Despite his keen eye for capturing beautiful images, “photographer” is not David Will’s full-time profession. Will’s interest in photography dates back to a course he took in high school, but his techniques are largely self-taught.
Will, 45, works full time as an account manager at Enterprise, but his passion for photography continues to flourish through his commercial advertising job on the side. He describes himself as a technical shooter. “I kind of have that techy-geeky mentality,” he says. “There are technical and creative aspects to [photography]. I have strengths in both so it’s a good fit.”
The winning photo, Homesick Exchange Student: Eagle Lake, was a spur-of-the-moment shot taken with a Nikon D300. Will captured the moment as he approached Natsuo, a Japanese exchange student staying with David and his wife. The image was taken late into Natsuo’s stay while visiting with family friends and other host families for a summer picnic. After noticing that Natsuo had wandered away for a moment of solitude, Will took the shot as he approached the dock.
Inspired to act as a host parent after recalling fond memories of a Japanese exchange student his family hosted when he was growing up, Will says it was a cool experience to be a host family after all these years. Natsuo was the second Japanese exchange student for the Wills and will probably not be their last. “Hopefully we’ll do it more in the future.”
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Homesick Exchange Student: Eagle Lake won first place in the “people” category of the 2011 Focus on Maple Grove Photo Contest. Watch this page for the 2012 winning photos, beginning in January.
