An Evening With Adobe

In March of 2025, Adobe hosted an event for local creators at Emily Carr University in Vancouver, British Columbia. I had RSVP’d two weeks before, but a few days later, I received a surprise email from the Creative Cloud Community Team. The Adobe Creative Cloud Community asked if I’d be interested in photographing the event. I wasn’t entirely sure how I landed on their radar, but if you get an opportunity to photograph for Adobe because they’d seen your work and recognized the effort, you have to say yes.

I’ve been a photographer for five years but a professional for two years. Event photography wasn’t new to me; I had experience from shooting big events and weddings in the past.

Adobe Create Now turned out to be more than just an event. It was a space for connection, collaboration, and creative energy. I met incredible people, including designers, photographers, and illustrators. I even met one who photographed Taylor Swift and Nikki Glaser when they were both in town. At one point, I asked one of the Adobe team members how they found me, and she said I came up on Google and added that she loved the quality of my work. That stuck with me because it proves I don’t have to use social media all the time. She trusted my eye, my style, and my process without hesitation because she had seen what I do. I appreciated her generosity and faith in my work. 

So, let’s jump into a few weeks. and I was hired to shoot a small private event in early April. The event itself went smoothly, but something felt off in the communication. After sending the client previews, he commented that the lighting looked too “cinematic” and wanted to remove the color grading and wanted something like his friend took out of his iPhone. I was starting to be frustrated with his communication, but it became clear to me that he hadn’t looked at my website or my portfolio beforehand. He liked the idea of hiring a photographer but didn’t understand my way of approaching photography differently.

So this is what I learned from a brand looking at my work compared to someone not looking at my work before/after hiring me.

WHY THE QUALITY OF YOUR WORK MATTERS

When people see your work, they have the intention to trust you. It’s about clarity and trust. The work should resonate with your audience because they are not just hiring you for your camera or your lens; they are hiring you for your perspective. The opportunity from the Adobe team proved that my work can speak for itself, and that’s the strong beauty of consistency and effort. When people want me to photograph for their events or even their brand, I want to know what they’re getting. The emotion of their story, the atmosphere, the audience, or even their dedication to what they do. Quality work builds trust before you even say the slightest word because it filters the right people, and you don’t have to worry about expectations.

Every opportunity comes your way if you put the work in. Special thank you to Adobe and the Creative Cloud Team. Photos from the event can be found here.