We recently connected with Scott Brumbaugh and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Scott, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
In life we can fight, flee, or hide and pretend like negative attacks aren’t happening. When the attack is from a critic, we can lean on the support of friends to have our backs. When you are the critic, no one can save you. No encouragement goes far because you are both the aggressor and the victim. With time you can see your improvement in the art and lean on it to fight back the internal conflict, but you both know it is still there. I am just self-aware and duplicitous enough to know my skill and still hate everything that I shoot. I know that someday you will see that I am a poser. That is my superpower though. I can see my failures before you do. I can see what I specifically need to improve on. I choose to do those improvements in my art for the sake of getting better. I own my doubts. I am my own worst critic. I am far more polite and civil than an outsider would be because I already know my shortcomings. I chose to harness my inner imposter, threw a bit in his mouth, and forced him to guide my education. No teacher could tailor that kind of education for me. He is still around, but at the end of the day, my art wins. I win.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I was formerly an adventure and landscape photographer, until I lost my gas money for travel then had to try something else. I stumbled into the alternative modeling culture in Houston, and learned not only how to shoot portraits but found my brand. Two years ago, I rebranded to go back to my roots shooting adventure photography but with the new skills that came from the alternative portrait world. I now specialize in adventure portraiture. While trying to define my style, I put out a survey and my favorite response was “Adventure Gothic”. Why compete with others if you can create and follow your own path?
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Identifying my shortcomings and targeting them. “Tonight’s shoot was a failure because the lighting was off!”. After I calmed down, I would get very specific. “Tonight’s failure was because my lighting was illuminating the background too much and…”. Then I would research how to fix that very specific issue. Lastly, I would schedule any shoot to try and correct the issue. So, many times I would get stuck on the first step and swear off photography to the point of pricing all of my gear to sell or just give away. Two weeks later, I would be researching how to fix the problem. This was a continuous cycle.
Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?
The adventurer who wants to see who they truly are or who they can truly be. Every person while in their adventure has a very limited scope of view. The rock climber sees his next hold, the mountain biker sees his bars and the next root, the kayaker sees his paddle and bow of his boat. None of them see themselves in their adventure. They might get a phone pic or two, but I believe in giving people the drama of their adventure. I don’t photoshop anything, so it is always honestly their adventure, but a bit more dramatic than then they may perceive it to be. Or the adventurer who wants a portrait based around their passion. I can do tame to the truly bizarre. If the concept calls for smoke bombs and fire so, be it. I once did a mountain bike portrait that was horror movie themed. We had thirty blades and a bloody chainsaw hanging from the trees and decapitated stuffed animals on the ground. She showed up and looked beautify and striking in the scene.
Contact Info:
- Website:BoomyOutdoors.com
- Instagram: @boomy_outdoors
- Facebook: @BoomyOutdoors
Image Credits
Kelly Nobles Lowell Shapley Diana Vargas Le Jessica Barger Hummel Valerie Della Longa Rylie Elkin
