The Tree Studio Origin Story
Who Am I?
And Why I Established TREE STUDIO?
I don’t have a dramatic story to entertain you, like someone who received an old camera as a birthday gift from his dad when he was eight years old and discovered the world through his lens.
My story is rather ordinary, even plain.
I used to work at the most famous wedding photography studio in Melbourne in the spring of 2006. My teacher, John, was also the studio manager. He had the best technique in Melbourne and was renowned for his extensive wedding photography experience.
I had to admire John’s deep knowledge of using flashlights and his almost perfect photography compositions. He is a Multi-Award-Winning wedding photographer for AIPP and WPPI.
From my memory, peers of wedding photographers in Melbourne called him Master John.
I started learning wedding photography by being Master John’s photographer assistant in the first year. His teaching manner was rigorous, but Master John also asserted I was one of his talented photography students among his followers.
He implied many times that I would be his successor one day.
The second year, that summer, Master John gave me the main wedding photographer role. I was finally allowed to shoot a wedding on my own.
In the beginning, I used all the knowledge gained from John. He demonstrated the wedding formalities and how to pose the wedding couples effectively. I immersed my wedding photography in perfect composition and sophisticated poses.
I felt self-satisfied, not only from Master John’s applause but also from a decent income from his wedding photography studio.
One night I looked through my recent wedding photography work as normal. Master John asked us to review our own wedding photos regularly and keep imitating his masterpiece of wedding photography as a daily task.
I suddenly realized all my recent wedding photos looked very similar: same poses, same perfect compositions, skillful flash technique. However, those wedding photos didn’t have any spirit within: they couldn’t reflect the wedding couple’s personalities or their authentic emotions.
Unfortunately, I encountered my bottleneck in wedding photography. I doubted I lacked the talent Master John described.
I was guessing I interfered with the bride and groom too much, particularly during the location photo. In simple words, I gave too many directions and took away the wedding couple’s freedom.
During my bottleneck time, my wedding photography philosophy was influenced by a British photographer who mastered the documentary and photojournalist shooting style.
The documentary-styled photography aims to capture the social event in an uninterrupted and honest manner. I was curious whether I could apply this documentary photography manner to the field of wedding photography.
In the following wedding, I tried to only give the bridal party necessary directions and let them freely engage with each other, relax, and fully enjoy their wedding day.
I used my observation skills to capture the best moments of their wedding day and real emotions.
The result was much beyond my expectation. The new wedding photography looked different and authentically reflected the wedding couple’s personal touch and wedding vibe with rich emotions. I gave my new wedding photography style a good name: natural and candid wedding photography.
I couldn’t wait to share this new wedding photography idea with Master John and wished to get his appreciation. I brought my recent wedding photographs to the studio the next day.
When I came to the studio, Master John was having a meeting with a newly engaged couple and showcasing his awarded wedding photography. I sat on the hard couch and waited for him to praise my photos.
The waiting was extremely long. One hour passed. Eventually, the wedding couple paid the deposit and left John’s studio happily. Then I walked towards John: ‘Hi Master John, I want to show you my recent photos. I have discovered a new style of wedding photography.’
‘Oh, let me take a look at my talented student’s work.’ Master John always liked to see my photos and show my work to his followers, and he said I was the photographer who shared the closest approach to his wedding photography style.
John took my USB and looked through my photos. He kept looking for more than ten minutes and didn’t even say one word, showing a sullen expression.
I had never seen John with that sort of facial expression when he was reviewing my photos. Indeed, he often criticized badly his other student photographers’ work.
There is no doubt he was utterly the most authoritative wedding photographer in the studio, not only because he was the most skillful photographer, but also because he was the manager.
However, it was the first time that he showed such expressions when reviewing my wedding photos.
‘Why didn’t you give the couple directions?’ Master John questioned me. ‘Only two years, and you became lazy like others.’
I didn’t understand what Master John meant and tried to explain, ‘I wanted to give the couple more room to discover their true emotions and take more natural and candid wedding photography.’
Master John suddenly stood up and became fiercely angry. ‘The photos are so bad! I can’t even find a single one with good composition, the couple’s postures look random. The photos don’t look like they are taken by a professional wedding photographer at all!’
‘Yes, they were taken by a professional wedding photographer—me, your best pupil—but from a different perspective.’
‘Do you dare to challenge me?’ Master John increased his volume.
I couldn’t breathe and attempted to avoid his gaze.
‘LISTEN TO ME OR GO AWAY!’
I surrendered. Not only did I respect Master John—he taught me everything—but also I couldn’t afford to lose a reliable income from John’s wedding photography company.
I promised I won’t do it again and ran off in a great panic from his office.
I came back home; I felt I was facing a dilemma.
I asked myself: Shall I give up my own approach to natural and candid wedding photography, or just be John’s good student and imitate his style without my own consciousness?
I realized that every wedding couple wants to be themselves rather than be overly posed and interrupted. No matter if a wedding photo has the perfect composition and pose, if all the photos look exactly the same with no spirit within, what is the meaning of a real wedding?
My conscience was suffering.
Who am I?
Should I be Master John’s good student, or insist on my own conception of wedding photography?
I love my teacher, but I love my candid wedding photography even more!
In the next wedding, I insisted on my own candid wedding photography, and I received good feedback from the wedding couple.
One day, Master John called me to his office alone. There was no surprise: I lost my job.
‘I did give you a chance. Leave my company now, you deserved it.’ This was our last conversation.
I received a last payment of $1450 from Master John a week later. He always kept his commitment.
Master John is a generous person, a great teacher, and the best wedding photography mentor in Melbourne. But we have different views.
Life had to go on. I didn’t worry too much about my wedding photography career. Nevertheless, I was one of the best pupils of Master John’s, and I had my own candid wedding photography style.
I believed I could have my own wedding clients very soon.
However, the reality crashed my dream immediately. Being a great wedding photographer and running a business are two different stories. I didn’t get to shoot one wedding in the six months after I left John’s wedding photography studio.
I clearly realized the greatness of Master John. He is not only a great photographer; he also has a strong sense of business.
Life is so short, no time to waste.
I had to start from the fundamental preparation. I needed a brand name, considering my natural and candid wedding photography philosophy. ‘Tree’ has natural and organic meaning; it is a great symbolic meaning for my own brand.
Moreover, I expected my wedding couples’ marriage life to be similar to a Tree’s: solid and happy. I called my own wedding photography studio: TREE STUDIO.
In the next three months, I performed intensive and well-organized preparation: establishing a website, designing the brand, as well as setting the marketing strategy.
To distinguish myself from other famous wedding photographers in Melbourne, I created a unique wedding photography brand, and the brand matches seamlessly and consistently with my own candid wedding photography style.
The business slowly got better. I got 17 weddings in the second year. Compared to John’s wedding photography studio, his company was like a mammoth, while TREE STUDIO was like a little ant.
Tree studio grew like a tree’s sapling, rooted deeply into the earth. I believed one day Tree studio would become like John’s company.
In late August of 2011, I met one wedding couple at my studio; they were Greek. They were planning a big wedding—350 guests. This kind of client is a big opportunity for a new company.
They sincerely told me that I was the third wedding photographer they met. They had met Master John a week earlier, and their parents quite liked John’s classic wedding photography style.
The bride and groom were not traditional Greek; they liked modern, contemporary-styled wedding photography. They wanted their photos to look natural, candid, and spontaneous.
They were hesitant between Master John’s giant company and my little company.
Master John had the absolute advantage. The bride’s parents agreed to pay for the wedding photography cost, and they preferred to book an experienced and reputable company like Master John’s company.
I knew my candid wedding photography did appeal to the wedding couple’s true perspective. I didn’t let them know that Master John was my mentor, nor the story between John and me.
When I found out they could hardly make a decision, I told them: ‘Comply with your free will. It is your own wedding; you don’t need to please anyone else.’
I complied with my own free will and established Tree studio. Today, I gave them the same suggestion.
Almost two weeks after, they paid the deposit into Tree studio’s account. I wouldn’t say my candid wedding photography won over John’s classic style. Everyone shall have the right to pursue their own freedom.
In the next few years, there were inevitable competitions between Master John’s company and TREE STUDIO. Sometimes he won, sometimes we won.
TREE STUDIO grew rapidly. Some fresh and talented wedding photographers joined my team. Mark was one outstanding photographer among the new photographers; he is smart and well-educated.
Mark’s mum is a violist and his dad is an architect. He was desperately fascinated with Renaissance art.
Mark had some photography experience in real estate before he joined my team. This experience helped him gain the capability to be a good wedding photographer in just eight months; he knew what the client’s needs were in terms of wedding photography.
Mark quickly became one of the best wedding photographers in TREE STUDIO and received a lot of good reviews from couples.
Gradually, I found he had the awareness of his own fine art wedding photography style.
Mark partly agreed with my natural and candid wedding photography. However, he suggested we shall use our aesthetic sense to get good resonance with the wedding couples’ personal touch and emotion.
Mark received more and better reviews than me. The arrogance and envy drove me to ignore Mark’s suggestion blindly.
The conflict appeared on the surface. In the beginning, Mark and me just argued our different opinions privately.
A few months later, Mark even affirmed that he disliked my wedding photography in public, in front of other photographers at Tree studio’s meeting room.
I couldn’t control my emotions instantly and increased my voice volume in front of the group of other colleagues in the Tree studio meeting room.
‘LISTEN TO ME OR GO AWAY!’ I said firmly.
Mark didn’t offend me with even one word, and he walked out of the Tree studio meeting room quietly.
I felt regret and ashamed straight away after all people left the room. I sat in the empty meeting room alone and asked myself:
Who am I?
Why did I repeat the same words Master John did to me five years ago?
There is no right and wrong with candid wedding photography. There is no excuse for me constraining Mark’s fine art wedding photography and his awareness.
Everyone should have their own pursuit. Like a tree, there are many roots to nurture the tree itself to keep life flourishing. Similarly, TREE STUDIO should absorb different views.
The next day, I completely revealed my thoughts. Mark accepted my apology, and our relationship is even better than before; we worked together like a team even more.
I rethought the relationship between Master John and me and our different points of view towards wedding photography style.
I then dialled John’s phone number; I hadn’t called this most familiar number for almost five years.
Just in a few seconds, dear John, my mentor, spoke to me like five years ago.
‘Hi my best boy, how’s it going?’
