You could do better!

"You could do better!" 

I heard that so many times as I was learning photography from Tim's dad, Bob, especially when showing him the 4 prints I wanted to enter into competition that year.

And he was usually right.

He knew when I had prints that wouldn't score well...and he also knew the ones that would. In 1992, he predicted I would score very high on one of my prints and indeed, I did. That year, I was the very first recipient of the Kodak Gallery Elite Award for the best photograph in the nation. And I won a Hasselblad camera for my efforts.

Bob was pivotal in setting the high standards of how we operate Walden's today.

Excellence was expected. No excuses, no matter what!

Tim grew up helping his dad in the darkroom as he learned the craft of photography, lovingly passed down from father to son.

And he remembers his dad saying, "You can come to me with anything except an excuse!"

His dad was paralyzed in his early 30s from a freak accident ...so if he didn't use any excuses for mediocrity, neither could we!

These are lessons that aren't taught in a book. They are learned through experience and a great teacher!

Thank you Bob for not letting us just slide by.