My name is not actually Matthew Saville, it's Matthew Saville Baldon, but Matthew Saville just sounded more professional and artistic! I'm 23 and have lived in Orange County CA all my life. I'm a wedding photographer and Photoshop instructor, with children's theater photography on the side.

Since I'm only 23 it might be hard to believe but my first experience with photography was in the dark room, developing and processing photos from a fully manual film SLR. I took classes in high school and at a community college for 35mm, medium format, and 4x5. I think that this initial exposure to manual camera operation was critical in my current abilities. Beyond the basic classes I'm mostly learning things on my own, which involves much technical experimentation and many hours searching the internet.

Long before I first clicked a shutter, I feel like I "started" my passion for beautiful imagery by spending my younger days and nights in the outdoors hiking, camping, and being isolated in nature's mighty grandeur. I think those un-photographed sunrises and other wilderness scenes are what shaped my "vision", even though I didn't have a camera.

I first picked up a camera in high school, taking just snapshots of my friends riding bikes. As soon as I saved up some money and bought a P&S digital however, I began making weekly trips to the beach. Photography has been my professional passion for a bit more than two years now.

My wedding / event bag contains two Nikon DSLR bodies, a D200 and a D70, and sometimes a Canon DSLR if the light is really bad. The lenses in this bag are usually the Sigma 50-150 2.8 DC, the Nikon 17-55 2.8 DX, 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.4, and maybe the stabilized 70-200 2.8 (Nikon or Canon) if it's especially dark and a monopod isn't practical... Oh and two Nikon flashes, a gorillapod so I can put a remote flash ANYwhere, and a macbook laptop for reception slideshows... I look forward to adding a D300 to my bag and converting my D70 to IR. If Nikon would make a 17mm f/1.4 DX, I'd add that to my bag too! ;-)

On my own outdoor adventures, I just take my D200, the Nikon 12-24 DX, the "cheapo" 24-85 G, and my beloved Sigma 150mm f/2.8 Macro. My Induro 214 aluminum tripod and Sigma circular polarizer are probably the more important tools though! *wink* I also put a roll of Velvia through my old Nikon FM2 every now and then...

Nope, no intentions to "go full frame" at this point. Maybe I'll reconsider some day when Nikon makes a D300 size / quality body with a 20+ MP FX sensor, but until then the likes of a D200 / D300 are best for me for high-resolution, high-adventure outdoor needs, and a 20D / 30D get the job done when I shoot in indoors in a dark theater or church.

There's nothing quite like standing alone in a misty meadow at sunrise, or on a rocky bluff overlooking tide pools and deep blue ocean under moody clouds at sunset... I love to photograph in pristine outdoor locations where few other people go. In the Sierras and the Southwest there are just too many amazing locations to list them all!

Living in suburbia however, I can't always have that, so I often settle for visiting nearby photogenic locations at times when most people aren't out and about. There are plenty of lakes and beaches that are quite beautiful if you visit at the right time of day.

I'll photograph any and all subjects if they catch my eye and compel me, but I really enjoy placing people into my nature photos. I think this is partly what pushed me in the direction of wedding photography, because there are many couples out there who are interested in taking natural portraits in a beautiful outdoor setting instead of in a studio... I have a wedding in February that could involve rope-climbing into a very tall tree for a portrait session!

This is going to be a weird list: the late adventure photographer Galen Rowell- I'm in awe of the locations and vantage points he managed to capture! Landscape masters such as Rodney Lough Jr and Peter Lik- When you see a monster print by one of them, it's as if you're transported right to that location, and you soak in all of it's beauty... I also admire the current wedding photography masters such as Becker and Scott Robert; I admire their eye for perfect moments, their creative compositions and fantastic timing, and especially their masterful computer image processing. I also have a huge appreciation and respect for the documentary work of photojournalists such as James Nachtwey and Steve McCurry, because they continually put themselves in dangerous situations in order to capture an image that will tell the rest of the world a cold, hard truth...

This January it'll be 4 years! There are so many features I enjoy, but namely the full customizability is critical to me, and as a wedding / event photographer the print sales system (especially getting a check in the mail without having to track a single address or credit card number) is something I can't live without anymore. I've come up with my own promotion and discounting tricks, so I'm a really happy camper... I really look forward to "SmugStock", too!!!

Smugmug hasn't just revolutionized the way I do business, it has also made my clients much happier. For example, children's theater parents don't have to scramble and order proofs all at once during intermission anymore, they just watch my slideshow, pick up a card, and order online!

With things like weddings, portraits, and the like, the bottom line has to do with knowing your equipment like the back of your hand, and being constantly ready to capture (or create / stage) that perfect moment. The best way to learn to CREATE moments is hands-on, preferably next to an experienced professional. With nature photography, the bottom line is having an alarm clock, a tripod, and a beautiful scene. If you have those things, and practically ANY camera with manual control, the rest will follow over time. Just get out to a location as often as possible, and the place itself, the light itself, will teach you...