By Mike Tedesco, Pro Photo Community

"There is nothing more entertaining than people and the fact that they're completely unpredictable!" This is the primary motivation behind Bambi Cantrell's relentless passion for exclusively photographing people. Ever since she was five years old, Bambi has loved looking at pictures of people. If she was bored or her parents wanted her to sit still for a while, they'd sit her on the couch with a family photo album, and she'd be hooked for hours.

In high school, with the money she was earning at a part time job, Bambi picked up a basic point-and-shoot camera. She never took photographs for her high school. Instead, she stuck with the usual grab shots of family and friends. When she got married at an early age, she hired a friend, a rank amateur, to photograph her wedding. The results were terrible, but the disappointment created the drive that led her to a career in professional photography. So when she and her husband moved to California, Bambi began working for free as an assistant to gain experience shooting weddings. After seven years as an assistant and second shooter, Bambi decided it was time to break out and start her own business.

Today, Bambi is a cutting-edge wedding and portrait photographer, always looking to create her own style that is based on the needs of the client and the scene where she is photographing. "My style is very fashion oriented and editorial in nature," says Bambi. "I like to be very intimate and close in on the face. The most powerful point of the image is so often in the eyes!"

Bambi has never had an aversion to shooting differently and trying something new. As one of the first female professionals to begin shooting digital, she started with a Phase One digital back tethered to a laptop in 1998. "I never really had a desire to be a digital photographer, but as a businesswoman, I was smart enough to recognize the industry was quickly heading in the digital direction. I decided I'd rather be on the forefront than in the back of the pack."

Digital technology has done so much for Bambi's images and her career. "With the advances in cameras and the experience I've gained since 1998, I get the desired film-like results often easier than I could with film." The instant feedback and results that digital provides has allowed Bambi to be 1000 times more creative. Now, she can run with an idea and see if she's on the right track and modify things as needed. She has become much more zealous about her creativity than she ever was with film. "I feel like I have so much more control over the creative process today!"

As Bambi arrives at a wedding, she dissects the day into little clusters and tries to keep things simplistic for the wedding party. "How and where can I get the best image with the highest impact in the shortest timeframe?" Bambi strives to use the elements available and simply lets things happen, naturally. The more she can blend into the scene and the more comfortable her clients are with her, the more natural her images will be.

For an aspiring photographer, Bambi can't emphasize enough the importance of learning the basic photography skills. "Learning the difference between an f-stop from a bus stop may sound absurd," she says, "but it is something I tell all of my workshop attendees." She means that even though today's cameras are so advanced and can do a lot for the photographer, proper composition, lighting, and exposure can't be accomplished by just pointing and shooting. "In the wedding world, you have to be nimble, and you really need to check your ego at the door; Humility over ability." Whether someone is getting a degree in photography or learning from the school of hard knocks, it's all about being a hard worker, and a great communicator. You've got to understand the craft before you start taking the shortcuts.

All of these skills have helped Bambi produce incredible images in the most unique wedding situations. "I remember once arriving at the bride's location. As the bride came out in a beautiful peach gown and stepped into a horse drawn carriage, I thought what a typically perfect wedding day. Of course I should have known better. We arrived at the lake for the ceremony and reception, and the groom arrived on a dirt bike with his sister on the handlebars, who turned out to be the best man. At the reception, the groom's family pulled a trailer up to the park and rolled out a dirt bike/exercise bike that was used to mix margaritas." In the end, the day was both beautiful and a fascinating, new experience. "Like I said, people are so funny and so unpredictable. You've got to be prepared for virtually anything!"