Good Morning Monday - Reporting From Lexington, Kentucky - Tim Kelly, Craig Minielly, And More

Good Morning Everybody,
Hope ya' all (good KY jargon) had a wonderful weekend. LaDawn and I headed out Saturday afternoon for a short drive south to good ol' Lexington, Kentucky. As I type this post this morning we continue to be enjoying the Spring KPPA Seminar. We arrived about 6 p.m. - got ourselves an adult beverage, joined our friend Rick Trummer, from a great lab - American Color Imaging, and just settled into relaxation mode.

A few minutes later, our friends Tim and Bev Walden made their appearance at the hotel. We were all heading out to dinner minutes later. Tim and Bev, whom I have blogged here before, are two of the best portraitists and photography teachers in the country. They also run one of the most successful portrait studios in the Midwest too.

Tim and Bev conceptualized the idea of "Relationship" portraiture a number of years ago and were marketing geniuses on spreading the word to their clients about this style of photography in and around the Lexington area. Subsequently their bookings jumped dramatically. Tim and Bev's concept was to bring family members together in meaningful ways through posing that showed the special relationship between those being photographed. Mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, brothers and sisters, mothers and sons..... There were so many photographers in their area copying the relationship style of family photography, that their marketing now reflects that they the one's to introduce the concept with their tag line, "Be sure it's a Walden Original."

Their idea took off like wildfire and they have continued to spread the word about their concept teaching extensively throughout the US and the world. Tim, Bev, and I have been friends for almost 30 years and it has been a thrill to watch their careers blossom. They have so much to share on lighting and posing, and more importantly, marketing, that you need to put them on your "must see" list whenever they come to a city near you. Check out Tim and Bev's web site right here and you will get an idea as to what I mean. Just browsing their images is a great education into itself - really, really an outstanding body of work.

A few minutes after the Walden's arrived, Tim Kelly and his wife Mitzi arrived with their two grown children, Julia and Michael. Tim and I have know of each other over many years, but never really spent much time together until this weekend. Tim, as I mentioned Friday, also is one of the finest portraitists in the country. We all (hello KY one more time) had a delicious dinner and a great time sharing, laughing and relating from the "old days".

Here we are from left to right: Mitzi, Tim, Yours truly, LaDawn, Tim, Bev, and Rick.

Tim Kelly was presenting the all-day program on Sunday. Tim's work is simply stunning in it's classic simplicity. Each image invites the viewer's participation with the subject. Tim showed us his super simple lighting set ups and gave us some great marketing tips. We learned a lot of useful information and LaDawn and I have over three pages of notes. Tim presented from his heart, truly sharing his passion of the art with the audience. Here are Tim's words that excited me the most from his presentation. Tim asks every client upon their arrival to his studio, "What is the most important thing I can do for you today?" That question gets right to the point of what he needs to accomplish during the photo session for his clients. "Why is this important?" Tim asks, because in his words, "Every session needs to be an ultimate success." Not only for the photographer but also for the client. Read those words again and measure what they mean. They affirm Tim's dedication to his art and his outstanding images speaks for itself. Here is a link to several of Tim's images right here. Tim also teaches extensively around the country and has a great series of instructional resources for photographers available on his web site right here.

We got back to the hotel, not too late and LaDawn and I were heading to our room when Craig Minielli walked up to join the crowd as were were all saying our good nights. Tim and Bev introduced LaDawn and I to Craig as they had just met Craig earlier in the year when they were presenting programs in British Columbia. Those of you who don't know Craig, well he is the inventor of the wildly successful Craig's Actions. Craig is a great photographer hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia. He had his first image published by the local newspaper at age 13! Craig quickly rose to the top of his profession in portrait, commercial, and editorial work. Check out his site available? at AuraPhotographics right here. Once you get there, be sure to check out his galleries - absolutely stunning work. This of Craig's work as sort of an inspiration Monday. What else has Craig been up to? It's his Craig's Actions. You can check out the Craig's Actions feature set right here. They have been featured over at Rob Galbraith's site and even received the coveted "Hot One" award from the Professional Photographers of America. His site is exciting to browse just seeing the "befores and afters ." Take a peek, I think you will enjoy the adventure. Craig was gracious enough to let me check out his actions, so I'll give you the low-down in the next few weeks.

Hey gang, that's it for me today. I'm typing these last words as I'm watching the opening of Craig's program this morning. The kick-off looks pretty exciting, so I'm signing off so I can see the rest of the program. I'll see everybody tomorrow for a very cool Lightroom Technique Tuesday.

Adios everybody, -David