Today's Guest: Mark Lepow of Lepow Photo. in Winter Garden, Florida
Today's Host: John Bentley
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Mark Lepow Expert PageANNOUNCER : This VTalk Radio Spotlight is brought to you by www.morephotos.com the online photo sales solution for professional photographers world wide. Welcome to the VTalk Radio Photographer Spotlight with your host, John Bentley.
JOHN: Today on VTalk Radio's Photography Spotlight we have Winter Garden, Florida, photographer, Mark Lepow, of Lepow Photo. Welcome to the program, Mark.
MARK: Hey, John, how's it going?
JOHN: It's going great here in the studio, glad you could join us today.
Mark: Hey, no problem. It's been a long time coming. Thanks a lot man.
JOHN: Now you have a special photography business down there; give our listening audience a little over view of what you're up to.
MARK: Well Lepow Photo shoots triathalons, 5K running events, marathons, half marathons, those types of races, and we also do some in-home photography that we started to get into.
JOHN: Let's talk about the triathlons and the running events. That's great when you can involved in something like this to take something home with you.
MARK: Exactly.
JOHN: How does this work? Are you there at the beginning of the race, and then you find your way to the end of the race to be waiting for the runners, the bikers? What's the procedure that you go through as a photographer? I'm sure it's rather time consuming.
MARK: Well, no matter what the size of the race for the triathlons I'm talking about, I have a team of three or four other photographers, that they're all really high end sports photographers in their local area, and they all have triathlon experience. And pretty much shoot the really big sweeping vistas of the swim starts. I like doing that, because you get into the water and have a good time with the racers. And then along of course we have people as they are coming out of the water from the swim we have 2 photographers. I have a person usually getting photos of them as they take their bike out onto the bike course. Then one of our swim photographers we usually go onto the bike course and usually get some really great classic iconic bike shot. And then we have our finish line photographers and usually when they're pointing into the shoots as their running, we're getting really at the finish, there's another photographer in the shoot with maybe a 300 that is shooting back and just getting really nice full body shots and half body shots.
JOHN: Now, I would imagine that you're looking for facial expressions and kind of body language that this people are projecting as they are putting so much effort in what they are doing.
MARK: Exactly. And that's one of the things that we really have to be careful of on a lot of things, because you know, you don't want to be grimacing of a shot because then they'll be like eeewww, you know, I don't look good. We're definitely looking to, you know, for the nice ego shot where the muscles are all ripped and stuff like that. Gravity definitely takes over on certain key elements and stuff. You know you don't want to get them when they're bouncing down on the ground. You want to get them up in the air. Whether they're the kids or the adults, and we don't really do from the neck up or anything like that. Usually they half body shot gets some really good facial expressions.
JOHN: That's kind of interesting. I would never really give it much thought that you don't necessarily want the gravity aspect of what they're doing. That's funny.
MARK: Yeah, yeah it's really something that we've actually had a few people now that everybody is trying to get in shape and everything. They actually want the photo of them that is not flattering and it's really interesting when someone will call and say, "Hey, do you have an unflattering shot of me that's an outtake?" And what we have is what we have.
JOHN: Sure that is interesting. You can get a phone call like that. Now at the end of the race, now after they receive their award or certificate of completion. You also have...they also have an option to get a photo then?
MARK: No we pretty much stop photographing as soon as they've finish the finish line. We photograph them crossing and then for of the larger races, we have like little photo booths set up, whatever you know, with a nice back drop and everything, studio lights and all that. And then we'll shoot a nice, you know, ego shot then with their medal and everything else, but usually the coverage ends at the finish line. We tried to shoot award ceremonies and the problem is is I don't want to tell someone hey cheer, ok, because then it's fake, you know, that's a posed picture. You know, but I've probably shot maybe 50 award ceremonies and I've only seen like 3 or 4 people do like a real good jubilation shot, because usually they're too tired.
JOHN: Sure. Sure. Hey, we're going take a little break here, Mark, but before we do that why don't you share your website and contact information with our listening audience please.
MARK: Okay the website address is www.lepowphoto.com and the phone number is (407) 877-6979.
JOHN: We are in the studio today with Winter Garden, Florida, photographer, Mark Lepow of Lepow Photo, and you are listening to VTalk Radio's Photography Spotlight. We'll be right back after these important messages, do stay tuned.
ANNOUNCER: This VTalk Radio Spotlight is sponsored by www.morephotos.com the online photo sales solution for professional photographers world wide.
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JOHN: We're back in the studio with Winter Garden, Florida, photographer, Mark Lepow, of Lepow Photo, and you are listening VTalk Radio Photography Spotlight. Welcome back to the program, Mark.
MARK: Hey, it's great to be back, John, thanks.
JOHN: Now, we've been talking about your photography business doing a lot of triathlon and kind of out door shooting and stuff like that. You also do some studio work. I wanted to ask you a little bit about your in home photography.
MARK: Ok. The in home photography business is a service we started approximately 2 years ago. We haven't really pushed it so much. That's one reason why I like being out here. What's happened is that a lot of parents just don't like going to the local malls or to your standard portrait mall, you know, department store. And I'm willing to take time to sit down with the family, sit down with the kids, figure out a great spot in the house to photograph them, the outside, inside, in their room wherever. We bring in the lighting, and if their really isn't a location they feel good with in their house, then we bring in the backdrop. So the subject...they're still in a really good area, you know, they're in their house, they're having a good time. And its just brings out a different look to the photo instead of just of being a regular studio. One of the things we really like working with are children was special needs. We're a family with 2 special needs children, and we understand how hard it can be sometime to get a great photo, and that's really one of the reason why we started do it in home photography, the portrait session, because were willing to deal with the children and not freak out with them and get frustrated.
JOHN: Sure. Sure. Well, certainly making people comfortable in your studio or in their home is a big part of capturing a great photos isn't it?
MARK: Exactly, exactly. Just having these kids in their own environment, you know, really brings out the best in them I believe.
JOHN: Great well how long has Lepow Photo been around Mark? Lepow Photo has been around in one name or another since 1978. And over the years, I've been the 37th frames which if everybody remembers film, it was always the last frame of the role that nobody had and egotistically, I would like to think that I had shot. And as Lepow Photo it's been around for about four years and most of that maybe 3 1/2, 3 1/4, whatever, have been online doing business.
JOHN: Now why did you decide to become a photographer in the first place Mark.
MARK: That's great. The main reason is really to get into concerts. I was doing a lot of concert photography. I enjoyed seeing my pictures in magazines; I thought that was pretty neat especially when you would receive that check. And pretty much my camera and I have gone around the world. We've photographed in some great places, some great races, and it's just a self expression.
JOHN: Sure well let's talk about some of those places that you've been that you've done some of these triathlons and what have you.
MARK: We're the staff photography and events photography vendor for one tour that's called The TriAmerica Series which has usually eight different spots around the country. And that has taken us to Vale. It goes out to Oregon. They did one in Cottage Grove, Oregon. They were supposed to have last year. We go to Anderson, South Carolina. We travel up to Louisville, and in each location, it's really a challenge because you have to show up. I like to show up a day or two at least prior to the event and to scout out, you know, I drive the entire course and we're talking sometimes the course is up to 100 miles, you know, with all three events, and just trying to figure out where the best locations to stick the photographers are. And we drive it backwards and forwards, so we get the racer's perspective and our perspective looking back.
JOHN: Now before I let you go, let's talk about turn around time for some of these pictures that you have going on here. How long does it take?
MARK: Turn around time for us, we don't like to think that, oh gosh, we just shot 36,000 images it's going to take us 2 weeks to get them up. One of the reasons why we started doing the triathlon photography is because of some of the negative comments we were having towards the vendor we were using, and we like to get the pictures up within three days. If I have to have more people, I'll hire more people to start out the pictures and ID the pictures we will, ok, but we like to get them up three to four days at the max. And when you place your order which is very easy online at www.lepowphoto.com usually the turn around can be as little as less than 24 hours for a high resolution download, or up to approximately a week because of shipping for any of the print items and we also burn a CD. We can make you posters. We don't really get into the coffee mug's and the mouse pads and all that, but everything is handled in house. We have a local lab in Winter Garden, Florida, that we really like using, and we get to see the quality also to make sure everything matches our standards before we ship it out to the customer.
JOHN: Now when we were speaking offline, you had mentioned something about Saint Petersburg.
MARK: Saint Petersburg is the home of the Saint Anthony's triathlon which like the great Feridian Triathlon which is over in Claremont is in its 25th year, and we have been doing Saint Anthony's marketing photography for the last three or four years, whatever. And if you go to their website www.satriathlon.com. any visual you'll see on there is ours, it's actually mine, because they hire me. And pretty much just like I do for everything else, I show up the Friday before the event, drive the course, look at the spots I want to get, and that one is one of the top ranked triathlons in the country, and from there we also supply the media with images, and we also supply the vendors, the bike companies and all that with photos of their winning person, you know, if they sponsored the rider or something like
JOHN: Sure. Great. Well, Mark, I want to thank you for joining us today on VTalk Radio's Photography Spotlight.
MARK: Wonderful, thank you very much it's been a pleasure.
JOHN: Before I let you go, pipe in your website and contact information one more time.
MARK: Yes, it's www.lepowphoto.com and the phone number is (407) 877-6979, and we're located in Winter Garden, Florida, which is just outside of Orlando.
JOHN: And again, thanks for joining us. We've been in the studio with the Winter Garden, Florida, photographer, Mark Lepow of Lepow Photo, and you've been listening to VTalk Radio's Photography Spotlight. Have a great afternoon everyone.
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