DWF – Let’s start off with a little bio, tell us a little bit about yourself.
KEVIN - I got the photography bug from my dad, who was an awesome photographer, but never took it pro. He loved to develop images in his home-made darkroom and I loved browsing through the very natural and emotive B&W images he created of our family. I took some high school photo classes and really enjoyed photography as a hobby until, one day, in a galaxy far far away, I was jobless and looking for something creative to do for a living. I said, “Hey, I’ll take photos of my roommate.” and the rest is history. Well, not exactly. That started the ball rolling and soon I was getting referrals from friends and friends of friends. The business built slowly as I experimented with actor headshots, model portfolios, family photos, and commercial work. Other than photography, I love to mt. bike, scuba dive, fly, ride motocross bikes, hike, camp, travel, act like a dork with my two boys, and communicate with higher life forms on my iPhone.
DWF – How did you become a wedding photographer?
KEVIN - I got in to weddings after I became friends with my own wedding photographer, George Carranza, of L.A. I had shot a few other weddings prior to this, but never thought of it as a serious part of my business. He taught me about the business of wedding photography and how it didn’t have to be traditional or boring. I loved his fashion-like approach and it got me really excited about the possibilities. I assisted him on 2 weddings and that was it. I was on my own and I never assisted anyone else on a wedding. In hindsight, I think this made learning the business a bit harder because I had to figure it out myself, but it also made me approach it with an open mind and not feel like I had to do things a certain way. I learned what worked and didn’t by trial and error. I think I approached it more with my dads eyes rather than a typical wedding photographers eyes, and that helped to develop my own style.
DWF- Who or what inspires you as an artist?
KEVIN - Watching the world inspires me. I have this exercise I do called “Boom.” I watch for things happening around me, people interacting, glances exchanged, and I mentally go through the motions of capturing that as an image. I use techniques that pro athletes use to prepare for competitions. Seeing and feeling these moments inspires me to want to capture them on CCD when I have a camera. I look for these same types of moments and expressions. I also love travel. It always inspires me artistically and gives me a fresh perspective on my photography when I return to the “real world”. One of my best friends, Craig Strong, of the Lensbaby fame, also inspires me. I am always amazed at his creative energy and thirst for something new. He never stops trying new things, and that’s really important to growing mentally – creatively.
DWF- If we needed a photographer today why would we book you? What makes you unique?
KEVIN - My shirts. OK, really, I think it’s the intimacy, subtle expression, timing, composition, and moments of our images. I say “our” because my wife, Clare, is my second shooter and she has developed a wonderful, complimentary style to mine over the years. Together we are able to offer our clients a wonderful experience from start to finish. We are VERY easy to work with, relaxed and relaxing on the wedding day, professional, confident, and have an ability to “see” what people are feeling. I think we capture very natural feeling images that are emotional, flattering, and artistically composed and presented all at the same time. We have a very solid reputation and are committed to keeping it that way. We are both very emotional people too, so I think we “absorb” what’s going on at an event, or intuitively feel it. This helps us to capture poignant images.
DWF- If you had to pick a favorite “Tool of the Trade” what would it be? and why?
KEVIN - On the shoot, it would be my 45″ pop-up diffuser disk. I don’t leave home without it. It’s amazingly versatile for cutting harsh light, bouncing soft light, or diffusing a flash through it. The light is always soft and natural.
After the shoot, well…it sounds like a plug, but quite honestly my actions have completely changed my photo business by allowing me to create beautifully finished images in the minimal amount of time. This has helped to separate the look of my images from the competition and also to make my workflow manageable.
DWF – Care to share your favorite photographs?
KEVIN - OK, here are two. The wedding image is a favorite for me because it is real, romantic, off-the-cuff, and full of energy. It’s also imperfect. It symbolizes what I want people to appreciate in my work – that emotion is more important that technical perfection and often it’s the imperfection that makes it feel more real and affective. The image came about from an intuitive impulse I had at a wedding, when time had run out for photos and I could have easily let it go and moved on to the reception. I saw this car on the way in to the party, and took a chance in asking the couple if we could do just a *few* more photos…fortunately, they agreed and we had a blast for the next hour getting the best images of the day. They didn’t want to quit! I finally had to tell them, “we should get you back to your party.”
The next image is from Italy. I’ve named it “Once A King”. I saw this old man, creaking along, shooing pigeons, talking to himself. It made me think of the potential indignity of old age. How he could have been a popular, powerful, distinguished man in his youth, and here he was – alone and talking to himself. It made me reflect on the way I show respect for people and my need to avoid assumptions. I also thought about the fragile and impermanent nature of everything. We have to live in the moment and not take anything for granted.
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DWF – How about some final words to live by?
KEVIN - Change your mind, and your heart will follow. Watch what you think, because you ARE what you think. Even if we don’t physically say negative things to people, about people, or about our own situations – we can manifest them by just thinking them. We also have a choice about what we want to think or feel. The more you fill your head with positive thoughts, well-wishes, and calming words – the better your life can be. We always have a choice.
Interested in learning more? Kevin will be presenting an in-depth 5 hour long seminar entitled “Powerful Workflows That Lead to Sales” in Nashville this January at the 10th annual DWF Convention. Named one of the “Top 10 Wedding Photographers in the World” by American Photo Magazine, Kevin will discuss creating a successful workflow from CF card to Final Presentation and Sales. Interested in attending? Click for more info.
Location – Bend, OR
Business Name - Kubota PhotoDesign
Websites - www.kevinkubota.com
Blog - www.kevinkubotablog.com
1 Comment at "One on One Time with Kevin Kubota"
Great interview, looking forward to Nashville
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