point Arena backdrops, picked on purpose.

Point Arena is the southernmost anchor of the Mendocino coast, the iconic Point Arena Lighthouse (115 feet, the tallest on the West Coast), the Stornetta Public Lands sea-bluff trail network, and Manchester State Beach all within 15 minutes. Most Point Arena photography is destination editorial: engagement sessions at the lighthouse, brand work for the small-town hospitality economy, and dramatic Pacific cliff editorial that rivals the look of Big Sur with a fraction of the crowds.

Photography, Point Arena, California
Editorial portrait, Mendocino County.
Photography, Point Arena, California
On location, editorial direction.

The Point Arena session

No templated compositions. Real editorial direction.

A Point Arena session moves with the light. We start the brand or portrait block on the Stornetta Public Lands trails, where the bluffs hold the sun late and the blowholes give us something the camera reads as motion. Then we walk to the lighthouse for the wide overlook. No set poses. We give a little direction, keep people moving, and let the cliff edge do the rest.

The Mendocino County scouting advantage

Point Arena, Scouted for years.

The reward for knowing this stretch is timing. The Stornetta bridges sit in shade while the lighthouse base is still lit, so we shoot one before the other. Manchester State Beach, ten minutes north, opens up when the wind drops in the late afternoon and the driftwood throws long shadows. This is the southernmost end of the Mendocino coast, and it clears differently than Big Sur does.

Photography, Point Arena, California
Hometown editorial, Mendocino County.

Now booking, Point Arena

Now booking Point Arena photography for the year ahead.

Point Arena sessions and brand campaigns book on a rolling calendar, weekday brand work fills first, weekend portrait dates fill around it. Send a note with your timeline and we'll find the right window.

Reserve your Point Arena session → or call (707) 382-1108

Recent Work

Photographer in Point Arena. A look at the work.

  • Outdoor senior portrait session at golden hour
  • Senior portrait against backlit golden-hour grasses
  • Arcata High athletic senior portrait under stadium lights
  • Special Olympics basketball moment at Eureka High School
  • Available-light editorial portrait, three-quarter pose
  • Open-shade editorial portrait against soft greenery
  • Plated dish styled for a Hunan-restaurant brand shoot
  • Editorial portrait with negative-space composition
  • Surprise proposal in Fern Canyon under the redwood canopy
  • Selective-color basketball action. Special Olympics Eureka
  • Multi-generation family portrait in natural North Coast light
  • Drone aerial above the 2025 Eureka Oyster Festival crowd
  • Backlit editorial frame with halo rim-light
  • Cinematic portrait with shallow depth of field
  • Environmental portrait against open Pacific landscape
  • Window-light portrait, low ISO, soft falloff
  • Side-profile editorial portrait at the coast
  • Mid-action documentary capture during a brand shoot
  • Soft overcast portrait, even diffused light
  • Editorial portrait with painterly background falloff
  • Wide environmental frame at the working waterfront
  • Close portrait with directional sidelight
  • Editorial frame with strong negative space
  • Quiet candid moment between subject and environment
  • Tex Kelly Productions editorial portrait, quiet light
  • Low-angle environmental editorial frame
  • Three-quarter editorial portrait, classic lighting
  • Sony cinema-system editorial frame, high dynamic range
  • Documentary-style editorial frame, candid expression
  • Cinematic portrait, shallow depth and warm grade
  • Editorial portrait against a textured natural backdrop
  • Hard-light directional editorial portrait
  • Editorial frame on iPhone backup unit during a brand shoot
  • Eye-level intimate editorial portrait
  • Editorial frame at twilight with mixed ambient light
  • Cinematic environmental editorial, wide composition
  • Subject-in-motion editorial frame
  • Soft natural-light editorial frame, low contrast grade
  • Available-light editorial frame from a North Coast brand session
  • Backlit silhouette editorial portrait
  • Editorial portrait with shallow focus and warm tones
  • Tightly-cropped editorial portrait, expressive framing
See full photography portfolio →

More from the studio

Beyond the still frame. Selected wedding films.

Photography here lives alongside a full cinematic wedding practice. Here's the moving-picture side, feature-length wedding documentaries and editorial wedding films. Click any thumbnail to play in place.

  • David & Monica's Wedding Documentary, 35 Years Before They Met, His Dad Saved Her Dad's Life

    Feature-length wedding documentary

  • Brunton Wedding Film

    Northern California wedding cinematography

  • Shane & Sofia Weekly. A 45-Minute Wedding Documentary

    Northern California long-form wedding film

  • Mrs. & Mrs. McClurg

    Cinematic wedding film

  • An Emotional, Romantic & Cinematic Wedding Film. Trinidad Elopement

    Trinidad, California elopement

DaVinci Resolve wedding-film edit in progress. Tex Kelly Productions editing suite

The Editing Process

Months in the edit suite, curating the story.

A wedding film isn't shot in a day, it's made over months. Hours of raw cinema footage, multi-camera audio, drone aerial, and second-shooter coverage get assembled, color-graded, and scored frame by frame in the edit suite.

Every transition is intentional. Every cut earns its keep. The goal is a film couples actually want to re-watch, not a montage of clips. That kind of editorial discipline is the difference between a wedding film and a wedding highlight reel, and it's why these turnarounds run weeks instead of days.

Venues + Locations

Where I shoot photography in Point Arena.

  • Point Arena Lighthouse

    115-foot lighthouse, the tallest on the West Coast. Dramatic editorial backdrop with Pacific overlook.

  • Stornetta Public Lands

    BLM sea-bluff trail network, bridges, blowholes, and cliff-edge Pacific overlooks.

  • Manchester State Beach

    Wide open Pacific beach 10 minutes north, driftwood compositions and Pacific surf editorial.

What's Included

What's included with photography in Point Arena.

  • Award-Winning Photography

    Medium-format-quality stills with the dynamic range to handle harsh sun, golden hour, and overcast equally well, print-grade detail at billboard scale.

  • Drone Aerial (when relevant)

    FAA Part 107 commercial drone work integrated when the project calls for elevation, coastal, redwood, and architectural scale shots.

  • Print-quality Files

    Full-resolution edited JPEGs and TIFFs, ready for billboard-scale printing or web-optimized for digital deployment.

  • Private Online Gallery

    Password-protected gallery for clients and approved guests, easy downloads, easy sharing, no third-party watermarks.

  • Licensing as Needed

    Commercial and editorial usage rights negotiated at proposal stage, broadcast, print, and digital licensing terms made clear up front.

How It Works

How it works in Point Arena.

  1. 01

    Consultation

    We talk on the phone or meet at the Eureka studio. I learn what you need photographed, when, and what the deliverables look like.

  2. 02

    Proposal & Booking

    Within 24 hours of our call, I send a written proposal with scope, timeline, and pricing. Signed agreement and deposit reserves the date.

  3. 03

    Pre-shoot Planning

    Location scouting, shot list refinement, and any logistics coordination, venue permits, model releases, scheduling.

  4. 04

    The Shoot

    Day-of execution. professional camera setup, drone where called for, ambient and supplemental lighting as the project requires.

  5. 05

    Edit & Delivery

    2–3 weeks for portrait/editorial, 6–8 weeks for full wedding galleries. Rush delivery available on request for press deadlines.

Investment

Photography pricing is project-specific. Send a note describing what you need. Tex replies within 24 hours with a tailored proposal.

Photographer in Point Arena. FAQs

Frequently asked questions.

  • Can I shoot an engagement session at the Point Arena Lighthouse?
    Yes, the Point Arena Lighthouse permits paid photography sessions with advance coordination and a small location fee. We handle the booking as part of the session package. The lighthouse + Stornetta combo gives 90 minutes of dramatic destination editorial in a tight geographic radius.
  • How does Point Arena compare to Big Sur for coastal photography?
    Point Arena delivers comparable dramatic cliff-and-Pacific editorial backdrops with a fraction of Big Sur's crowds and permit complexity. For couples wanting that Big-Sur visual register without the logistics. Point Arena is the answer.
  • What kind of photography do you do?
    Editorial, commercial, lifestyle, and event photography, wedding photography, senior portraits, surprise proposals, brand and product shoots, real estate, and editorial features. The same professional camera setup and the same eye across every category, delivered across both California and Northern Arizona service areas.
  • What's the difference between hiring a photographer for weddings vs. portraits vs. commercial work?
    The skills overlap, but the deliverables and process are different. Weddings are full-day, time-sensitive, and emotionally driven. Portraits are 1–2 hour location-driven sessions. Commercial work involves art direction, brand alignment, and licensing. Tex Kelly Productions handles all three with the same standard.
  • Do you do photo + video together?
    Yes. Most weddings, brand campaigns, and event work include both, full photo and film coverage delivered together so you don't compromise on either side. Solo coverage is also available, just plan accordingly.
  • How fast do I get the photos?
    Standard turnaround is 2–3 weeks for portrait and editorial sessions, 6–8 weeks for full wedding galleries. Rush turnaround is available for press, deadlines, and yearbook submissions, let Tex know your deadline up front.
  • What about prints and licensing?
    All clients get full-resolution print files included in their package. Commercial and editorial clients can negotiate licensing terms (web-only, print, broadcast, etc.) at the proposal stage. Print orders directly through Tex are also available.

Nearby photography cities

Photography near Point Arena, other locations I shoot.

Flexible on where you shoot? Many clients book a hometown location + a destination second location in the same day. Below are the other cities where I'm currently booking photography, same playbook, same editorial eye, different backdrop.

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