Dan Saelinger
Director, photographer, collaborator, and hooded sweatshirt enthusiast Dan Saelinger is known for his colorfully creative work and collaborative spirit. He got his start in New York shooting conceptual imagery for major magazines, honing his creative ideation skills before relocating to Bend, Oregon, where he now works with global brands while enjoying a West Coast lifestyle with his family. Dan's work spans food, portraiture, tech, still life, animation, and motion—a mashup of pop cultural references and art history influences. His imagery is visually clean yet bursting with nuanced detail, and he brings a sense of creative playfulness to every set. Dan holds an MFA in photography from the Savannah College of Art and Design and has taught at the School of Visual Arts.
An honest conversation with photographers and industry professionals about what it takes to build and sustain a career in commercial photography. Pricing, client communication, dry spells, this panel gets into the parts of the photography business that you can't afford to overlook.
Dan Saelinger specializes in vibrantly colorful imagery, collaborating with brands on set and off, working from concept through capture and managing each production from the first deck through post. In this workshop, he breaks down how to think about color, composition, and lighting to make striking imagery through thoughtful pre-planning and intentional creative choices, even when you don't have the luxury of a perfectly controlled studio.
How do you get hired by brands? How do you price a shoot that includes both photo and video? And what do the people making those hiring decisions actually look for? This panel brings together photographers, advertising producers, and brand marketing leads for a conversation about how commercial photography really works, from the first email to the final deliverable.
A forward-looking conversation on how AI is being incorporated into commercial photography workflows, from pre-production ideation to post-production delivery. Panelists share how these tools are reshaping the industry and what photographers need to know to stay relevant, creative, and competitive.
Dan Saelinger has built a career on inventive imagery, working across stills, motion, CGI direction, and generative AI. In this workshop, Dan teaches participants how AI fits into a working commercial photographer's toolkit, not as a replacement for craft, but as another way to solve visual problems. He will cover where the technology genuinely helps, where it falls short, and how to keep your creative fingerprint intact.
A forward-looking conversation on how photographers and creatives are incorporating AI into their work, exploring the creative, ethical, and practical dimensions of a technology that isn't going anywhere. Grounded in curiosity rather than fear, the panel aims to leave attendees more informed and more empowered.
Space is limited. Get your passes today.
