Gavin Seim – Facebook, FriendFeed, Twitter: Gavin is an award winning twenty five year old photographer and photo educator from Central Washington. His work is known for it’s captivating cinematic feel, mixed with a natural candid style, producing pieces that are both memorable and timeless.

The Skinny: I’m Gavin. I’ve not had years or formal training at an illustrious photo school. I move too fast and that’s just not me. Not that I’m against learning. In fact I’m pretty fanatical about it. I started with lots of trial and error and lots of film, when I was about twelve. The trial and error has not stopped, but I’ve learned to better hone my skills and continually attend training seminars and workshops to absorb more information. I’m blessed to have studied under some of the best photographers in the world and in recent years, have had the honor of teaching other photographers a bit of what I know. I love talking shop and I love sharing what I’ve learned with others.

I’m heavily involved in the photo community. I like to make people laugh. I’m outgoing and a bit of a ham too, so I jump right in try to stand out. Some of my known projects include Pro Photo Show, a photography podcast and learning community for photographers that I founded in 2006, and Seim Effects, a line of creative editing tools and tips for photographers.  You can learn about all my current projects at seimstudios.com.

My job is really cool. I love finding new ways to see things. I like the gear and gadgets, but I also like looking at what’s worked for centuries, reading, observing and studying the works of master painters and legendary photographers. I’m a very driven guy. Sometimes it drives people that know me crazy, but I learn a lot from it. I like pushing the limits of what’s possible, but also studying how it relates to techniques that have stood the test of time.

Myself: I was born January 1985 in Seattle to Grant & Sue Seim (my amazing parents). I bought my first camera from a yard sale when I was seven. It promptly broke, temporarily ending my photographic career. Around age twelve I started getting serious about photography and photographed at my first wedding when I was sixteen. When I was seventeen I started Seim Studios.

gavin-seim-1-5My Goal: To produce breathtaking art, give great service and of course, make a good living. In a world where service seems to be in short supply, I like to tip the scales a bit by making clients really happy. I want to go that extra mile and I’m not satisfied unless my clients are. I’m here to help make their experience and their photographs unforgettable. It feels good.

Where I go: I shoot mostly weddings, portraits and fine art on location throughout Washington State. I also work in my Central WA studio and travel abroad. I offer destination weddings and portraits, do a little commercial photography and do speaking engagements pretty much anywhere.

My Hobbies: Among other interests, I’m a ventriloquist, a square dance caller (ya different, but fun). I also enjoy doing vocals and even a little yodeling (didn’t that go out of style a long time ago?). As if I’m not busy enough, my younger brother Nathan and I are in the process of few fiction novels, the first of which should be finished soon.

My Bottom Line: I love Jesus, I love my family, wife, my kids and my job. I’m not perfect, but I’m moving forward. What good is having everything, if in reality I have nothing. God has blessed me and I plan to use the talent he’s loaned to me the best I can. I don’t know what’s coming tomorrow so I’ll try to take what he gives me and try to produce something of real lasting value.

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Sondra Seim: Wife, Mom: (Facebook) I’m not the only one around here. My wife Sondra often joins me to help out on shoots, and also does the secretarial work for Seim Studios. She’s the best looking member of the Seim team. We were married in Spring of 2007 and while Sondra is not a photographer she helps out a lot in keeping the business flowing smoothly.

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Cyrus Seim. Our PR Guy: Cyrus is our boy. He’s was born Feb 2008. He loves gadgets, electronics and computers and is shaping up to be a smart one. He’s also known for flirting with any girl that will give him attention. Since he’s so cute that’s just about all of them. He’s very smart and we figure he’ll be behind the camera soon.

Ariana Seim. The Newbee: Not a lot to say about Ariana yet. She was just born back in Nov 2009, but she’s our precious girl and we’ll be keeping our eye on her. She’s a feisty one.

You can see more of the kids him the SS blog.