Sunday, August 1, 2010

Making Photographic History For The 3rd Year in a Row!

by Scott Kelby

tarpongroup
Another amazing walk is in the record books. Over one thousands cities around the world coming together as one big community to share our passion for photography and people. What an incredibly fun day!
I still am amazed after I return from leading my walk (this year, in Tarpon Springs, Florida at their famous Sponge Docks, part of a wonderful Greek community that has blossomed in the Tarpon Springs area), when I sit back and watch all the reports and photos coming in from every part of the world. It just simply boggles my mind, and puts a huge smile on my face to know that we all shared in something really special on Saturday. Millions of photos were made that day that never would have been made, and lots of new friends were made along the way, which is what it’s really all about. (Photo below, taken during the walk, by Jose Ramos).

walk3sm
Catch My Free Online Class Just For Photo Walk Participants
I’m doing a FREE online class about photography and my Lightroom 3 editing workflow, and everyone that participated in the walk is invited (look for the details in your email by tomorrow).
Don’t worry; if you can’t make the workshop at 10:00 am, we’ll repost the entire session for free so you can watch it when you want (but we’ll be taking your questions live during the live webcast).
gridsm
Here are some of the shots (above) I took during the walk, and I’ll be going over my editing of those very images during the Webcast on Wednesday. Hope you can make it.
This, I Didn’t See Coming
I was blessed with a really great group of people, and the heat didn’t totally kill us because we had a decent cloud cover most of the time. The people of Tarpon Springs couldn’t have been more accommodating—leading us to points of interest, posing for us, inviting us in their historical buildings and shops to take photos—-it really was a wonderful experience. But this, I didn’t see coming.
snake1sm
Yup, that’s about a 10 foot Albino Boa Constrictor snake my photo walkers are photographing above. There was a small aquarium near the end of my walk route, and one of the snake handlers at the aquarium had this puppy outside in the back parking lot sunning himself, and he invited us to take some shots.
snake2sm
Here he is again (above), thinking he’s found a mate in a coiled up water hose.
walk2a
Here’s one of my walkers above using a Gorilla Pod rig to shoot some HDR shots during the walk. The area we shot in had lots of rusty old boats, and old buildings and such, so it was an HDR shooter’s paradise.
walk1asm
I have no idea what she was shooting (above), but it must have been worth it. Maybe it was a baby Albino snake. ;-)
Hellas
That’s one of our many tables at the incredible Hellas Greek Restaurant, our walk ending spot, where we had authentic Greek food that totally rocked! (photo above by Jose Ramos).
Send Me Your Group Shots and Video Links
Tomorrow I’ll be posting group shots and videos from all around the world, so if you haven’t already sent me your group shot (or video link), just post it here on the blog, and I’ll download the image and post it tomorrow.
Link to the Group flickr Pool
Want to see some of the amazing photos pouring in from all over the world—check out the flickr group pool right here. (Also, if you were a part of walk, don’t forget to post some of your shots to your local flickr group page). :)
On Twitter search for Hashtag #WWPW
It’s wild to see all the comments posted during live photo walks from every corner of the globe.

  • My thanks to everyone who attended my walk in Tarpon Springs, and who participated in other walks around the world. I really had a lot of fun, and I hope you did, too!
  • A big, big thanks to all the volunteers who organized and led walks around the world (We couldn’t have done it without you). A special thanks to the walk leaders in China (last year, we didn’t have a single walk in China).
  • Also, a thanks to my book Publisher Peachpit Press, for their major support of this event, also to Adorama, our Platinum Sponsor, and to all the sponsors who pitched in to make this a very special day for photographers around the globe.
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