Our site of the month winner for March 2011 is paullewis.us a web site about Paul Lewis and his remarkable photos.  We got to know Paul a little better and learned about his web site and his passion for photography.

How long have you hosted your site with Lunarpages and which hosting plan are you using?

Paul:  I have had a basic plan with Lunarpages for the past five years.

Describe your average visitor to paullewis.us.

Paul:  My usual visitors are people who received mailings, business cards, or had seen a link on a photography-related website.

Tell us a bit about your site and what you do there.

Paul:  My site is basically an online portfolio of my photography work.

Tell us about the design of your site. Did you design it yourself?

Paul:  I designed and programmed the site myself using Adobe Flash.

Do you shoot specific events or subjects?

Paul:  Most of what I shoot is planned in advance and arranged with either the people I will be shooting, or people who control property or buildings where I need access. I also sometimes encounter people or places through chance… they find me instead of myself finding them.

We noticed that you do not digitally manipulate your images. Why not?

Paul:  I prefer to find unusual subject matter and use proper lighting and technique instead of changing images digitally. The photographic transparency (slide) is a physical manifestation of what I shot. When scanning, my goal is to match the visual characteristics of the slide.

Tell us about your most memorable photo shoot.

Paul:  All of my photo-related experiences have been memorable, even if the conditions were horrible or the results weren’t what I expected. One anecdote… I once drove four hours each way (8 hours round-trip) with a goal of taking a single photograph. However, by finding another site near the first one, I ended up with more than I expected. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Does your online business sustain your lifestyle or do you have an additional job?

Paul:  My photography projects certainly end up costing more than they bring in. I wouldn’t call it a business. It’s a passion of mine that might end up being self-sustaining, but would never end up being profitable.

How has the internet helped your business?

Paul:  It makes it much easier for me to show my portfolio to people around the world.

How do you prefer to spend your offline time?

Paul:  Photography, record (33rpm/45rpm) and book collecting, and watching foreign and experimental film.

How has your experience been with us so far when using our social media resources (Twitter/Facebook)?

Paul:  I receive Lunarpages updates via Facebook… no complaints.

Have you contacted support and if so, did you use email or phone support? How was the experience?

Paul:  I needed assistance a couple of times in the past five years and found the phone and e-mail support to be very helpful and quick to respond.

Now, let’s have a bit of fun.

What is your favorite image?

Paul:  It’s impossible to pick one, but I have a deep respect for the work of photographer W. Eugene Smith. I find it astonishing how many beautiful photographs he shot in his career.

If you wrote a book, what would the title be?

Paul:  Hopefully it will be a photography book entitled “Paul Lewis”!

If you could be anyone for a day, who would it be and why?

Paul:  Any Neanderthal, your choice.

Would you ever be on a reality show? If yes, what kind?

Paul:  No, thanks!

Old school camera or new high tech?

Paul:  I only use older film cameras for my photography projects. I wouldn’t trade my old camera for a brand new digital SLR.

Would you rather eat haggis (Scottish) or thousand-year-old eggs (Chinese)?

Paul:  I’ve already eaten thousand-year-old eggs and have no desire to eat haggis, so give me another egg!

Twitter or Facebook?

Paul:  Can I answer “neither”?

Domain name you wished you owned?

Paul:  Google.com.

Thanks Paul!

If you would like to submit your site for Site of the month for April 2011, become a fan of Lunarpages on Facebook and then add your site to the post for April!