By Mike Tedesco, Pro Photo Community

It all started with a teenager looking for a hobby. Astronomy, collecting, and sewing didn't catch on, but once Reed got his first experience shooting a Single Lens Reflex (SLR) and processing his images in a darkroom, he was hooked. "My parents said I chose photography because of the expensive technical equipment, but once my best friend and I got in that homemade darkroom and started developing our own images, it was like working with magic!"

Reed decided to take his newfound love to the next level by asking for a job with the high school yearbook editor serving as a photographer. A local pro photographer was working on the yearbook for the school, so Reed wound up assisting him with high school sporting events. "This is where my passion for capturing the moment and storytelling began." Working with this pro photographer for the next several years is where Reed began training his eye for capturing the best images.

Coming out of high school, Reed knew he wanted to continue with his passion, and fortunately the local paper had a part-time position available. "The Sunday Courier and Press was a great experience because it was like working for a magazine. Since the paper only published on Sunday, you were able to spend time on your assignments, which really allowed you to get into the story so you weren't just looking for the quick one or two snapshots."

This translates into one of Reed's primary philosophies: really think about the subject and the best way to capture it using whatever tools you have available. "All too often, photographers will see something that looks nice, snap a few shots of it, and move on." Even in his workshops today, Reed will ask his students what they have in their bags. He requires them to use each piece of equipment in their bag to capture the subject and tell the story. "This forces the photographer to go beyond the first thing they see."

Reed made his first foray into digital imaging back in the mid-nineties when he was working for two newspapers in Rochester, New York, the Times-Union and Democrat and Chronicle. The photo staff was shared between the two, so there was the potential to have your images in both newspapers. The other benefit was that the company that owned the papers (Gannett) was very cutting edge and always looked for opportunities to drive the business forward with technology.

"I remember when I got the call in 1996 and was told that we were going digital. I was given one of the Associated Press NC2000e's (built by Kodak) and a laptop and was sent off to figure it out." When the paper went all digital in 1997 it was up to Reed to educate 11 photographers on how to use the cameras and software. The paper purchased 23 cameras, laptops, and cell phones for transmission and this made the 11 photographers at the paper the envy of many around the world. Few papers made as large an investment in digital equipment as Rochester did.

While working with Kevin Gilbert covering the Discovery Eco-Challenge series from 1997-2002, Reed moved to all digital himself and quickly had a crash course in digital workflow. "Fortunately, Photo Mechanic was available and we were able to automate much of our workflow out in the field." After working together more and realizing they had a unique level of knowledge in the digital photography realm, Reed and Kevin founded Blue Pixel.

Today, Reed spends quite a bit of his time teaching shooting workshops and digital workflow, and consults with many news agencies on equipment and workflow. Digital has brought so many new clients into the mix that Reed has three to five times the number of workshop opportunities he did in the analog days. "It has made photography a much more accessible hobby for people. Making a change in someone's workflow and helping get them excited about their photography is what makes teaching so satisfying."

The shooting workshops are also fun for Reed because they make him feel like he's come full circle. "I go exploring again just like I did as a teenager, when my shooting buddy and I hopped in a van to go looking for pictures."