Today we’d like to introduce you to Sean Decker.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Growing up, I immediately gravitated to computers. My household was never really tech savvy, but my Father brought home one of our very first computers that he got for free, with AOL 1.0 and 56k dial up. Before long, I started to understand the value of having a computer and constantly asked for my own computer in my room. I eventually got one, and I spent an entire summer playing games and teaching myself HTML and Flash, and by the end of summer I built my first ever website, long before coding got overly complicated, I say that only because I did not stick with it.
I eventually grew to love graphic design. I held many jobs from retail to security, but I loved working on a computer and being creative. So I attempted community college but only taking art and graphic design classes, so I never achieved a degree.
Having taught myself graphic design, in 2008, I decided to pick up a camera, not to pursue photography, but to be able to apply my graphic design and digital artistic knowledge to photography. I am not your average photographer that focuses solely on taking photos and digitally enhancing the lighting and the color. My passion and vision for photography is to create ‘art’. I digitally paint on top of photos to make my photos a work of art.
I began shooting local models who I knew personally, so that I could gain experience, and in helping by providing them product, they could get my name out. Eventually I started providing photos for a group called Ladies of Metal, where my photography started getting seen by thousands.
My passion for photography continues to grow. I had decided to start a second name for my photography, Capture & Embrace Photography, which focuses more on the family friendly side of photography such as; infant / toddler, first birthdays, family portraits, couples, actor headshots, and engagements. I have shot a couple weddings, and I am not saying it is not my favorite because I love capturing so many wonderful moments during a wedding, I am just not actively pursuing wedding photography, but I will never deny if someone reaches out to me. My reasoning is I feel I have more control during moments like engagements and family portrait sessions, and I like having a little more control, similar to my studio portrait photography over on-location shoots, I can control the environment, and on-location can be iffy, however you can capture some really beautiful stuff that you cannot re-create in a studio.
Today I am still actively shooting models and family style photography, but I decided not to stop at photography, and I have started up a third (eventual) business called ‘Wicked Crew Productions’. I have taken my photography to the next step and began writing and directing short films and trailers. As an actor, I have always had an interest in the film industry. I feel acting is something that challenges me where as on the other side, shooting, directing and editing films is a passion of mine. As of October, I have been in college for a year as I am pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Digital Film with an emphasis on Production.
Has it been a smooth road?
The road for me has not been the smoothest, but I will not say I have encountered true struggles that most photographers will have endured on their path. What I mean by that is, I have always had things that kept me a float, photography is a passion of mine, but it is not my main source for income or a career. However, as a passion, it is something that I will never give up or let go. I compare it to playing guitar, there are people that own guitars, because they love to play guitars, myself included, but never made a career by any means out of it, they just love to have a guitar around so that if they decide they want to sit down and play, they have that opportunity to sit down and play.
However, when I say my path has not been the smoothest, I have encountered struggles where there were times I would be in the middle of a shoot and have equipment failure, or we would be on location and mother nature would take over and knock over equipment and make life difficult, it is tough for someone like me because I do not have an endless supply of photography equipment, and I work a full-time job to help pay for photography equipment when I need it. I am in the process of rebuilding my computer situation, which will be enough to edit my films on, so the things I will be able to do with photography will be unlike any computer I have worked on in the past.
I also struggle hard with marketing. I have a real tough time with talking about myself, or my work, being able to say “hey, look at my work”, is not easy for me. I do like posting my work on social media especially if I am extremely proud of it, but I do not put much emphasis behind it, to avoid sounding as if I am patting myself on the back, or fishing for compliments.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Decker Foto and Capture & Embrace Photography – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I am not your average photographer that focuses solely on taking photos and digitally enhancing the lighting and the color. My passion and vision for photography is to create ‘art’. I digitally paint on top of photos to make my photos a work of art. I feel that sets me apart from most photographers. I try to make a statement with my work, that says I put time into this piece, it is not something I went out and shot, and threw it into Lightroom to enhance the lighting and color and threw it up on social media or sent it off to get published, I would sit on average with a photo for upwards of three hours or more! There was a planned shoot to have certain elements added to the photo to make it an art piece, whether we shot in the studio or on location, there was pre-planning and an ultimate vision we were after.
I am proud of being able to get out and shoot with either models or families, and what excites me the most, is that, though we may be heading out with an idea in mind, in almost instances, the shoot will result in something else, something better. Where we finally end up shooting on location there was something there we did not see the first time, or if we’re shooting in the studio, an idea comes up that changes the entire game. It is exciting to not know what could happen.
Lastly, something that sets me apart, is though I may have a lot of ideas in mind for projects I want to shoot, I myself like to get input from my subjects, even if it is a family, I am completely open to ideas to achieve something that I myself may have not seen, so having an outside perspective have input on the shoot really helps to enhance the product. I have heard I am easy to work with, being as open as I am, but personally I like to make a comfortable set for all subjects, I want people to feel as in control of the shoot as I am, there is no hierarchy, we’re both out to be a part of something, I am shooting but I am shooting the likeness of the subject, and in order for them to happy with the product they have to know what my vision is and to have their opinions heard puts everyone on the same level, and everyone will be happy with the product.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Los Angeles and the surrounding areas has some of the best locations to shoot on-location. You could drive 15 minutes and have a completely different surrounding. You could be in the heart of the city, or you could be in an open field, or on the beach within a radius of 15-30 miles.
I grew up about 45 minutes north outside of LA in Ventura County, but I always tell people I live in LA because they would understand that the best. I love California, and I love traveling to the city, and I even work just outside the city in Glendale, so there is a countryside to me that loves to escape, but there is a city boy in me that loves traveling into the city.
However, if you live in the heart of LA, it is quite difficult to schedule a shoot somewhere, because you can never depend on traffic, it most certainly will always go against you, and parking can be quite a bear. So if you are looking to schedule a shoot on-location, there are plenty of areas outside downtown LA that really can make for a great backdrop, with less of the headache of being in downtown.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/deckerfoto
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/deckerfoto
- Other: www.facebook.com/captureandembracephoto
Image Credit:
Decker Photography / Capture & Embrace Photography
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