constructive way of encouraging his students that was never critical. “We’d ask him what he thought of our work and he’d always turn the question back around on us. He’d ask ‘Do you like it?’ He would never tell his students if he liked something or didn’t like something. He was there to help you achieve the results you wanted. He’d just say ‘It doesn’t matter if I like it. It only matters if you like it.’” Chuck would assist Hill in the studio and on location, loading and moving cameras, lights and other equipment. He once helped out during a big budget promotional campaign involving a major soccer equipment manufac- turer. The shoot took place at Munich’s Olympic Stadium. “There were models and the whole bit,” Chuck said. “I was hooked.” Chuck would be required to submit a portfolio for acceptance as an Army photogra- pher.
“I was told it was
uncommon to make it on your first attempt, but I put one together and made it the first time I tried,” Chuck said. So now, not only
was Chuck a telecommu- nications technician, he was also a photographer. He had security clear- ance and was able to do work that most photogra- phers couldn’t. “I was able to keep people out of trouble
ton, D.C., to Kansas City. He has accumulated so many unusual experiences as a wedding photographer that friends say he should write a book. He once helped put out a fire during a ceremony that was started by cigarette tossed carelessly into chapel hedges. He has stories about missing rings and the one about the bride who didn’t wear a slip. There was the time he patiently directed traffic after an accident at a railroad crossing forced wedding-goers to take a lengthy detour in order to reach a rural church. “I got there right before the service started and told them I’d catch up,” Chuck recalls. “We had to go back and recreate some shots, but it all worked out.” Chuck has also worked countless bar and bat mitzvahs. “I’m not Jewish,
but I started doing those about ten years ago. I knew a photographer who did them and had two taking place on the same day. He asked me if I wanted to do one. We talked and I agreed to do it. I’ve probably done 150 bar and bat mitzvahs in Kansas City. In fact, I have one I’m doing in December that will be third one for same family. I have done every one of their bar and bat mitzvahs. It’s interesting. That’s a whole circle in and of itself.”
Chuck considers
Chuck Fisher is owner of Complete Photographic Magic. A sample of his portfolio is on display at Antique Alley, located a mile and a half south of Honey Creek Bridge in Grove.
because there were things that weren’t supposed to be seen by those outside of military channels,” Chuck said. “They liked having me around and it was fun. That was really when I started thinking about photography as a profession.” Chuck’s career as a professional photographer com- menced when he returned to the states in 1979. “I was taking pictures and people knew I was an army
photographer,” he said.
It wasn’t long before he was asked to do a wedding. “I bought a book and learned everything I could about wedding photography. I took notes and had a note card taped on my arm, kind of like a quarterback, so I would remember all the shots I wanted to get.”
That wedding in Pennsylvania in 1979 would be the
first of many. Chuck says he has done hundreds of wed- dings across a large portion of the country, from Washing-
himself a “generalist” when it comes to his photography. “I don’t specialize
in any one thing,” He said. “I always say I will do anything except jump out of a perfectly good airplane.” Chuck’s lens has seen it all—weddings, portraits and senior pictures are all popular jobs but merely scratch the surface of his expertise. He has done high profile work, including shooting fashion shows for famous designer Tony Bowls. Over a hundred girls taking turns on the runway, and Chuck has less than 20 seconds each pass to get the shots he needs.
He shot the Kansas City Blues & Jazz Festival seven years running, capturing images that were used by the promoter to secure sponsorships.
“Every job is different,” Chuck said. “Doing that festival, we were working everywhere—backstage, on-
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