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Rangefinder Magazine
December 2003

Profile: Scott Eklund by Linda L. May
Never a Dull Moment!

Each morning, when I go to work at the newspaper, I never know what I’ll be photographing that day. But I do know that it will be totally different than what I shot the day before,” Scott Eklund says, smiling.

Scott Eklund of Tacoma, Washington, works full time as a staff photographer for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (PI) newspaper, and still manages to photograph 25–30 weddings annually, along with a few corporate and other freelance gigs. Eklund feels his photojournalism background improves his wedding photography by sharpening his anticipation skills, timing and powers of observation.

“ Newspaper photography is nothing like studio work, where you’re in one place all day, and clients come to you,” Eklund says. “I go on location to get pictures, in all kinds of weather and under all types of different conditions. I have photographed Bill Clinton, Bill Gates (above) and even Bill, The Beer Man, so I encounter the whole spectrum of society. My constant exposure to the world helps me shoot better weddings too because I’m not looking at them from a limited perspective.”

Through the years, Eklund’s images have also been published in several well-read magazines, including National Geographic, Time, Life, Vanity Fair, Cosmopolitan, New York Times Sunday Magazine and many others. In the June 2003 issue of Sports Illustrated, his work got a double-truck spread. Numerous organizations have recognized his outstanding photojournalism and wedding work, including The Missouri Press Association, National Press Photographers Association, Professional Photographers of Washington, Associated Press, WPPI and the PPA. In 2001, Eklund won the prestigious Fuji Masterpiece Award and was featured in Fuji Profiles. A profile story highlighting his wedding work was also published in The Bridal Connection magazine.

While playing sports in high school, Scott Eklund became interested in photographing the games. However, this aspiring image-maker was not satisfied just shooting high school sports. So, he attended pro sporting events, like the Seattle Sonics games. After watching awhile, Scott would sneak down from the “cheap seats” onto the floor and photograph until someone threw him out. At the time, he never dreamed that someday he’d be shooting pro sports for his livelihood, and no one would throw him out again. After graduating high school, he attended an intensive, two-year photography program at Clover Park Vocational/Technical Institute in Tacoma, Washington. “After that in-depth education, I knew I wanted to be a professional photographer,” Scott Eklund explains. What he didn’t know yet was what type of work he wanted to do in this profession.

For about six months after graduation, he worked full time for a local studio, photographing weddings and portraits. Scott says he learned a lot from this studio experience, but he quickly realized that photojournalism was his passion. So, after quitting his job (against the advice of the studio owner), Scott attended the University of Missouri School of Journalism, where he graduated with a Photojournalism degree in 1987. (One of Scott’s journalism classmates at Missouri was William Bradley Pitt, better known today as Brad Pitt.) Through the years, he has worked at newspapers and other publications in the Seattle area both as a full-time staff photographer and as a freelancer. He is also experienced in black and white and custom color printing, and digital imaging.

In 1997, after covering the wedding of Sonics’ (now Lakers) basketball star Gary Payton for a newspaper assignment, he began seriously promoting and photographing weddings as a business. Prior to that, Scott photographed two to three weddings per year but didn’t really like doing the traditional, posed approach.

“ Gary was a pretty high-profile sports figure in Seattle, so a reporter and I were sent to cover his wedding in San Francisco for the PI. (Bambi Cantrell was Gary’s hired photographer.) I covered it as a photojournalist, as I would any other assignment. The story ran as a full-color section front in our features section. The story and my images generated lots of response and interest, and requests for me to shoot weddings like that for clients. Before that, it never dawned on me that couples might want a more documentary or editorial approach to their wedding photography,” Scott Eklund says.

“ News events have a well defined story, and I always know what I am covering. I never used to think of weddings in that light. But weddings do have a beginning, a middle and an end. Small, significant moments are happening all day long. I weave these moments into a story about the day. People briefly view my newspaper images, then go on with their day. However, my wedding pictures have more meaning and grow more precious as time moves further away from the wedding date.”

Being a photojournalist, Scott Eklund rarely has a dull moment. He must be prepared to photograph whatever assignment he is given. Usually, he doesn’t know from day to day what he’ll be covering for the paper. One morning, he shot aerials of a garbage dump from a helicopter. That afternoon, he was covering a live birth in a hospital delivery room. Scott has photographed the Rose Bowl, rock concerts, riots and just about everything in between. One assignment recently found him chasing a wayward orca whale in a Canadian Sound off Vancouver Island. Scott believes this wide variety of subjects and circumstances helps him better visualize the wedding story, and deal with the gamut of personalities he encounters in that business.

For the newspaper, Scott shoots digital Canon 1Ds, but for weddings, he still uses traditional film and Nikon cameras. When extra illumination is required, he uses Nikon SB-28 flash units and on occasion Norman 200B strobes. For film, he shoots Fujicolor Press 800 ISO and Kodak Portra NC, in 160 and 400 speeds.

Shooting sports is a big part of Scott’s job at the newspaper. Over the years, he says he’s photographed hundreds of local high school, college, and professional sporting events, including football, baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, swimming and anything else played in the area. Anticipation and timing are critical when capturing that one shot that tells the story of the game.

Covering basketball is the easiest, according to Scott, because the action is centered on the basket. Baseball is more challenging because one never knows exactly where the action will occur. Sometimes, that one great image is not found on the playing field at all, but on the sidelines, or in the crowd. So, Scott must be on his toes at all times, with eyes open and camera ready.

“ Shooting what’s happening right in front of you at a game is not covering it completely,” Scott Eklund says. “The key to sports photography is timing. Being prepared and knowing the sport also increases the odds of success. I read the sports page daily and keep abreast of the different teams and individual players, and all the sub-plots. If you know a certain baseball player’s tendencies, or which side of the field he might hit to, that gives you an edge. In football, if you’re aware of down and distance, and you know who the quarterback likes to go to in these situations, it’s an advantage. This knowledge might give you that half-second advantage so you can better anticipate the action. In sports, those half-seconds are critical.

“ But, not everything interesting happens on the playing field. A disappointed player from the losing team getting yelled at by his coach may tell a better story of the game than what’s happening on the field. I’m always aware of the main event, of course, but I am also aware of my surroundings. I’m always keeping a watchful eye to see what else might be going on that others are not catching. Many sports photographers listen to the games on the radio wearing headphones, so they can be informed of the action that they may not be able to see. I don’t use headsets, but it is a worthwhile tool, especially if you don’t follow the sport as closely. You’ve got to recognize the significant moments and be prepared to grab them as they unfold. Sports photography is fast-paced—sometimes your running up and down the sidelines, so being in decent physical shape can make it a little easier.”

Scott’s life is going along great right now, he says, hectic but fulfilling. His two daughters are his favorite subjects. Scott loves documenting their growth and lives. He also loves his job. “The Seattle PI is a terrific newspaper. We have a talented staff and great editors, and the attitude there is wonderful. We have a great time. Seattle is a two-newspaper town, so it’s fun to compete everyday,” Eklund says.

He’s also planning to do a self-assigned story for the newspaper called “While You Were Sleeping,” highlighting what people do between the hours of midnight and 4 a.m. in Seattle. And, he does plan to switch to shooting weddings digitally, probably next summer. Right now, he’s still researching digital cameras, trying to decide between Canon, Nikon and Fuji.

Scott joined WPPI in 2001, and entered his first prints into competition in 2002, and was pleased to have eight exhibited. That year, he also won Second Place in the Premier Category, for his print titled: “Sideline Shenanigans.” In 2003, he entered 15 prints, with eight exhibited.

“ I was impressed by the high quality work I saw from other photographers at the WPPI conventions,” Scott says. “It’s inspiring for me to see professionals like Joe Buissink, and the quality of his prints. The tradeshow itself is worth the cost of membership. And, I always read the monthly newsletters, especially the profiles. I enjoy learning what others in the industry are thinking and doing to succeed.”

Words of Wisdom: “God gave us a neck, so surely God meant for us to stick it out occasionally. We need to take chances and force ourselves out of our comfort zones once in awhile. It’s easy for photographers to fall into a routine and approach every event the same way. This wedding may be your 25th for the year, but to that bride and groom, it’s one of the most significant days of their lives up to that point! We have to approach the day with passion and energy.

Shoot different events between weddings. To avoid the boredom trap, give yourself assignments. Drive around your area, or read the events calendar in the paper, and shoot things that are worthy of the front page of your local newspaper. Look within your own family and neighborhood for unusual, interesting subjects. They are there, you just have to look at them with fresh eyes. Remember: you’re younger today than you’ll ever be again, so make good use of it. Don’t put things off any longer. Remember, the only place that ‘success’ comes before ‘work’ is in the dictionary,” Scott Eklund concludes, smiling.

Readers may contact Scott at scott@scotteklundphotography.com or www.scotteklundphotography.com. His work may also be viewed in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer web site at www.seattlepi.com/.

Linda L. May is a freelance writer based in the Midwest. Scott Eklund will be a featured speaker at WPPI 2004, to be held at BALLY’s Las Vegas. The title of his program is “Find Marketable Images and Improve Your Wedding Skills.”