James Huffstutler: Central Florida Photo Club

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF

My name is James Huffstutler. I am a hobbyist photographer living in Winter Haven, Florida, with my wife and kids. My father was in the Air Force growing up, but we settled in Winter Haven around 2003. I graduated from Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School in 2011 and Florida Southern College in 2014.

WHAT SPARKED YOUR INTEREST IN PHOTOGRAPHY?

I have been interested in photography since I was a young child. I remember spending hours poring over old family photos, asking my parents for a disposable camera any chance I got, and posing my toys in elaborate scenes and using our camera to take photos of them. In 2014, I picked up an old film camera at a yard sale and shot a roll of film. It really reignited my interest in photography, and I found a vibrant active community of other photographers still shooting film all over the world.

WHAT WAS THE FIRST PHOTO YOU WERE REALLY PROUD OF?

My most memorable photo was taking my daughter’s first photos in the hospital right after she was born. This was mid-2020 during the height of the COVID pandemic, which meant no one was allowed to visit the hospitals, including outside photographers. I packed up my medium format film camera and a few weeks later, when I developed the film, I was very happy to have beautiful, high-quality, and very precious photos of our newborn.

SELF-TAUGHT, TUTORIALS, WORKSHOPS?

Photography for me has mainly been self-taught with a lot of trial and error. I took a film class in high school that taught me a lot of the basics of visual language, but YouTube and online blogs have been my main source of technical photographic knowledge. I am always still learning. Every time I go out and take photos is an opportunity to learn and improve.

WHAT KIND OF CAMERA DO YOU SHOOT WITH?

I enjoy using a wide variety of cameras, both film and digital. I like the saying that the best camera is the one you have with you. My preference is for easy-to-carry mirrorless digital cameras, rangefinder film cameras and vintage twin lens reflex cameras.

WHAT’S YOUR STYLE? INSPIRATION?

I would describe my style as a mix of observational, documentary, and architectural. I enjoy taking photos around downtown historic districts or urban environments. One of my favorite subjects is the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture at my alma mater Florida Southern College. More recently, I have been enjoying photographing around the Disney World theme parks. I enjoy taking photos anywhere there is interesting light and subjects.

One of my main sources of inspiration is the photographic community and my photographer friends who are doing incredible work all the time. They inspire me to keep getting out there, making more work, and pushing myself to become a better photographer.

TELL US ABOUT THE CENTRAL FLORIDA PHOTO CLUB

Central Florida Photo Club was born out of my desire to attend local photography meetups and events. For a long time, I would see these events happening in cities all around the world, but when I looked for anything similar happening locally, I came up empty.

Three years ago, I decided to start my own group to host meetups and try to grow a community here in Central Florida. With a little bit of optimism, I called it Central Florida Photo Club. It started out small, but now we get photographers and creatives from all over Central Florida.

My goal with the club is to organize relaxed events where local creatives can come out, share ideas, and create together. One of my favorite things about the photographic community is the number of experienced photographers willing to share their knowledge and advice to those just starting the hobby without charge or expectation of anything in return.

WHAT’S YOUR EDITING STYLE?

My editing style is pretty simple, with usually only some minor exposure adjustments, cropping, and color grading. I enjoy shooting black and white film, and I find myself gravitating toward monochrome for certain subjects even when shooting digital. For select shots, I will get into more advanced lighting and masking techniques in Lightroom. Whether dealing with film or digital files, my thought is that each negative, positive, or raw image is the starting point that will require post-processing to reach the desired final image ready to share.

BIGGEST CHALLENGE? BIGGEST REWARD?

What I always struggle with is finding the time to get out and take photos. With a family and a full-time job, photography often takes a back seat to the rest of life. However, I try to keep a camera with me almost always, and that way, I’m able to make time for it when possible.

One of the most rewarding parts of photography recently has been seeing the photography community in Central Florida growing. Being even a small part of that is highly rewarding.

CURRENT WORK? DREAM PROJECTS?

Lately, I’ve been putting out some long-form videos exploring my photography process. For me, it’s a new way to share my work. Social media can put a lot of pressure on photographers to keep creating and putting out content, so having a variety of projects that are more than just making a social media post is important for me. One of my current long-term goals is to produce a new photography book within the next couple of years.

ANY ADVICE FOR BEGINNERS?

Get out and take photos. There is a lot of advice out there, and not all of it is good. Find what works for you and your workflow. And be sure to consume the work of others, including photographers currently active as well as influential photographers from the past. Study the looks and styles of others while you work to develop your own unique voice. Don’t get caught up on what is the best gear; use what you have and practice a lot. Also, bring a camera with you everywhere. If you see something that catches your eye, take a photo. Every bad photo is an opportunity to learn.

THANK YOU

I would like to thank my wife Amy and my kids for putting up with me every time I stop to take photos when we are out.

Central Florida Photo Club

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