Rangefinder Magazine
March 2005

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Profile: David Beckstead by Peter Skinner
Breaking the Rules & Infusing Destination Weddings With Unique Imagery

When it comes to wedding photography, David Beckstead has never been afraid of bending or breaking the rules, and his fearless and artistic approach to creating unique imagery has certainly struck a responsive chord with discerning brides looking for something different. And right up front, David points out that he is not right for all brides and many brides are not right for his style. But those that are—and there are enough for him to run a successful Internet-based business from a remote location in Washington—are ecstatic about his style and what they get.

Given that David and his wife (and shooting partner), Kassandra, live north of Spokane near the Canadian border—“out in the middle of nowhere land, two-and-a-half hours from an airport”—it’s pretty obvious they don’t rely on local clientele to drive their business. In fact, not too long ago a remotely located wedding business such as David’s, which focuses on photographing weddings at exotic destinations, would not have been viable. Today, digital photography, the Internet and its peripheral resources and the resourcefulness of a creative and talented entrepreneur have made it possible for David and Kassandra to live in an isolated place of lakes and rivers and travel to work in beautiful locations far from home.

And why, it could be fairly asked, would brides pick up the travel and accommodation costs in addition to the photography fees to hire the Becksteads and not some local photographer? The answer lies in one simple truth: Brides who recognize the artistry of his photography know that’s what they want, so the extra travel costs, although a deterrent to some, are no problem to those sold on his style. “Style,” says David, “is about selling a concept of who you are and how you like to do things. The more you incorporate a unique style in the overall feel of your work, the more you will alienate the mass of brides who are not risk-takers. But you will pull in the brides who absolutely love what you do. These are the brides who will give you full rein to let your creativity run free. They want you to wow them with the results. Often brides will tell me, ‘Do whatever you want; I know I will love it.’”

The “storefront” to the Beckstead business is the Internet (with satellite connection). Their web site pre-sells them to brides, wedding coordinators, magazine publishers and other key players in the wedding industry. “I have my link on many sites pinpointing destination areas I want to go, and I often trade images to magazines for advertising,” he says. By the time brides start talking with David by phone or email, they have chosen their destination, usually a location with significant personal meaning.

David uses Pictage.com for online ordering, custom proofs and prints. As David puts it, “It’s a global one-stop shop for all my brides. This is a must have for where I live.”

By his own admission, the strength and appeal of David’s photography lies more in the creative than the technical, but this statement belies the depth of technical expertise and the technology harnessed to make his business function efficiently and profitably. And much of that technology has come into play in the last five years, the time he has been shooting exclusively digital. Embracing digital photography was a major boost to David’s wedding photography, and he candidly admits that looking at the work he did pre-digital is akin to looking at the images made by someone else. Frankly, it would be hard to find another photographer more evangelistic about digital imaging—such is David’s enthusiasm for what digital has injected into his creativity. “From the outset, digital was all about creativity for me, not about saving money on film processing or other similar advantages. I started to improve my imagery from the very first wedding I shot digitally, and there’s no doubt it helped me develop a style that is now attracting the kind of work I want to do,” he says.

The fact that David is not averse to taking risks might stem from his background as a forest firefighter who for 12 summers in a row, up until 1996, dedicated himself to fighting fires. Between summers he traveled internationally, visiting close to 50 countries, from Asia to South America, Europe, Nepal, and beyond. Probably without even knowing it at the time, he was laying the foundation for his future as a destination wedding photographer. The landscape and travel images in his web portfolio highlight that here is a photographer very much in tune with his environment. This trait superbly blends with the artistic wedding photographer capable of capturing the flavor and telling the story of an important, romantic event in peoples’ lives and blending it with the essence of the location for that occasion.

As an inveterate traveler, David has seen much of the world and some of what he has seen is now encompassed in his destination wedding photography. He and Kassandra enjoy shooting virtually anywhere, but on top of their list is Europe, where most countries, especially Italy, have great architecture for photography. “We also love to shoot in nature, such as the Grand Canyon or Sedona with its red sandstone mountains and beautiful rivers,” says David. Hawaii is another favorite. “It is just not possible to get a bad image in Hawaii with its sunsets, ocean and beaches—every viewpoint is simply superb! And the Caribbean islands are each different and exotic.” David says he is also hoping to explore the Canadian market, concentrating on the West Coast.

Surprisingly, for someone who has established such a strong presence in a niche market, David has been in the field a relatively short time. In 1996, he gave up fighting forest fires and turned to professional photography, initially in aerial, legal and other commercial markets prior to concentrating on weddings.

A key turning point came in 2001 when he attended a Gary Fong seminar featuring Joe Buissink and Denis Reggie. Mike Colón and Robert T. Williams also attended, and these photographers had a profound influence on the direction of David’s career. He is loud in his praise for their inspiration, both in creativity and business. He also credits the community of photographers in the Digital Wedding Forum (www.digitalwedding forum.com) as being a continuing help and resource.

Although not a trained photographer in the sense that he did not attend school or complete an apprenticeship, David has a powerful inherent talent that has truly been unleashed through his photography—he is above all else an artist. His artistic abilities dovetail perfectly with digital photography, a medium that encourages experimentation and risk-taking. “Digital photography was indispensable to my growth in that it helped me develop a style that both distinguishes me from other photographers and has encouraged me to try new things and avoid visual stagnation. I would encourage other photographers to go digital, especially if they think they have reached a plateau in their work and are feeling bored or frustrated,” he says.

David’s wedding coverage is akin to a dance—he moves quickly and gracefully in step with the action of the moment, covering every possibility, not simply waiting for key or decisive moments but shooting sequences knowing that “the” shot will be there. He looks for unusual angles, interplays of light and form, and composition, and he is not afraid of the effect of “hot” light in a picture. “Blown out highlights can be really effective, and many brides like it, so I started incorporating the look on purpose. I started breaking the rules and deliberately overexposed many scenes, often to avoid using flash but also to create a different look. I liked the bright white I was getting around the bride from natural light,” he says.

David is big on “seeing light”—an art many photographers overlook. “Ambient lighting is not always perfect, so you have to be able to see what will work best for the situation and work with what the bride and timing will give you. Also, I will often look for harsh light, a source many others will avoid. This kind of lighting can give you powerful, dramatic pictures that really stand out. ‘Risk’ has always been a key word in my approach to photography, and while you have to know the basics before experimenting too much, if you keep shooting in different ways and always look for new angles and incorporate lines, curves and other elements of composition, you’re going to be pleasantly surprised with what you create. And so will brides. Trust me!” he says.

Other techniques he uses freely include slow shutter speeds for motion effects, panning in all directions (“Walk behind the bride and groom, and shoot with slower shutter speed; it creates a blurred motion effect emanating from all around the subjects.”), playing with over- and underexposure to create effects and mood, looking for extreme, unusual angles, and focusing in tight for storytelling details. Telling the main story of a wedding is paramount, but David emphasizes looking for secondary storylines after the “safe” shots are in the bag.

The Becksteads’ equipment bag includes Canon Mark IIs and 20Ds, and both David and Kassandra carry three lenses each—16–35mm f/2.8; 50mm f/1.4; and a 70–200mm f/2.8 IS. For lighting, they only take four flash units, invariably used only when really necessary. Available ambient light is the favored, principal source of illumination. Shooting in the highest quality JPEG setting for the wedding and at times a lower setting for the reception is standard procedure. White balance, based on the ambient light source, is nailed at the location. One thing David and Kassandra do not stint on is the volume of images, shooting several thousand even though this entails more editing time after the event.

“Kassandra shoots as many images as I do, and we make a good team, each bringing something to the coverage. We work in tandem: Often I will go for an environmental composition, and she will work close-up details. We are in different areas, one up and one down. She is good with names and enjoys getting to know the families and friends of the bride and groom. I enjoy interacting with the kids and the bride and groom. It works really well, and because we each see things in different ways, we can provide a really comprehensive coverage,” says David.

No chances are taken with losing images, and redundancy is key. Originals and final images are downloaded to numerous external and internal drives, and Pictage also services a long-term back up. “Some of this download redundancy happens at the wedding location. The day after the wedding, we download to laptops, 40GB iPods and DVDs. And we never clean off the CF cards until we get home and put them on other drives,” says David, who handles all the workflow and editing in Photoshop.

Proofs and prints are available to clients via Pictage.com, while albums are designed and printed in conjunction with companies such as GraphiStudio, La-vie Album and Zookbinders. “I am pushing more for classy and simple lines with an emphasis on single images instead of a page loaded with pictures,” says David.

The adage “A picture is worth a thousand words” certainly applies to David’s destination wedding photography, and those featured here testify to the success of his vision and business model. His “break the rules” approach to photography might inspire others to break out of the mold and explore new directions of artistry and creativity. Also important is his advice to follow your creative dream and do it your way. “Start to turn away work that does not fit into your style and personality. Go ahead and set your goals, and realize that having and understanding your own style will help you achieve those goals. If you totally and completely believe in what you are doing and enjoy doing it, you will succeed,” he says. There’s no denying that philosophy has certainly worked for him.

To see more of David Beckstead’s images visit www.davidbeckstead.com/.

Freelance writer/photographer and author Peter Skinner has more than 22 years experience in the photo industry in public relations, media liaison, corporate communications and workshop production and coordination. His magazine articles and photography have been published internationally and he has co-authored or edited numerous publications and books. He recently collaborated with the late Don Blair on The Art of Seeing Light (Amherst Media). He can be reached at: prsskinner@bigpond. com.