Top of Mind

It seems that everyone knows Gustavo. Even though he is at the very beginning of his photographic career, he is known from coast to coast by A-list industry pros such as Bambi Cantrell, Jim Garner, Ann Hamilton and Gene Higa. He establishes himself on everyone’s radar by being “top of mind,” a phrase Gustavo learned from his nine years as a pharmaceutical salesman for Johnson & Johnson. He explains, “As a salesman, I had a two week routing, meaning every two weeks I would see the same customers on a certain route and check in with them. I would stay on top of their minds because I was always checking in.” Translating his old job to his new one as a wedding photographer, Gustavo makes sure to keep in touch with all of his vendors and clients regularly to remind them that he is there to help.

A recent story illustrates how being “top of mind” pays off for a first year photographer. Gustavo shares, “I met with a wedding planner in San Francisco and she’s involved with a few charities. I offered my services for free. A few days later, she called me and asked me if I wanted to be involved in her charities and even recommended me for a wedding.” Even more, the wedding planner recently told him, “I’m keeping you in mind.”

Just like many new photographers out there, Gustavo transitioned out of the corporate world to pursue his interest in photography. Unlike most, he found a way to get to know everyone in the business in a short amount of time. At the WPPI 2009 convention, he was everywhere—volunteering at print competition, assisting Bambi Cantrell’s Plus class and offering to help WPPI staff. Gustavo shares, “Volunteering at print comp really helped me stand out. During the volunteer lunch, you are with the top of the top photographers. And many of them were impressed that I was a volunteer.”

The transition from the corporate world to the photography world began in March 2007 when Gustavo attended PDN On the Road and met Jose Villa and Joe Buissink. Says Gustavo, “It was eye opening for me. Jose and Joe showed me that photography could be a viable, fun career.” When American Photo published its annual Top 10 Wedding Photographers for 2007, Gustavo saw Bambi Cantrell listed; at the same time Bambi was teaching a workshop alongside Jerry Ghionis in San Francisco where he lives—so Gustavo enrolled. He says, “At the workshop I expressed my interest in helping her out as a studio manager or whatever she needed. She didn’t need anyone, but I continued to express my interest and made myself available. I continued to be part of her circle, until Bambi’s assistant, Tammy, got sick and couldn’t second shoot. Tammy asked me to cover for her.” Gustavo continues, “At that first wedding, we worked well together and from then on Bambi would ask me to assist every once in awhile. Her comfort with me grew and my images got better.” Gustavo has now moved into associate shooting for Cantrell Portrait Design (www.cantrell

portrait.com). He enjoys the varied clientele that shooting with Bambi offers him, as well as having the opportunity to learn from Bambi’s decades in the industry. By bringing his relational aptitude to the table with her high-end clientele, he is an asset to her as well.

While at Bambi and Jerry’s workshop, Gustavo met Jim Garner, who was assisting them. He kept in touch with Jim via Twitter, Facebook and at the WPPI convention. When Gustavo noticed that Jim’s business wasn’t using Facebook and Twitter to its ultimate potential, he put together a 10-page document on how both sites could be maximized. Says Gustavo, “Now he’s sharing my insights with his consultant to implement in his company. And he recently invited me to help out with his workshop in Seattle.” Gustavo finds it best to offer his skills to assist photographers whom he is interested in learning from.
By November 2007, Gustavo quit his job and moved into wedding photography full time. How does he keep up the pace of ensuring that he’s always at the top of his clients’ and colleagues’ minds? By simply sticking to: “Seeing what I can do for them before seeing what they can do for me.” Gustavo explains, “I check in so they [clients and colleagues] remember who I am and will remember that I am a resource for them. If I found out a client is into cycling, for instance, I’ll email them a cycling article I come across. I look for things that are interesting to them and that keeps me on top of their minds.” As an example, Gustavo drove over to a wedding planner’s office an hour away and brought her and her staff lemonade and strawberries. Says Gustavo, “They will remember me more than anybody else.”

Gustavo admits that relationship building requires a huge time investment. This “all things to all people” mentality is the foundation upon which his business is built. Regardless, he has carved out time to give back. Born and raised in the Dominican Republic, Gustavo created a project called HOG for Kids (www.hogforkids.com) to help create awareness for underprivileged children from his home nation through Children’s International. While he has personally been sponsoring a child in the Dominican Republic for 12 years, the experience inspired him to search for a way to give back on a greater scale. To pass the time during his first year in business (before he was overwhelmed with weddings), he decided to take his Harley Davidson for a ride. He was going to ride cross-country and stay with friends and photograph their families. Somewhere during this first journey he had an idea: In lieu of payment, he asked the clients and friends whom he met and photographed to sponsor a child. Now partnered with Children’s International, he is working toward a goal of having a minimum of 50 children sponsored on this year’s annual HOG for KIDS road trip.

Gustavo is also an area coordinator and photographer for the organization Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep (www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org) and volunteers at John Muir Hospital in California. In addition to these charity efforts, he will also be going back to the Dominican Republic to “capture the experience of underprivileged children, focusing on the children his clients have sponsored.” Gustavo explains, “The photos will show the children in natural settings at home, at play in their neighborhoods and at school—portraying the spectrum of their human needs, aspirations and potential.” Viral networking sites like Twitter and Facebook will allow him to create more awareness and will hopefully inspire other photographers to either join his cause or become passionate about a cause of their own.

Gustavo has used his ability to understand and relate to people to secure his place in the photographic world. He says, “It’s about who you are. If your bottom line is about giving back and being there for other people, those people are always going to remember you, and those people are always going to refer you.” He works hard to learn about people—his clients, vendors, photographers, friends—by finding out about their interests and meeting their needs in some way. He cites Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People as his guidebook for relational prowess and, above all, strives to become a resource and an asset for the people in his life.

Gustavo is inspiring on a variety of levels. But there is one common thread running throughout—true selflessness. He gives without expectation of a return. He has inadvertently propelled himself to the forefront of the industry, merely by being available and willing to meet people’s needs. You can view his work at www.gustavofernandez.com.

Amber Holritz is a nationally acclaimed wedding and portrait photographer based in Chattanooga, TN, where she operates Holritz Photography with her husband, Nathan. Her claims to fame are a niche style of Lifestyle Baby Photography, and speaking in national conferences with her husband on photography and relationships. Following photography as a primary passion, her secondary love is for the written word, and she has enjoyed recent experiences combining the two!