Business: Video Producer
Business
Video Producer:
John Garcia
by Mike Yoshiura
John Garcia is a digital media specialist because he can do everything from web development, to photography, to graphic design, and even branding and marketing of products.
The 23-year-old produces the television show Get Fit Hawaii, which airs Monday though Friday on KHNL K5. Garcia also owns his own business, Pixeloptic Studios, a digital cross-media studio located in the Kaimuki. Over the course of the last five years, the young entrepreneur has honed his skills in different aspects of digital media, and today, he is one of the up and coming in the industry.
A Go Getter
When John Garcia turned 18, he discovered that he had a knack for photography through his fascination with cars. Intrigue made John purchase a car and a camera, but the rest is history. "Everything I've achieved today is because of my passion," said Garcia.
"When I got out of high school I bought this crappy digital camera, and one of my friends called me with this idea to start up a car club. Back then I had my little Honda Accord, and that was the first car I bought. I was like, 'I want to soup this thing up' because I was still a kid. I knew this guy, Alex Kam, through (high school) track and field and we were the same age. Through Alex, we started this group called Race Sauce. We went to all the local shows and events, and I would do photo shoots with the cars. I said to myself, 'hey if I can take pictures of cars, why can't I incorporate that into my design?' I started doing headshots and weddings. Then I started photographing models and doing model portfolios. After that I moved on to commercial photography and event coverage."
And to think, it all started with that "grandpa colored" sedan. "I bought it for $8,000, and that was my first loan I got at 18. I ended up paying it off two or three years later, and now I'm driving a Hummer H3."
It turns out that John didn't even have a driver's license when he purchased his first car. "I told myself 'if I'm going to get my license, I better put it on myself to get a car because you can't rely on other people to take you places."
It's that very attitude that's taking John places these days…
A Discovery
While attending Kalani High School, John took a business marketing class that introduced him to the first day of the rest of his life. "In high school, I didn't really get much exposure to computers until my junior year. I took this business marketing class that outlined power point, word, and some other basics programs. From there, I realized that I liked computers, so I decided to take an A-plus computer certification-training course. I started out with programming, and while building my websites I thought to myself, 'I had better learn something about graphics.' That's when I got into Photoshop, and I sort of honed my skills," he says, as he laughs. "I actually hated Photoshop because I didn't know how to use it. I had to teach myself everything! It was all about trial and error, and looking at different things that inspire me."
Getting Started
"This was a turning point in figuring out what I wanted to do with my life. There was a technology fair called Tech Quest, which was sponsored by a lot of the big shots in the community as far as technology goes. My group entered the application development category, and we ended up creating a website for Kalani High School sports. It was a dynamic sports website that enabled coaches to upload the team rosters and scores without having any knowledge of the web at all. You can log onto a forum and check out rosters, stats, and all the latest information. My team made a presentation at the fair and we won first place."
John's team received a $500 scholarship, but more importantly, it was the exposure he needed to get started in the industry. The summer after he graduated from high school, John received an invitation to intern at CTA Staffing. During that month-long internship he started doing more intense web design and graphic development.
For The Love Of The Game
"If I didn't have the passion, none of this would exist. Passion is the key, but at the same time you need to specialize in something. I do a lot of different things so I'm still trying to find my niche so to say. I think it's photography, but I'm still in this transition," said Garcia.