Potomac Portrait Photographer Eloquently Captures Expression

All it took was one image to reveal itself for a young budding photographer to take the bait.

One frame—out of an entire roll of film—was printable. But to Gary D. Lloyd that one moment, that one image, would serve as the catalyst for a career that has spanned nearly four decades.

“After seeing that image come up in the developing tray, I was hooked,” said Lloyd, owner of in Potomac Village.

Using a Kodak Instamatic 104 camera loaned to him by an eighth-grade classmate at , Lloyd said he learned how to process the Tri-X black-and-white film by reading an instruction manual. And then it took weeks of pestering the assistant principal to get access to the school’s darkroom.

All this for the one salvageable photo: a layup during a high school basketball state playoff.

Lloyd’s first paid photography job was covering a father and son golf outing in 1969 at Burning Tree Golf and Country Club in Bethesda. At , he served as a photographer for the school’s yearbook and earned the nickname “Flash,” which for a photographer is especially apropos.

After graduating in 1971, Lloyd arrived in New York City to attend the New York Institute of Photography. But it was his time behind the wheel of a cab—to help pay for school— that may have planted the seed for his eventual area of specialization: portrait photography.

“I’m a people person. In Manhattan, people would get in your cab and just tell you to drive. That happened to me once a week—at least,” Lloyd said, adding that passengers were just looking for someone to talk to.

After a year in the bright lights of the Big Apple and a stint as a cabbie for a company that could have been the model for the TV sitcom Taxi, Lloyd started his first photography studio in 1972. Next year marks his 40th anniversary as a photographer.

Lloyd’s ability to capture expressions and body language—and to note subtleties—serve as an essential ingredient to his success. He asks that his clients assist him in encapsulating their expression—who they are—by participating in a short question and answer session.

“You can’t just show up in the studio for a portrait. Have to come in for an interview—this helps me get the expression,” Lloyd said.

The art of documenting people—celebrity, family, friends or pet—through portraiture is an art form that seems to speak to Lloyd, a first generation artist in his family. He said that his mother, who passed away in 2004, had portraits of her children in her living room that she cherished.

“[You] couldn’t offer her any amount of money for those portraits. She treasured those for her entire life,” Lloyd said, and then quietly noted, “You don’t know the value of what I do until you miss the people around you.”

Lloyd credits fellow photographer and colleague George Muerer, now deceased, and his wife Louise for their seasoned skills and professional mentoring through the years.

“George and I had lectured together; I learned from him,” Lloyd said. Louise managed [the studio] for about five years, then retired. A lot of my attention to detail came from being with someone like George.”

Although Lloyd’s uncle would tell him that "You got to grow up one day and get a job," it seems that a seed planted in middle school has grown into a rather brilliant career.

“I’m the luckiest person in the world. I get to do what I wanted to do since seventh, eighth grade," Lloyd said. "Who gets to do that?”

The Lloyd-Meurer Portrait Studio is currently offering a FREE portrait session and 20 percent off any purchase up to $1,000. Go to http://www.portraitphotographer.com/patch and fill out the form to receive this special promotion.

Please note the studio has moved to a new location, the Semmes Building at 10220 River Rd., Suite #4 in Potomac Village.