Featured Member, Riz Cresini - the [b] school blog

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Sep. 28, 2009 - Featured Members

1) Name: Riz Crescini

2) Location: Kitakyushu, Japan (southern Japan)

Website coming soon via Show It
My blog
[ b ] School Profile
@rizcrescini on Twitter
Facebook

3) How long have you been in business? I’ve been part-time since fall of last year but I plan to kick my business up a notch in a couple of months. Details to come…

4) How did you get into photography?
I really, really got into photography after I moved to Japan back in 1997. My wife and I caught the travel bug and have been all over Japan, Southeast Asia, and Europe. Photography was one very important way for me to preserve the awesome people, cultures, and places we saw on our travels.

5) Tell us how networking with other photographers has affected your business.
As I am just starting out, networking with other photographers has been extremely valuable in my growth as a photographer. How? In terms of vision, goals, craft, business, etc. I owe so much to many of my photographer friends in the [b] school who are helping me lay the groundwork for what I hope will be a successful career. If you’re just starting out, let the word “network” be your mantra! Networking trumps expensive camera equipment any day. But it’s still nice to have toys :)

6) What is your favorite part about shooting weddings?
I will let you know after I shoot my first wedding on September 23rd :) Up until now, I have been a portrait photographer having done photo sessions of families, children, university students as well as school and church events. But now that I think about it, I did shoot a friend’s wedding back in 2007 but I was not in business yet. What I recall and remember vividly was the bride crying looking at the slideshow of her wedding. That was a pretty special moment for me.

7) What’s your favorite piece of equipment these days?
Hands down the Canon 135 2.0L! That lens is tack sharp even when the aperture is wide open. It’s great for indoor photography and don’t get me started on how awesome it is for portraits! I’m also getting some love from the Lensbaby Composer.

8) What is your favorite iPhone App?
I like Facebook, Skype, Scrabble, and Twitterrific.

9) Please tell us something personal about you so we can get to know you better:
A) I proposed to my wife after dating for only one month. Love still going strong 11 years later!
B) I’m a people person. I really get pumped and energized just hanging out with friends.
C) I love children! I really do! They are truly a gift from God. A lot of people have this wrong impression that learning is one sided: adults/parents teach kids. Nothing can be further from the truth. I have found children (including my daughters) to be the best teachers of life.
D) Other: I’m a bookworm. I love sports. I play the guitar. I love to teach and lead others. I love authentic Japanese food (Sorry, folks but California rolls and knife-juggling steakhouse chefs ain’t authentic!).

10) Where do you see the industry heading in the next 5 years?
The previous featured members gave pretty good responses to this question already so I will confine my answer to Japan. In terms of style of photography, the classic “posed” studio look still dominates much of what you see in photography from weddings to family pictures. But I am beginning to see a rise in candid and relaxed portraits. Competition is fierce in Japan and so I hope to see more openness among photographers. I want to see more lovecats in Japan!

11) Who’s your favorite vendor in the industry?
ColorInc is my favorite digital lab. And I am a happy KISS Wedding Books customer.

12) How important is your blog?
My blog is very important to me. It’s a very easy way for me to showcase my work and to share what it’s like to live in another country. You get to see my work. You get to know my family and me. And all in the context of Japan! How fun is that?!? Come visit my blog

13) How has Facebook and/or Twitter impacted your business?
Photogs and entrepreneurs use Twitter to share links to educational resources. I use Twitter to interact with friends but it has become an educational tool for me. Since I’m relatively new, I haven’t yet received any business from Facebook (it hasn’t fully caught on yet in Japan) but I am getting a lot of exposure through it.

14) Favorite thing about [ b ] School?
The people!!! What more is there to say?!? It is an incredible community of givers. Forget photography for a moment. Look under the photography “hood” and you will find people who are genuine in helping each other out. Thanks, [b]ecker, for putting this tribe together.

15) Are there any workshops or upcoming GTGs that you’d like to plug?
Scott Robert Lim is an awesome photographer/mentor and he has a China workshop in October. Wanna join me? For details, Click Here
Our very own Matt Saville went to Scott’s Spain workshop last year.

Tell us what you line about the 5 photographs below:

Kids being goofy... I love it! I'm all about goofiness!!

I love that the Mom is just full of joy for her child. And check out the HAIR on this kid! Love it!!

I love this picture because it captures the celebration of a life. And it is a reminder to me that I should celebrate each day to the fullest.

I love the creamy background and the leading lines. This image was captured with my recent favorite lens: 135 2.0L

I love how they are looking at each other. On some of my images, I go for the fine art look. I love how the texture really adds to the intensity in this image.

2010:
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2009:
January February March April May June July August September October November December

2008:
January February March April May June July August September October November December

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