• Ncounter

by Marron Marvel on 09.03.10

Do you remember when Photoshop didn't have layers? I do.

A lot of you reading this will likely have no idea who Scott Kelby is. That's OK; most of you aren't extreme graphic arts nerds like I am. So, a little history for those who don't know. Scott Kelby is a Photoshop guru. Not just any Photoshop guru, the Photoshop Guru. The editor-in-chief for Layers Magazine (the go-to source for everything Adobe-related), editor, publisher and co-founder of Photoshop User magazine, and the president of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP), Kelby is a photographer, designer, and author of more than 50 books — his most famous and greatest being (in my personal opinion) Photoshop Down & Dirty Tricks.

I was just finishing my lap around the Photoshop World 2010 convention in Las Vegas when my co-worker and I happened to realize we had just walked past Scott Kelby.

"You should ask him for a photo!" I told my co-worker excitedly, but he refused.

It was up to me to approach him. Down-to-earth and checking out some of the booths himself, I waited for Kelby to finish talking to another attendee before approaching him. I asked if he would take a picture with me, and he agreed. My co-worker (being graphic artists, we were sent to this convention for research purposes/free swag) took the picture with his iPhone, and Kelby jokingly said, "Take one more. I always look better in the second picture." The second picture was taken, and there were handshakes and plenty of praise and admiration for Kelby, his books, and his work.

This Friday being the last day of Photoshop World, I didn't expect to see anyone famous still hanging around — let alone Scott Kelby himself! It was an honor and a pleasure to meet him and a delight to know he's as laid back and friendly as any normal person — of course, he's not normal; he's super awesome, but that's another story for another time.