Casey Templeton Photography

If you happen to be one of the 21 people that read my blog, I apologize for my lack of blogging. I feel a responsibility to explain why I do not blog as often as I should.

My Niche

I think any successful photographer should find a niche. I’ve had the great opportunity the past few years to work with some of the largest corporations in the world and I am forever grateful. The work I’m doing though, is not for their advertisement campaigns, not what you see on their billboards or in magazine ads. My niche has been working on image libraries for these companies that are used in a wide variety of ways.  I am being asked to come alongside these companies and tell their stories. What an honor.  What this means is the majority of the work I’m doing has be kept off my website and off my blog (although I ALWAYS keep copyright of my images and videos).

Not a Gear Junkie

I use only the equipment I need to use to provide the best possible outcome for my clients.  I do not pay much attention to the latest gadgets and gear so I find I don’t talk about it much here like good bloggers should.

Not Enough Hours in the Day

I have been on the road 7 of the past 9 weeks. The weeks I am in town, I want/need to tend to my local clients.  Today is my first day in the office in nearly 2 months with nothing on my calendar.  All I want to do is go home and play with my daughter but I’m forcing myself to update the ol’ bloggy blog.  Some of the best photographers in the industry are also some of the best bloggers, I commend them for that, but I simply do not know how they do it.

New Ventures

I’m honored to be surrounded by extremely talented creatives and we have been able to join forces on a wide range of projects around the world in still, motion, editing and design. Stay tuned.

As a senior at James Madison University, I had the opportunity to sit in on a video production class for the semester where we produced MACRoCkumentary which explores the The Mid-Atlantic College Radio Conference (MACRoCk).  MACRoCk is the annual celebration of college radio and the independent music community held at JMU and is happening next week, April 1-2, 2011. Check it out.

Below are a few images I took during the weekend along with the MACRoCkumentary.

The masses seem to connect with America’s Pastime fairly well so lets talk about “being a photographer” in terms of baseball.  Anyone can own a baseball bat, even the very best baseball bat, but we know without a doubt that we can not hit a 95 mph fastball out of Yankee Stadium.  So why do so many people think if they own a fancy digital camera that they are automatically a  “professional photographer?”  It appears that putting a camera up to your eye can also make you blind to reality.

“Oh yeah, I’m a photographer too.” -2 of every 3 people you know

I am often asked if I get nervous about everyone now becoming “professional photographers.” The truth is, no.  The more bad photographers out there, the more we have a chance of sticking out in the crowd. Going back to putting it into terms we can relate with: if a beautiful woman is standing in a room alone, she is still a beautiful woman.  Fill that room with 100 other not very attractive women and that woman’s beauty stands out even more.

The accessibility of photography is possibly the most biggest contributor to the growth of the art. Yet, to allow photography to be a hobby is altogether different than claiming a professional status. I always want to make myself available to help starting photographers, developing their own personal vision from behind the lens. Personal photography is a gift, an attainable artistic tool that we should all use to document our lives in a beautiful remembrance.

Being a professional photographer and actually making a living at doing it, is so much more than owning the right equipment. This also applies to countless other professions.  Let us beat the dead horse here:

- Just because I own Photoshop, doesn’t mean I’m a designer.
- Just because I own a pen, doesn’t make me a writer.
- Just because I can turn on my Mac computer, doesn’t make me a web developer.

Feel free to leave your own or share your photos of pretty flowers and sunsets.

Images from shoot with TNA Professional Wrestler and country music singer, Mickie James, on the farm where she keeps her horses.