Zooming in on the Life of Justin Potter
- FueledUp
- Feb 6, 2020
- 3 min read
If you follow FueledUp or if you happen to work in the NASCAR industry you might recognize the name, Justin Potter. From experience, don't google his name and click on images because someone by the name of Justin Bieber just might be your result.
From little league sports, sunsets, landscape and skylines to weddings, maternity and gender reveals, family photos, and professional sports, Justin Potter has captured just about anything a photographer would want to. Believe it or not, he didn't get serious with photography until about 2017 but before we get any farther let's start from the beginning.
Potter was born in Grand Junction, Colorado and moved to California when he was two. When he lived in southern California, Pomona Dragway was within thirty minutes away and from that point on racing has been in his life in some form or another. Justin eventually settled in Kelseyville, California when he was five. This is where he went to the local 1/4 mile Lakeport Speedway, every Saturday night. Lakeport Speedway is also where his mother was the track photographer after she herself quit racing. His mother, Kolene Potter, is where his love for both racing and photography really began. He learned through her from the young age of five and Justin says he gives her all the credit for his style and outlook on photography.
Justin Potter's photography has won him a couple contests including the Lake Norman photo of the year in 2018 and most recently, the Blueridge Outdoors magazine photo contest of the year. One of his favorite places is Yellowstone National Park. His love for hiking and photography took off after a visit to the park in 2015. Two places that are on his bucket list is Iceland and Switzerland as he says it would be a dream come true.
If you already follow Potter on social media I'm sure you know about his four-legged best friend. He is a seven year old American Foxhound and he has been with Justin since he was five weeks old. Cramer and his brother was a foster of Justin but there was an immediate bond between Justin and Cramer. Since he was six months old he has had a fear of people and other dogs. A couple years ago Justin learned hiking was not only one of his favorite activities but it's also Cramer's number one favorite activity.
At the age of 16, Justin Potter started racing and like many short track drivers he worked on the car by himself. The aerodynamic part of it was so fascinating to him that he wasn't afraid to cut something off and build it himself and this gave him a first sign of his career path. He went to a school based on NASCAR and it was here where he decided he wanted a career in fabrication. Shortly before graduation, Justin was hired at a local shop that fabricated NASCAR bodies.
Since May of 2008, Potter has worked at Stewart-Haas Racing as a fabricator and here's what he had to say about working there:
"Working at SHR is a great place to work, I feel like it’s one of the most laid back upper level teams in NASCAR and I think that starts at the top. Tony is the leader and we all know he has our back in everything we do but we also know that he expects us to work harder than anyone else in the garage."
To follow along on Justin Potter's journey you can find him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at Justin Potter Photography!
Special thanks to Justin for all of his support as I continue my own journey.
In loving memory of Kolene Potter.
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