My name is Vincent Lerz. In June of 2005, I took a leap of faith and left a twenty-year career in photojournalism to start my own photography studio. During all those years, nobody seemed to be able to remember, spell, or pronounce my last name, so I got in the habit of introducing myself as “Vince.” When we were throwing around possible names for my new company, I wanted people to remember me from my newspaper days, so “Photography by Vince” was born. In hindsight, the name should have been “Photography by Vince and Lisa Jo.” Lisa Jo is my wife and we have been married for twelve years. Lisa Jo and I have become a prominent photography tag team here in the Shenandoah Valley.

Lisa Jo is a talented artist and a great second photographer. When it comes to photographing children, we complement each other like no other photography team. Lisa Jo will talk and play games with the children, and like magic we capture one precious moment after another. At weddings we are able to be in two places at once, capturing both the bride and the groom as they get ready for their special day. Together, we capture images that tell the complete story of your special day. I am and always will be a photojournalist at heart.

I am a graduate of Fort Defiance High School, class of 1980. I graduated from the Woodland School of Photography, White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia, in 1984. I started my career working as a wedding photographer at a studio in Staunton, Virginia. When an opening at The Staunton News Leader came available in June of 1985, I was hired as a staff photographer. I was promoted to Chief Photographer in 1995. I am an award-winning photojournalist with nineteen Virginia Press Association awards and a Gannett Well Done award. My work has been published in countless newspapers, books, magazines, the Associated Press, and Gannett News Services. Lisa Jo, my stepson Cody, and I are big fans of Jimmy Buffet and belong to the “Fins of the Valley” Parrothead club. As a family, we also enjoy camping, Caribbean cruises, and participating in the Boy Scouts of America. Cody and I like NASCAR and the Redskins while Lisa prefers the Dallas Cowboys.

Vince

2009

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