Wingman Program is in full swing, but is it working?

I love that we've got Wingee's working with their Wingman and I know we are getting results. I do get bits and pieces of info here and there about how it's going, but I'd really like to hear from you guys as to what you've gotten out of it from the Wingee side of things as well as the Wingman side. 

This group is incredible and volunteering to help your peers out by donate time and energy to this is inspiring. Thanks for all that you guys are doing! 

Anyone want to chime in on their experience? 

For those that aren't sure about how our Wingman Program works here's the deal: 

Be a Protégé HSC member for 3 months and you get the ability to enter a Wingman request. Give me your top 3 choices of Mentor/Associate that you'd like to work with in the order you'd prefer by filling out the Wingman form. We'll reach out them and get you hitched. That's it. 

42 Comments

My experience so far has been good, but the contact to my wingpeople sort of faded out over time. I think they're mostly shooting other stuff these days and that's probably why... so, I'm ready for new wingees if anyone's interested.

Thomas is my wingman and I'm totally stoked! My decision was easy as he brought me to PH2Pro after some mail communication.
He builds me up when I'm down, we meet regularly online and he encourages me all the time.
In August he visited me and coached me during a shoot we organized.
And although I wasn't here in the HSC for some weeks he was always there and helped me when I have questions.
I'm looking forward to visit him next weekend! (But not looking forward to driving 6 hours... ) ;)

wow, thank you Sandra. that makes me realy happy. Thank you.

I like that Program and its also good for me to have Wingee's.
I only would like to have some Features on the Site to see the Posts and uploaded image from my Wingee's better.

Stan the man. Believe it or not, I talk to Steven 100 times more than you but boy do you throw tough ones at me or what? Love what you are doing, the way you shooting, the mistakes you make and the breakthrough are just unbelievable. So happy you got me in your corner. Keep pushing that envelope.

Bruno has been key to expediting my learning, especially with lighting. I still don't believe he sleeps, because he is almost always available even with a 12 hour time difference and I know he has many other wingees too. The 1x1 attention is invaluable.

The only thing I wonder about is does it sometimes take away from reaching a broader audience. I personally learn a lot from other people's posts, so I try to remind myself to also get the good and bad out there for different perspectives but also so that others can pick up some nuggets of their own.

Jen seeing what you have been doing with limited shooting exposure is awesome. Hope you find time to shoot more to give us more to talk about. I got the sleeping thing all worked out :-)

"I got the sleeping thing all worked out :-)" - and what does that mean? What's your technique for sleeping? :)

Just a figure of speech that I usually get enough sleep (3-4 hours) are good enough for me to function like a normal human being :-)

For me it is the same (usually around 4 hours of sleep) and sometimes I "forget" to go to sleep :D but yeah I imagined that for some the technique includes getting a lot of short sleeping times - 5 till 6 times for an hour or something a day and that is fine for them :)

is that the key to be a successful? (just joking)
If four hours is realy OK for you, then fine. I usualy sleeping 6-7 hours and i am the whole day tired and i have often no energy. So please pay attention to yourselves and watch your health.

it is realy great to read all the positive comments in that thread

Another vote for Bruno. He was pretty much the reason I joined the HC in the first place and has been helping me off the books right along. Now that he is officially my wingman, I can only expect more of the same.

I would not be nearly as far along without him. The poor guy has his hands full, but he always makes time for a wingee. Always.

Same for me Steven, Bruno is my wingman and my expectation for this year is to bring my game up under his guidance.

Hugo I have seen your work going from 0 to 60MPH in no tme at all when you join the Crew. Whenever you are ready and firing, you know where I am man. Thanks

Steven it is a good thing that we usually chat in the open otherwise the wives could be thinking we were having a photographic affair :-)
It's been a great joy always interacting the way we do. Appreciate the friendship.

I was very happy with the Wingman program. Kathryn was amazing and gave me clear feedback on various topics. I don't think I would have made associate in 2015 if it wasn't for her guidance.

I also got help from Gus Zimmerman, even if he wasn't officially my wingman (we met in Oslo so that's why we connected).

Having people who see your work on a regular basis and know your strengths and weaknesses is a great thing - very helpful.
Help in the forum is also good, but not everything is OK to discuss or show in public.

Just got my Wingman, Levy Moroshan. Looking forward to getting pushed even more.

What types of things do you review?

Levy is close to me in Portland, i hope I can visit him one day.

Reach out to me next week. I'm traveling for the next few days.

Gus is my Wingman and he and Alaina are both great. I haven't met with them in person yet but maybe sometime soon we can make it happen.

I did not get to make good use of the Wingman program as a Protege. But as an Associate, my Wingees have been my teachers in recent times through our discussion, troubleshooting and problem solving which is seriously affecting andd improving the quality of my work.
Their progress has been phenomenal and it shows in their work in the group discussions and their standings amongst the entries of HOTW.

When you give Peter your choices, make sure to be VERY detailed. He likes that...

Question...does one throw their hat in somewhere to serve as a Wingman or is it typically done through participation through the forums here?

I had the same question pretty much... is there a list of "ppl that want to be a wingman" somewhere for me to look through?

The wingpeople are associates or mentors, so wingee's pick from the batch of those by clicking the Crew Members link and taking a look. Active associates and mentors are the ones that are asked for the most, so keep that in mind. I'm sure someone would be fired up to work with you Randy.

Same. I'm happy to throw my hat in the ring to help a few folks.

Ive had a great experience with the program. With schedules getting hectic, plus family and kids, we haven't really touched base in some time. 2016 is a good time to fire up some contact again. In addition, I have found a TON of other people across the Crew willing and ready to provide awesome feedback. This is such a supportive and engaging community...Love it!

I'm always happy to take more. It's a great program. It's so rewarding helping people and seeing them shine. I think I was just as excited when my wingees made Associate as I was for myself.

Kathryn, I agree will you. It is so rewarding for me... I really enjoy working with Helen and Alaina. It was so great to see how they improve!!

After reading about all the good vibes and lessons learned through this program, I now want to take on a wingee or two myself!

Cool man. Get active and they'll track you down I'm sure.

Chris Gillett is my guy. Straightforward and tells it like it is. Match made in heaven! I do appreciate him, his work and his support! (Is that enough sucking up Chris?) ;)

Is it working? YES!! Yes and Yes.

When I first joined the Crew I was upset that I had to wait 3 months for a wingman, but I have to tell you- the wait is well worth it. There is a lot going on here and the 3 months allowed me to get into the swing of things. It allowed me to get to know some of the members and get a good feel for the Crew.

Gus is my wingman and the experience with he and Helen has exceeded every expectation that I had. It creates an intimate atmosphere where you can learn and grow together. Gus has whipped me into shape, even coming to SC to really nail down the nitty gritty details in my studio (am I lucky or what?!). Gus, Helen and I communicate on a regular basis and hold each other accountable. Even when life is hectic, we make the time to reach out. It speaks for itself when Gus has 2 wingees that are on their way to PhDs :)

Now as an associate, I have two wingees that I couldn't be more excited to work with. We have a facebook group and plan on meeting weekly through webex (all ideas that Gus implemented that I am carrying on).

Not only is the Wingman program beneficial, the entire Crew is. It may not be official, but several of you have taken me under your wings. Answering my crazy calls and the millions of questions that have ever come through my head. I've had the opportunity to meet several of you in person and truly feel this is an extended family. What I have learned here in a short amount of time would have taken me years, if ever, alone.

I'm so happy I skipped a nap and decided to walk into a conference room to hear From Zero to #SHABANG 48 weeks ago at Imaging USA. I had no idea it would change my life the way it has. Thank you, Peter & Crew.

Looking forward to having a wingman/woman. Although I am getting amazing feedback on a regular basis. Thanks everyone for your critiques. Bruno you have been extra helpful, taking the time to be as detailed are you are is much appreciated.

I had an amazing experience with Elaine, I became associate on the first review after being "winged" by her.
It's no magic, but having one on one feedback in realtime, via FB or skype is amazing.
Everybody should get a Wingman.

I've been working with Maxim unofficially for a month and we finally don't have to hide anymore :) It is so good to see that he is already making progress. He is always very respectful when he's talking to me. And he is always super excited about photography and that excitement sticks on me as well. So I encourage everyone to find a wingman.
As I said in my earlier post I woukd love to take on 2 more wingees if anyone is interested.

So, during the online intensive class I learned a ton of techniques I hadn't thought of or didn't have a clue how to make them work for me. Shortly after that you started the wingman program. I started with Pedro who definitely helped me learn how to work with the equipment, lighting (mostly) and some PS work, and to put what I learned in the class in action in each shoot. And, hit me hard on consistency.
Just about this time, I started receiving fb messages from several members telling me how much I had improved etc. Thanks to Pedro. He headed to NY and handed me off to Kathryn.

Kathryn.... WOW! I felt her goal was to help me with the nuts and bolts, tighten up my work and help me make Associate. I sent her the best 1-2 images from every single headshot session I had shot for about the previous 6 months. EVERY SINGLE SESSION. She reviewed them, we talked about what was good and what wasn't and most importantly to me WHY it wasn't good (technically how I got it there and how to fix it). She also helped me more with shooting, lighting, PS, confidence. Immediate and personal one on one critique, is the best part of this program. My first review after the wingman program started and working with both Kathryn and Pedro, I made Associate.

It works! I still work with Kathryn, ask questions, etc. I have found more often than not, the photographers in my area are less willing to help because they are worried about loosing business to you. This crew and the wingman program is so refreshing. Everyone is so willing to help! I am a true believer in karma... the wingman program has great karma.

I am ready to take on a wingee - I believe you learn just as much by teaching/coaching as you do being taught.

Maurice and I are both pretty busy, but Maurice made several times time for me. He came to my studio twice, once to help me out with Photoshop and once to help me out with my lights. He also took me along on a shoot in my neighborhood, to be able to see how he does his Headshots. I can always PM him, he will respond as soon he has time. Tonight he retouched a few of his Headshots and he shared his screen with his Wingees. Thank you Maurice, I appreciate it a lot!

Been in the program a week or so but already had a big impact. Maurice is helping tremendously with the issues holding me back, such as real business tactics and efficient retouching in LR. Very inspired by his success and he's a great teacher :-)

Maurice is my wingman, and although I just got into the program he's already helped me. Today, he held a meeting with his wings and showed us his headshot retouching work flow. He then provided us with his PS action that he runs on every retouch! He has been available for questions. By the looks of the others' comments, I think the program is a success.

There is no doubt that the wingman program works.

I got Bruno as my wingman and the first instance I called upon him to help me go over some headshots that I had selected and zeroed in on from a couple of shoots. What was - in my mind - going to be a 20 to 30 minutes discussion ends up into probably an hour or more skype chat with Bruno showing me some tricks and tips on how he would retouch certain areas.

I have had other crew members share info on the discussion too. So yeah it all works out if you make time for it and want to be helped. I think the crew is all ears all the time. You just need to ask for help! :)

Yes, its working! Very happy with my choise of wingman. Maurice is helping me out whenever I ask. A while back I went to his studio to take my headshot. He then also took the time to give me a little workshop. Hopefully it wil be one soon also with all the wingees.
Thank you Maurice :) Looking forward what wil come this year :)

Log in or Create an account to post comments.