Thanks Scott!

What a great week! Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend two very special photography seminars taught by the world famous Scott Robert Lim of Scott Robert Photography. Scott is one of the top wedding photographers in the world and he was here teaching as part of his NextLevel seminar national tour.

Now,for those of you who don't know Scott is the reason or to "blame" for me returning to photography. I was heavily involved in photography in High School some twenty-something it's-been-so-long-I-forgot years ago. When I joined the military I stayed active in photography while overseas, but eventually just started using a simple point and shoot camera. And, after 15 years of using my point and shoot camera it broke.

While surfing online to find another model I "stumbled" across Scott's website and was blown away. Although I am a marketing/advertising professional by "day" I had never seen images like his. I literally viewed every one of his then 1,500 images and studied them over and over again. Well, to make a long story short I decided to buy a SLR instead of another point and shoot camera just to see if I could create images like his. And, as the old saying goes "the rest is history."

So, after years of what Scott called "stalking him online" I finally got to meet him in person. You can imagine how cool it was to have the artist who's responsible for getting me involved in photography again actually teaching me in person. As all of the southern California dudes say "I'm stocked!"

Well, I'm still not creating images like his but after both of his seminars and purchasing his actions and presets, I'm getting close. What was most enjoyable was not the instruction (although excellent) but was Scott's kind and generous heart. You would think that someone who "kicks it" with Arnold Schwarzenegger and professional athletes all day in LA would be stuck up. Quite the contrary, Scott is just as down to earth and humble as anyone. And, I believe that is why God is blessing him so as Scott's entire approach is not centered on him, but on helping and sharing with as many people as possible. Gotta run, will share more later; but if you haven't seen his work make sure you checkout his website. Be blessed and keep shooting!

(Scott asked for images from us and used them to show how to use his Lightroom presets and Photoshop actions to create his signature look.)


(Scott spent a lot of time answering our questions and sharing what he has learned that separates the "average" photographers from the "great" ones.)


(Tools of the trade: Canon 5D w/24-85mm 2.8 lens & Nikon D200 w/24-85mm 2.8 lens. I'll take them both!)


(Here, Scott is showing us how to use the natural lighting inside of an ordinary room to create great portraits. He was also showing me for the 100th time why I need to switch from Nikon to Canon)




(The portraits he created during this session were wonderful. Before this workshop I would have thought that there wasn't enough light and grabbed my flash. But, Scott showed us what makes a great portrait and how to create one without a flash.)




(One of the photographers in attendance had the cutest little baby boy. And, you know how I love to photograph children so I couldn't resist. But, check this out - this is my baby portrait...)


(...and this is Scott's. I've got some ground to cover and work to do as none of my portraits from the workshop looked like this.)


(Thank you Scott for spending so much time with us and for also giving so much of yourself. Through your blog I've gotten to know you and your family despite never meeting you. But, after meeting you in person, I must tell you that you are an even "cooler" dude than I had imagined. God is going to bless you richly for your generosity and kindness. And, because I have so much respect for you as an artist, not to mention the 100 "hints" to get a Canon, I will go ahead and pick-up a 5D. Look out brother, you're creating another passionate and gifted wedding photographer. But, then again that is your heart's desire to begin with.)