Ok, super cheesy yearbook title but it’s for real. Let me explain: I was chosen to be one of six people to attend a studio lighting workshop taught by my lighting idol, Zack Arias. Not only that, but this was going to be broadcast live to the internet for the course of 3 days. Except for one person, the rest of the group came from all over, Virginia, Los Angeles, Salem, and even Canada. The course was extensive with Zack teaching everything from the fundamentals of lighting to working with models, even touching on how to approach investing in gear. On any given day, there were about 16,000 people watching from all over the world! That’s huge, and every time someone’s website would get mentioned, it was pretty much guaranteed to crash due to traffic overloads. We even had a band play a set to end day two, which was freaking awesome. Day 3 came, and we got put to the test, shooting live with Zack critiquing us. Luckily I went last while Zack and another person were shooting so not much attention was paid to me fumbling around. He finished the workshop by dunking a model in a fish tank to get some underwater shots, also very awesome.
All in all, it was an amazing experience but I’ll have to admit it was mostly due to the friendships I made. I would’ve gotten the same info watching live for the most part, but I wouldn’t have met such great people. The other 5 in my group are all amazing photographers and extremely awesome individuals. We hung out every day and night, to the point where I nearly lost my voice from talking so much (mostly over music). To the group, I loved the time we spent together and Aileen, I owe you about 100 miles worth of chauffer service on your next visit. To Zack and his crew, you guys are top notch for real. Nothing but pure humility and southern hospitality, and I don’t think I could thank you guys enough. I can’t forget the CreativeLIVE crew who were on top of their game, you wouldn’t believe the amount of production they put into this. And thanks to Chase Jarvis as well for not only being behind this but also hosting a party at his studio for us
Be sure to check out everyone’s sites below!
Guy with beard: Zack Arias
Studio manager to guy with beard: Dan Depew
Band: Head Like a Kite
Model in Argyle: Mattson the teenage pimp.
The Oceanic Six:
Eric Krebs, the Seattle native stalking the stars
Rachel Thurston, the heavy breathing LA rockstar
My ugly grill courtesy of Ruby Slippers aka Rachel
Jordan Cartwright, the ultra-positive Canadian
Aileen Reilly, the supermom chauffer
Nicholas Lopez: the guy who stayed on Aurora.
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