Welcome to BMT Photography!

My name is Brett Thompson, I’m a photographer based in Livonia, Michigan.  I go to Churchill High School, which a lot of people reading this can relate to.  You might have another question, or more so a reaction:

“Wait, this kid is still in high school?  Why would I ever hire a high schooler for senior portraits??”

I hear you, but I’m not new to photography.  I’ve been surrounded by photography my whole life.  My family back before the pandemic had a business taking photos of color guard shows and selling prints to the competitors and their families.  Since I was a young kid filled with energy, my family would send me to run between the printing booth and the floor of the arena to exchange SD cards.  Every so often my grandpa would give me small photography lessons in between the color guards performances; once Covid hit the whole business model of the company crumbled, so both he and the company retired.  Years later, I began to pick up photography again because of my yearbook class in sophomore year.  I decided to be the photographer for CAPA (the performing arts program at Churchill).  And I began to quickly pick it up again, my first few performances were… rough.  But eventually I learned my exposure triangle and editing software.  Ever since then I’ve been refining my craft at every opportunity.  Performance is still my favorite subject by a mile.  I love dance, aerialist performances, fire twirling, you name it I’ve probably taken a photo of it.

“Ok… but why should you take my (or my kid’s) senior photos? You sound like you only shoot performing arts.”

I’ve been learning portraiture along with performing arts. I have taken classes on lighting in a professional studio, which I have adapted into my lighting outside of a studio with speedlites and my own strobes. In these classes I often found myself watching more experienced photographers direct models, so I’m well versed in how to pose as well. Of course, I’m still learning, there’s always something to learn. And soon enough I’ll have the opportunity to shadow for Focal Point Studios throughout the rest of this school year.

My self portraits are my most recent example of portraiture, however I have also been hired before for actual portrait jobs. Saint Mary’s Child Care Center hired me as their photographer for the graduating class of 2026, and I have done character headshots for theater productions. I have both worked in a professional studio and have worked in my own manufactured studio with my own equipment.

“Why did you start a website?

What can I expect?”

Well, I’ve noticed a lot of seniors complaining about the price of senior photos.  Photography is an expensive industry; it’s always been that way since its foundation.  I’m a broke high schooler. I’m happy when there’s a crisp 20 dollar bill in my pocket, so my prices are lower simply because I don’t need to make thousands off of every single job that I take; if I can afford gas I’m happy.  Larger photography companies often put arbitrary limits on certain aspects of the sessions that you can purchase and they limit the amount of outfits or digital copies to get you to upgrade your session to a more expensive one. Bring your whole wardrobe, because it’s fun!  Senior photo sessions should be special with no limit on what the student can wear.  Digital copies (at least all the good ones) will be sent to you for free with each session as well!

Here’s a link to my portfolio!

If you’re interested, take a look at my senior portrait prices!