Today we’d like to introduce you to Robin Bigge.
Hi Robin, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My journey started by accident.
My father had an early Olympus digital camera that was collecting dust so I started to bring it with me when I’d go surfing with my friends. Usually, after a session, there would be some amazing sunsets. I would take those pictures, put them on my phone and edit them with this little app (at the time) called VSCO. I’d post them on my humble little Instagram and a few people really liked them, and more importantly, I really enjoyed taking them. Fast forward a few months later and I find myself working at Starbucks and making new friends among my coworkers. One of whom had a real passion and talent already established with photography and kindly showed me a few pointers to help me on my photo journey.
There on, I started to shoot as much as possible, slowly start upgrading my camera equipment, and started to see development and growth in my own work. I fell in love with lifestyle photography because it opened me up to meeting new people and learning from people in the community back in San Diego. Things shifted when I took an annual surf trip up north with a buddy of mine. I brought some of the clothes from the company I worked for, Everyday California, and took some photos while on our journey. When I got back and showed them a few of the pics, they loved them and asked if I would like to be promoted to their in-house photographer to which I blindly said yes to, not even knowing what that would entail.
That moment was pivotal; for the first time, it showed me a path doing something I love without going to college, something I was struggling to find the motivation to continue with at the time.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Honestly, I’d say smoother than most. Through luck or skill, I found myself able to work with some great brands, but more importantly, meet some amazing people and be lucky enough to capture their most precious moments.
As far as hardships, I’d say certainly having slow months of feeling I’m not doing enough, practicing enough, or furthering my journey, but I feel that’s something everyone goes through.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I don’t really see myself as an artist; let me make that clear, haha. I don’t hold myself in the same regard as, let’s say, a painter or musician, as they create while I simply capture.
As far as what I capture, my two favorite things are beautiful moments between significant others and people enjoying beautiful destinations. My how is with my camera; I’m a huge fan of Canon and their color science. I’ve tried plenty of different camera systems, but Canon is the one I always come back to.
I think what I’m most proud of is the feeling of being let into someone’s special day, and at times (hopefully) elevating it! Whether its a wedding, a surprise engagement, or a graduation, I just love being a part of all those happy moments.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
My biggest risk is definitely moving to new markets. I grew up in San Diego and had a really strong network of connections and peers, but since moving to Las Vegas and now Salt Lake, it’s always a risk and a chance of essentially starting from scratch. Thankfully, we live in a very digital world, so it’s not as hard as it was, say, even 10 years ago, but still very difficult.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.byrdphotography.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hey.byrd/
