It was a real pleasure chatting with Levi Sim, author, teacher, and photographer. Levi shared his backstory and how he captured this amazing landscape shot.
When Levi Sim Became a Professional Photographer
Photography wasn’t Levi’s first career choice. In fact, he had been convinced that he “couldn’t make a living as a photographer” and got degrees in geology and Chinese. Later though, he joined his dad and brothers as a hobbyist photographer… that first year he took over 100,000 photos, quit his job and has been going “gang-busters” ever since.
In addition to his portrait and commercial photography business, Levi enjoys teaching photography and sharing his knowledge on photofocus.com, where he’s a regular contributor.
Why Levi Sim Loves this Photo
This breathtaking shot was taken in the Utah desert. Levi loves that this photo is not of one of the more famous locations – like Delicate Arch or Mesa Arch – and is unique, “It’s original, but familiar.” With his background in geology, Levi wanted to capture the tumbling rocks that lead up to the butte. The formation shows millions of years of geological history. The roundness of the older rocks contrasts with the sharper angles of the younger rocks above.
For this shot, Levi used a tripod and a Panasonic GH4 with a 42.5mm lens and HDR to capture several exposures. He explains how knowing what your equipment can do allows everything to remain large.
Levi Sim on When a Photo is Finished
Levi believes, “a camera picture is never finished” and it takes processing skill and choosing the right type of presentation for a photograph to be complete. “I think pictures of big places should be printed big.” He loves how this image looks with the TruLife Acrylic face mount. For Levi, the last step in the process is making a photograph tangible – printed and displayed – and that it is what he imagined when he clicked the shutter.
To learn more about Levi’s work, visit him at
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