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Artist Spotlights

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Artist Spotlight - Todd Smith: Always In The Moment

Seeing Subtle Beauty

Todd Smith began meditating when he was six years old.

Introduced to it by his father, the discipline has always occupied an important part of his life. He even became a monk, meditating for as many as eight hours a day.

Today, meditation serves as a preparation for his photography.

“A clear, rested mind can see subtle beauty everywhere, just as a calm pond reflects the trees around it,” he says.

Seeing that subtle beauty and capturing it stands alone as a constant goal for Todd, as he moves through the world, camera in hand.

“My photography is simply an appreciation of the beauty in my world,” he says. “What is beautiful to me is the essence of an object. In my photography, I wish to remind myself, and those who see my images, of the quiet
inspiration below the surface of life.”

Capturing the Moment

Last fall, as he drove alongside a lake close to his home, he admired the light and wavered on whether or not to pull over and take a few shots. He did, just as raindrops began to fall.

“The surface was smooth as glass, with reeds poking up through the water,” he says. “The raindrops made little splashes on the water's surface.”

Todd managed two or three shots before the rain stopped. He kept shooting, but those first three shots turned into keepers and one of his most memorable experiences as a photographer.

“I can still feel that elation in having captured that moment,” he says.

Todd, who is based in the rural town of Oroville, WA -- just south of the Canadian border -- has learned from moments like that.

“Photography teaches me every day,” he says. “It teaches me to appreciate where I am and what's around me. And it teaches me to act immediately when I see an image worth capturing.”

An Impetus for Growth

His website’s newsletter has become his biggest stimulus for growth, he says.

“Every week I challenge myself to create new photos and show something the readers have not seen from me before,” Todd says.

Much of that new work lands in his newsletter, which he calls the “heart and soul” of his website where he sells his fine art and stock photography of nature and other subjects.

“In business and in life, I believe that giving is the basis of receiving. I wanted to give something that people would really value, and that would keep me focused on creating new work,” he says of the newsletter.

Changing Notions

Todd also sees great value in working with pictureframes.com.

“The first time I ever used pictureframes.com, I had a client who wished to buy a framed print for his sister for Christmas,” he says. “The problem was that he lived in New York, while I was in Washington State and there were only five business days left before Christmas.”

But with pictureframes.com’s Print and Frame Shop, Todd was able to have his photograph professionally printed, framed and shipped directly to his client’s sister in Vermont – all before Christmas. That thrilled his client.

“He actually gave me a tip for the job,” Todd says. “And I thought framing took weeks! Pictureframes.com changed that notion for me completely.”

Ready for the Future

Todd plans to sell framed prints of his work via online auction, but with a twist, thanks to the flexibility and fast service of pictureframes.com. He won’t create the printed and framed work of art unless his reserve is met during his online auctions.

“Talk about no-risk selling,” he exclaims. “If no one bids, I don't make the print. If I get a sale, I can have a framed print to them in a few days.”

He likes pictureframes.com’s interactive shops, quick turn-around on his orders and the excellent customer service he receives from the staff. Todd will soon take advantage of the Integrated Fulfillment Suite, enabling his clients to select custom matting and framing presentations for his images on his own site.

“Working with pictureframes.com has given me confidence in offering framed prints at good prices to my clients without any worry about quality,” he says.

That leaves more time to worry about what’s important, like seeing those moments worth capturing.

Todd Smith has a studio in Oroville, WA. To contact Todd, or see his more of his work, visit his website or join his newsletter. He is offering a 20 percent discount on everything on his site for the month of July. The offer is good through July 31. Just enter the code 8ZG3MK (case sensitive) when you purchase items from his website.

 

If you would like to be featured in an upcoming Artist or Photographer Spotlight, email spotlight@pictureframes.com and tell us why!

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