About the Photographer: Mike Gaudaur

Mike with his safari camera gearIn ninth grade I discovered that my high school had a darkroom. That very day, as I watched an image appear in the developing tray I was hooked. For Christmas that year all I wanted was a camera. The second hand Minolta SLR I received was the perfect tool for me to start learning the craft of photography. Within months I was selling sports action shots to my classmates.

By eleventh grade I was a regular contributer to our local newspaper, and the the photo editor of the school yearbook. Before graduating I was already being asked to photograph weddings and shoot portraits. Upon graduation I set out to spend a year exploring Europe and the Middle East with my camera.

Photography was a great part time job, but it did not yet seem right as a career, so I trained as a teacher. Through out college and my first ten years of teaching I continued to shoot weddings, portraits, and sports. It was only after taking a teaching position in Kenya that wildlife and landscape photography became a passion.

Teaching photography provided me with lots of opportunities to photograph, develop, and print; to refine my 'craft and vision.' The school's switch to diigital photography seemed inevitable so I began to research and learn all I could about it. Digital capture and processing enthralled me, but it was not until inkjet printing came of age that I was willing to commit to a totally digital workflow.

I have spent the past 12 years teaching photography during school terms and photographing on safari during the term breaks. Online training and countless late nights experimenting resulted in a full compliment of Photoshop skills. While back home in Canada I was able to formalize my training and become an Adobe Certified Expert in Photoshop. The learning didn't stop there. Lightroom, onOne Perfect Photo Suite, and the Nik Software collection have allowed me to push my photographic style even further.

all images © 2013 Mike Gaudaur
all rights reserved