A Day with Clay Blackmore

Clay Blackmore came to town last week for a DPPA seminar. Clay is one of the best in the industry and he does it all, classic portraitures to photojournalism. Though, I was excited about his seminar, I had the great privilege to spend the day with Clay. It was an incredible and eye opening experience.

Tuesday morning, I picked Clay up at the air port and showed him around the area. Immediately, I was struck by Clay’s personality and attitude. This man has photographed top diplomats like Madeline Albright and sports icons like Tiger Woods, yet you would never know it. He is incredibly humble and spiritual man. I discovered that he was like anybody else with the same problems, worries, and triumphs.

This made itself even more evident when we stopped by Angela Carson’s studio in Northville. Here I was sitting in the midst of two giants in the industry and they were like me. Both were down to earth but I was so taken and inspired by their passion for the art of photography.

Clay brought his camera with him. It never left his side. We stopped at my house. There he looked at the sky, moved by the cloud formations, he captured the moment with one click of his camera. In another instance, we had just left Angela’s studio, Clay saw the sun setting just behind a church and asked if we could stop so he could photograph it.

Clay documents life through images. He exemplifies everything I try to instill in my students. His eyes are skilled at capturing run away moments. He sees beauty in over looked details. He exudes passion for photography and I had a wonderful opportunity to spend a day with and learn from a man that I admire.