To speak in the simplest of terms, 2015 was an incredible year for both me and my business. While the year brought forth some big changes to my business, I was also able to create some of the biggest and best photography work I’ve had so far in my career. Between moving to Los Angeles, to moving on from work positions I had in the industry, this year has brought along a lot of changes, so I wanted to focus on some of them here, as this blog is usually the first to get neglected when it comes to these things.
My Move to Los Angeles
Perhaps the biggest change to my life in 2015 was my move to Los Angeles, CA. This change came with a lot of challenges. First, my business was thriving in Albuquerque, making it entirely difficult to leave a market that has been so fruitful and supportive of my work. Secondly, Los Angeles is terrifying, both in competition and scope. Despite these challenges, I decided to take the leap out here, and I’m incredibly thankful I did.
The reason for my leap to Los Angeles to become a premiere headshot photographer has been discussed in this blog before, but I’m happy to talk about it again. To put it bluntly, I hate feeling comfortable, because I think that laziness and neglect come from comfort. In Albuquerque, I felt incredibly comfortable. Financially, I was doing well, and my business was doing a fantastic job self-marketing itself, generating a lot of leads to me. I found myself bored and missing the hustle.
Now by no means do I love Ramen or Mac and Cheese, but I found that some of the most exciting times in my career are when I was forced to eat them most. Beyond anything else, I love to squirm, because I think my work is at it’s most creative when I feel uncomfortable. Creating beautiful work to prove myself to others, and to myself. In Albuquerque, I didn’t have that feeling anymore….I was established.
And so I moved. And when I was selecting my city of moving, I chose Los Angeles, the largest and most competitive market for the industry I want to be apart of. And while that move comes with an overwhelming insecurity in your own work, I’m excited to continue to grow here in Los Angeles and eventually become the guy for Headshot Photography in Los Angeles.
Some Photos from 2015
My Changes in Position
Not only did my location change physically this year, I also made a few business moves to help my career. Among those, is leaving my position as long time Features Editor at Fstoppers. After hundreds of articles and thousands of comments, I decided it was time for me to focus my attention elsewhere, and the reasoning radiated a lot of the same points I made above when talking about my transition to Los Angeles. I was bored.
And so, I decided to bring my attention to other mediums where I could teach what I know, and help bring the community of photographers together. I took a position as the Editor in Chief at LensRentals.com, and later, also took the position of Features Editor at Resource Magazine Online.
Some Photos from 2015
My Educational Services
This past year has also been a huge year for me on the educational front. Through my continued work with Phase One sponsored photography workshops, I was able to travel all over the United States to teach people on both lighting and retouching. These workshops were extended to two day events, and the response I got from others on them were incredibly positive. In fact, these workshops allowed me to work with Profoto, and become one of their sponsored photographers teaching students the practical use of off camera flash. While we don’t have dates or locations figured out, I’m working diligently with my sponsors and teams to develop content and a schedule for a line of workshops in 2016. If you’re interested in those, stay tuned for some big announcements soon.
Some Photos from 2015
What 2016 Will Bring
The most exciting thing for me right now, is the future. I’m so beyond excited to kick off my new year in Los Angeles and continue my quest to do more celebrity photography work, more editorials, and more actor headshots in Los Angeles. If 2016 turns out to be 1/3rd as good as 2015 was, I’ll be happy. So here is to the new year!
