israel groveman photography bio picture
  • welcome to my photography blog!

    Thanks for visiting! I am a commercial and wedding photographer in the Washington DC region, and I love to travel. Please feel free to contact me ANY time at idgphotography@gmail.com, or 240-994-7084. I ALWAYS respond within 24 hours.  

    I hope this is a place where you not only get to see some really exciting displays of my images, but also a place where you can get to know me better, the way I think, and the way I see the world.

    I am a very passionate, adventurous, and creative person, and in addition to photography, I have been privileged to get extensive and varied experience in the realms of music, writing, film making, and more.  I throw my sense and my experience in all these realms into every aspect of my photo taking.  When I shoot for you, you get the rapt attention, sharp focus, and dedicated intensity I have devoted to every creative endeavor I've been involved in for my entire life.  I love to shoot, and I love to shoot for you.

    Thanks again for visiting!


    -Israel David Groveman

Leo and Melissa Parris | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Last November, I had the privilege of shooting the wedding of Leo and Melissa Parris in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are a really fun couple to shoot. I love the height difference between them, and how it brings something unique to the framing of many photos, and I love the obvious passion they have for one another and the life they have been given together.  There were a lot of tears and laughter in this wedding – a very blessed couple.

Leo is the brother of a good friend of mine, Noelle Huie, one of the violin players for the band Reilly. As some of you know, I am also a violin player, and I have known the Parris family for ages partly because of this.

Wonderful families coming together!! Andy Farmer, Melissa’s Dad, provided some of the most dramatic father-daughter photos I think I’ve seen yet. My little girl is 7 months, and I’m just beginning to learn why.;-)

None of us get here without great parents and a lot of prayer.

Gotcha, buddy!!:)


I love Melissa’s expressions here, and the depth towards her husband they portray.






Yahoo!

Leo and Melissa had a wonderful old car for portraits. Though it was rainy, we drove around and got some great shots.











The reception was packed full of tears and laughter as well – when I say “animated” couple, here’s the proof!!:)

This father-daughter dance was incredible.






Leo and Melissa didn’t just sway back and forth for their first dance – they made it lots of fun!


Congratulations guys, on your new lives together!!

Obligatory “Snow-Mageddon” Post | Cora Shiloh

Well, as most of the world knows, DC got a TON of snow this past weekend, and more coming! Of course, this would be a normal snow for a place like Wyoming or New York, but I’ll go along with the hype.  :)

These are just a few shots I got, didn’t really get out much – but, it gave me an opportunity to do some shots of my daughter, who in my devotion to client work, has not gotten as many pictures taken of her as I’d like. She is very precious.

The pictures I got are ultra, ultra low light, so I was practicing holding still, and getting to the bleeding edge of ISO and shutter speed. I somehow managed to stick with ISO 800 and I’m pleased with the result.   Straight out of camera!

February 8, 2010 - 11:18 pm

Ruthie - Israel your kids are so so cute. Nice shots.

February 9, 2010 - 10:24 am

Alycia - So precious…love my sweet little niece. Great snow shot too! Miss you guys. =)

February 9, 2010 - 11:08 pm

Johannah - these are adorable Israel. i love them all!

February 10, 2010 - 8:00 pm

sandra groveman - She is very special…and so are the photos..

Marcus Shirock | Conan The Barbarian

“Know, O Prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the rise of the Sons of Aryas, there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars – Nemedia, Ophir, Brythunia,Hyperborea, Zamora with its dark-haired women and towers of spider-haunted mystery, Zingara with its chivalry, Koth that bordered the pastoral lands of Shem, Stygia with its shadow-guarded tombs, Hyrkania whose riders wore steel and silk and gold. But the proudest kingdom of the world was Aquilonia, reigning supreme in the dreaming west. Hither came Conan the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the earth under his sandled feet.”

Robert E. Howard – The Coming of Conan

Well, I can now talk a bit more openly about the part Marcus Shirock was up for. Marcus was one of the people being considered as Conan for the remake/reboot/new version of Conan The Barbarian. The movie will be directed by Marcus Nispel, director of “Pathfinder” and a series of horror-film remakes, and is still in pre-production. Just two weeks ago, they announced who was cast as Conan, and unfortunately, it wasn’t Marcus.

There are many people, as well as people within the movie production studio who favored not only Marcus Shirock’s look, but also his ability to transform into Conan as proved in his audition. I will say, personally, that in working with him, his idea of Conan as a character is not just an imitation or mere knock-off of Schwarzenegger… it is in tandem with Marcus own personality and form, and is more in keeping with the slightly more agile and intelligent Conan that Robert E. Howard originally wrote.  We had a lot of great discussions about film making as we shot.

You can see more pictures from our session here.

Reid Blacker | Infant Shoot

Although shooting kids and infants is not my main focus as a photographer, I absolutely love taking pictures of them. Having two of my own kids, I know something of that eternal, inseparable human bond that is the essence of human civilization – the essence of purpose, focus, connection, and direction, and often even striving.

A world of truth and evidence of existence, mystery, and wonder is contained in the eyes of an infant – and even more so when you see the way they lovingly gaze at their parents. I love the way Reid is looking at his parents in these shots, even at only two months old. I love the way he seems to be basking in his Father’s arms. Would that we all work hard to maintain and improve and intensify those loves and bonds of earth that will eventually slip our grasp, but are incomparably priceless in light of most of what we encounter here on Earth.

Marcus Shirock | Sundance Film Festival

Here are my favorite images from the Marcus Shirock portrait session!  I’m really excited to unveil some of these additions to my portfolio.   Marcus is an actor in LA, and a former football champ.  He was recently one of 40 people chosen from California to audition for the part of a very famous warrior – and no, it’s not “Robin Hood.”  When I shot with him, the goal was to capture as much as we could in a day, and we ended up having time for about 3-4 different looks.  Marcus is as gung-ho and committed as he looks – without question.  It is one of the coldest days I can remember we were shooting without tree cover amidst ice floes on the Potomac River – I was freezing myself, and I had Under Armour and North Face covering me.  He was dedicated. There are very few actors/models who would go as far as Marcus went to get these shots.   The chain mail shirt he was wearing part of the time weighs more than 60 pounds, and along with the freezing weather, the modeling conditions were very challenging.

Marcus will be using these images to create a press kit for himself at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, on January 21st, 2010.

Marcus’ grandfather, Chief Turkey Tayac, of the Piscataway Indians, was the last chief who was born in the 19th century to die in the 20th.  He is buried in a State Park across from Mt. Vernon, the home of our first President, George Washington.  We shot these photos in the park itself – it was the first time Marcus had been back for 17 years.

This first shot represents about six hours of work in Photoshop – and it is probably one of my very favorites from the entire shoot.  Although we didn’t shoot in the mountains, it sure felt cold enough for it.

The goal with this type of work is to go for something that looks manufactured with boosted drama, without losing too much of the original detail. With my black and whites, I specifically targeted a 1940’s era tonal balance that was often used in actor headshots.

Here in this next shot, in my post-processing, I was specifically targeting a color palette and grain mixture that would evoke a movie made sometime inbetween 1970 and 1980.

A bit more Photoshop, just for fun.

I didn’t have an action that created a specific color palette I wanted that is connected to a movie Marcus auditioned for – so I created my own filter using reds, browns, and golds.  I like how it came out.

My clients get multiple copies of the best images like this – so they have some to choose from.

Last but not least, I had some fun and created a mini poster using some stock photography that I already owned. I had a great time working with you, Marcus.

January 15, 2010 - 11:55 pm

Alycia - Israel, these are absolutely incredible!! Great work.

January 16, 2010 - 11:21 am

dan - first shot is amazing. great photos..keep up the good work!

January 16, 2010 - 5:23 pm

Diana Kay - This is a very intense shoot – so dramatic and colorful…amazing!

January 17, 2010 - 3:25 am

Daniel - Awesome stuff, Izzy. Hmm…the sword says “Robin of Locksley”… I wonder which warrior he’s portraying.

January 17, 2010 - 7:41 pm

David R - Such amazing pictures Israel, I pray that your business will expand even further…

January 18, 2010 - 1:21 pm

sandra groveman - incredible….so artistic..your canvas is indeed the lens..what a fan i have become!!

January 20, 2010 - 4:33 pm

Sarah P - Awesome job, Israel! Your preferred styles of processing go really well with this type of shoot! I especially liked the first one and the second to last.

January 21, 2010 - 10:23 pm

Jeremy Collins - Israel – great stuff, really great. Personally, I can’t take the mesh armor and headdress shots seriously. The other stuff is awesome though.

January 21, 2010 - 11:11 pm

Israel David Groveman - Thanks everyone!

January 24, 2010 - 5:08 pm

Stephen Bates - Excellent shots. That Marcus was passed over for the role of this ‘famous warrior’ is an absolute travesty. He would have been perfect.

January 25, 2010 - 9:14 pm

Samun Mimbenge - Agreed, Stephen. A real shame.

January 26, 2010 - 12:26 pm

26AM - Those are some amazing shots and some great post-processing!! Love it!