Roberto Valenzuela - Picture Perfect Practice: A Self-Training Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Taking World-Class Photographs

A Self-Training Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Taking World-Class Photographs

Roberto Valenzuela

Picture Perfect Practice: A Self-Training Guide to Mastering the Challenges of Taking World-Class Photographs
Roberto Valenzuela

New Riders
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Berkeley, CA 94710
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New Riders is an imprint of Peachpit, a division of Pearson Education

Copyright 2012 by Roberto Valenzuela
All photography Roberto Valenzuela except where noted

Acquisitions Editor: Ted Waitt
Developmental Editor: Nolan Hester
Production Editor: Lisa Brazieal
Interior Design: Mimi Heft
Compositor: WolfsonDesign
Indexer: James Minkin
Cover Design: Mimi Heft
Cover Photography: Roberto Valenzuela

Notice of Rights
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information on getting permission for reprints and excerpts, contact .

Notice of Liability
The information in this book is distributed on an As Is basis without warranty. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of the book, neither the authors nor Peachpit shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in this book or by the computer software and hardware products described in it.

Trademarks
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and Peachpit was aware of a trademark claim, the designations appear as requested by the owner of the trademark. All other product names and services identified throughout this book are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies with no intention of infringement of the trademark. No such use, or the use of any trade name, is intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this book.

ISBN-13 978-0-321-80353-5
ISBN-10 0-321-80353-1

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed and bound in the United States of America

I want to dedicate this book to my beautiful mother, who worked day and night to feed us and put a roof over our heads when life dealt us a bad hand. Without her, I wouldnt be here to write this book.

To my wife and best friend, Kim, your amazing love and constant support are the greatest gifts I have. For every moment I spend with you, I thank God for putting you in my life.

This book was quite the adventure to write. I wrote it in the midst of the busiest wedding season of my life while also teaching workshops and seminars around the world. I dedicated so much time to this book that I owe my wife, Kim, my gratitude for not making me sleep on the couch. Kim has been a pillar in my life, the fuel that keeps me going, and the motivation to keep pushing myself. She has also been the subject of hundreds of my practice sessions throughout my career. The list of how blessed I am to be married to her could go on for 500 pages, so to keep things simple, I want to thank Kim for her patience, unwavering support, and unconditional love. I love you so much, sweetie!

I also want to thank my family, starting with my Mutti, my big bro Antonio, my older sister Blanca, my younger sister Susana, my brother-in-law Kent, my nephews Ethan and Caleb, and my niece Elliana. You guys mean everything to me. I treasure every moment we spend together, and I feel so blessed to call you my family.

I want to send a special thanks to my mother-in-law Christina for reading and editing every single chapter in this book. Thank you for fixing my bad grammar and for making the book read beautifully. This was truly a team effort; I would write and she would fix all my mistakes. Thank you so much, Christina!

My father-in-law Peter has been supporting my endeavors, no matter how crazy they may be. He has always been there providing me with the tools I needed to learn whatever it is I was learning at that time. Thank you Peter!

I want to say that I owe a lot of my success to my friends at Rangefinder (WPPI). Arlene, George, Bill, and Susan gave me the opportunity to launch my international photography teaching career. They believed in me and I will never forget what they did for me. I am forever grateful to them.

The first time I really got to know my good friend Skip Cohen and his wife Sheila will be a night I will never forget. Skip has been an invaluable friend and mentor to me. It is so nice to know that I can count on someone with experience as vast as that of Skips. No one knows this photographic industry better than him. I am honored to call him a true friend and thank him for writing the foreword to this book.

A big thanks to the best executive editor on the planet, Ted Waitt, for giving me the opportunity to write this book. Also, thank you to the whole team at Peachpit who worked so hard to make this into a beautiful book and get it in your hands.

Last but not least, I want to thank all the beautiful brides and awesome grooms that have allowed me to be a part of their lives by documenting the beginning of their new families. I take my responsibility as your wedding photographer seriously, which is why I constantly try to better myself week after week to record your wedding day the best way I can every time. Thank you for trusting me with your wedding!

Roberto Valenzuela is a wedding and fine art photographer based in Beverly Hills, CA. His academic background is in economics and marketing. However, it was his 10 years as a concert classical guitarist that has given him a unique outlook on how to master photography, having used the same practice techniques to master his musical instrument.

Roberto Valenzuela is a multiple international award-winning photographer and three-time international first place winner. He serves as a photography judge for the 16x20 WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International), PPA (Professional Photographers of America), European photography competitions, and the WPPI International wedding album competition in Las Vegas, NV.

Robertos private photography workshops and speaking engagements are held worldwide. His goal is to encourage and inspire professional photographers to practice their craft when not on the job, as any artist must in order to perform at an exceptional level. He is an active teacher and platform speaker at WPPI and has served as the keynote speaker at other international photography conventions.

He was named one of the top wedding photographers in the world by Junebug Weddings (one of the largest wedding resource websites in America).

Roberto will not turn down the opportunity to play a good table tennis match, and he flies his high-performance 3D remote control helicopters every Sunday afternoon. He can often be found at local bookstores looking for materials on something new that he wants to undertake.